Bobby Vylan Position on Glastonbury Israel Defense Forces Chant: "No Remorse"

Punk duo frontman of Bob Vylan has stated he is "not regretful" about his "death, death to the IDF" performance at the festival and declared he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Disputed Chant and Official Reactions

The vocal music pair sparked significant controversy when they led crowd chants of "down with the IDF," referring to the IDF, during their June set. The slogan was condemned by Glastonbury and UK Prime Minister the prime minister, who labeled it as "shocking hate speech."

After the incident, the band was dropped by its agency United Talent Agency, and the US state department revoked the artists' travel documents, compelling the duo to call off a planned US and Canada tour.

Interview with the Podcaster

In his first public discussion after the Glastonbury show, the musician, whose real name is Pascal Foster, spoke on a popular podcast. After asked if he would do it all again, he responded:

"Oh yeah. Like suppose I was to perform at the festival again tomorrow, yes I would do it again. I'm without regret of it. I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

He added that the criticism the band encountered was "minimal compared to what individuals in Gaza are going through."

Regarding the Protest's Significance

"I aim not to overstate the importance of the chant," he continued. "It isn't what I'm trying to do, but since I have the Palestinian people's support, these are the individuals that I'm doing it for, they're the individuals that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to regret? Oh, because I've upset some rightwing politician or some rightwing media?"

Unexpected Response and Broadcaster Comments

This artist said he was surprised by the uproar triggered by the chant, and asserted that members of the broadcaster staff at the event told him on the day that the set was "fantastic."

Yet, the corporation's ECU subsequently determined that the network's broadcast of the show violated editorial guidelines in relation to harm and hurt.

Vylan told Theroux there was no sign of a controversy in the immediate aftermath: "It wasn't like we came off stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It felt normal. We come off stage. It was normal. No one suspected anything. Nobody. Even crew at the BBC were like 'It was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"

Reply to Blur Frontman

The musician also responded at the Blur singer, who called the chant "a major misstep I've witnessed in my life" and characterized Vylan as "goose-stepping in tennis gear."

Albarn's comment was "disappointing" and "showed no self-awareness," Vylan remarked.

"I just want to say that categorising it as a 'spectacular misfire' implies that in some way the politics of the duo or our stance on Palestine's freedom is not thought out," he stated.

"I strongly object with the phrase 'goose-stepping' being used because it's typically associated around Nazi Germany," he added. "That's it. And for him to use that wording, I think is offensive. I think his response was appalling."

Intent Behind the Chant

When questioned what he intended by the phrase "Down with the IDF," Vylan clarified the slogan itself was "insignificant."

"The key issue is the conditions that persist to permit that protest to even occur on that platform. And I mean, the conditions that are present in the region. In which the Palestinian population are being killed at an disturbing rate. What matters about the chant?" he said.

"The phrase rhymes," he noted: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have caught on, would it? … We are there to entertain. We are there to play music. I am a songwriter. 'The chant' rhymes. Ideal slogan."

Rejection of Hate Speech Claims

The musician also rejected assertions from the CST, a watchdog and Jewish safety organisation, that their performance contributed to a spike in anti-Jewish incidents reported two days.

"I don't think I have caused an unsafe environment for the Jewish people. Suppose there were many individuals of people acting and going like 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I might go, oh, I've had a negative effect here," he commented.

Contrast with Different Bands

When he said he felt the duo had been criticised more heavily than different artists for speaking about the situation, the host brought up the Irish band another band, who have likewise faced criticism for their approach to pro-Palestinian advocacy.

"That's a notable point," Vylan said, "since as with everything ethnicity becomes a factor in that we are an easier villain, no pun intended, than they are because we are already the opponent."

Deanna Davis
Deanna Davis

A passionate gamer and writer with years of experience in strategy gaming and community building.