Bobby Vylan Position on Festival IDF Protest: "No Regrets"
Punk duo lead singer of Bob Vylan has stated he is "without regret" about his "death, death to the IDF" performance at the festival and asserted he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
Disputed Exclamation and Official Responses
The vocal music duo sparked significant controversy when they led crowd calls of "down with the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their June set. This slogan was censured by Glastonbury and Britain's leader Keir Starmer, who described it as "appalling hate speech."
After the incident, Bob Vylan was released by its representation UTA, and the US state department cancelled the artists' travel documents, forcing them to cancel a planned North American concert series.
Conversation with the Podcaster
During his initial interview after the Glastonbury show, the musician, using his real name is Pascal Foster, spoke on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After asked if he would repeat his actions, he responded:
"Oh yeah. Like what if I was to go on the festival again tomorrow, yes I would repeat it. I'm not regretful of it. I'd say it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
The artist added that the backlash the band faced was "minimal compared to what people in Gaza are experiencing."
On the Protest's Significance
"I don't want to exaggerate the importance of the chant," he continued. "That's not what I'm trying to do, but since I have the Palestinian people's backing, they're the individuals that I'm doing it for, these are the people that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to feel sorry about? Well, because I've upset some conservative official or some rightwing news outlet?"
Surprising Reaction and Broadcaster Feedback
The musician said he was surprised by the outcry triggered by the chant, and asserted that members of BBC staff at the event told him on the day that the performance was "excellent."
However, the broadcaster's ECU later determined that the BBC's airing of the show breached editorial standards in relation to offense and offence.
Vylan told Theroux there was no sign of a dispute in the moment: "It wasn't like we came off stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It felt normal. We come off stage. It's normal. Nobody thought anything. Not a soul. Including crew at the broadcaster were like 'That was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"
Reply to Blur Frontman
Vylan also responded at the Blur singer, who called the protest "a major misstep I've witnessed in my life" and described him as "goose-stepping in sport gear."
His reaction was "disappointing" and "showed no self-awareness," he remarked.
"I just want to say that labeling it as a 'spectacular misfire' implies that somehow the views of the duo or our stance on Palestinian liberation is unplanned," he explained.
"I take great issue with the term 'goose-stepping' being used because it's only used around the Nazis," he added. "Precisely. And for him to use that language, I think is disgusting. I think his response was disgusting."
Intent Behind the Slogan
After asked what he intended by the chant "Death to the IDF," the artist said the slogan itself was "insignificant."
"What is important is the conditions that exist to allow that protest to even take place on that platform. And I mean, the conditions that are present in the region. Where the local population are being killed at an alarming rate. Who cares about the chant?" he said.
"The phrase rhymes," he noted: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have spread, right? … We are there to perform. We are there to sing songs. I am a songwriter. 'Death, Death to IDF' rhymes. Perfect slogan."
Rejection of Antisemitism Claims
The musician also denied claims from the Community Security Trust, a monitoring and Jewish community safety group, that their set contributed to a spike in antisemitic events recorded two days.
"I don't think I have caused an unsafe environment for the Jewish people. Suppose there were large numbers of people going out and going like 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I might go, oh, I've had a negative impact here," he commented.
Comparison with Other Artists
As he said he thought the duo had been criticised more severely than others for voicing views about the situation, the host referenced the Ireland-based band another band, who have also faced criticism for their method to pro-Palestinian advocacy.
"That's an interesting one," he said, "since as with everything race comes to play a factor in that we are an more convenient target, no pun intended, than others are because we are inherently the opponent."