Ahead of their somewhat controversial Glastonbury set tomorrow, Kneecap have told The Guardian that the band’s critics “combed through eight years” of footage and then took “those videos out of context” in a bid to cancel the band over their pro-Palestinian statements on-stage.
“If you believe that what a satirical band who play characters on stage do is more outrageous than the murdering of innocent Palestinians”, says the band’s Mo Chara, “then you need to give your head a fucking wobble”.
Expanding on the theme of putting things into perspective, he said that while recent controversies might result in the band being denied visas to tour in the US, which is “not ideal”, it doesn't really matter when “there’s people being bombed from the fucking skies and people being starved to death”.
Glastonbury have resisted calls from various quarters to remove Kneecap from their line-up, though the band have had some other bookings cancelled. That includes their set at Glasgow’s TRNSMT. The boss of that event this week gave more context to that decision, while expressing frustration that he wasn’t able to provide a platform for a band he loves.
Although Irish rap trio Kneecap have courted controversy throughout their career, they really came into the spotlight after sharing very pro-Palestine and anti-Israel statements during their set at Coachella earlier this year. That’s when the demands that other festivals cancel the band started to build.
When TRNSMT, promoted by Live Nation’s DF Concerts, pulled Kneecap from its 2025 line-up, it said that the decision was made based on advice from Police Scotland, who said that the band’s performance at the city centre festival would likely require increased policing.
Speaking at an event organised by Scottish newspaper The Courier this week, DF CEO Geoff Ellis explained that the police’s concerns were more related to politics closer to home - in Glasgow and Kneecap’s home city of Belfast - than the ongoing situation in Gaza.
He explained, “When I talked to the police and the perceived issues they have with Kneecap, it was around issues on [sectarianism] between Catholics and Protestants in Glasgow, and not Israel and Palestine”.
He then stressed “I love Kneecap”, calling them “one of the most exciting bands to come out of Ireland and the UK in many years”. He added, “To me, rock and roll is about challenging the establishment. It’s not about appeasing anyone or not offending anyone. Rock and roll should be uncomfortable. It should get people angry”.
Referencing the anti-establishment politics of punk and rave back in the day, he went on, “Kneecap are just the latest version of that, and thank God someone is actually standing up and creating controversy. You don’t have to agree with everything they say”.
“I wanted to give them a platform to say what they’ve got to say”, he concluded, adding, “it is frustrating they don’t have that platform anymore”. However, he said, he did help the band secure the standalone Glasgow show that is replacing their TRNSMT performance.
Glastonbury - as one of the highest profile festivals in the UK, and with all the BBC coverage of the event - has been under extra pressure to pull Kneecap’s performance, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer even intervening, saying the booking was “inappropriate”. But the festival has not given in to that pressure.
Organiser Emily Eavis was asked to comment on all that by the BBC this week. She declined to get into the specifics or to respond to Starmer’s statement, saying “we haven’t responded to that”. However, she added, “There have been a lot of very heated topics this year, but we remain just a platform for many, many artists from all over the world. And everyone is welcome here”.
Kneecap’s critics became all the more vocal following the Coachella performance after footage emerged of past shows where the band’s members seemed to express support for proscribed terrorist organisations Hamas and Hezbollah, and delivered the line “the only good Tory is a dead Tory”.
That footage prompted a police investigation resulting in Mo Chara being charged with a terror offence for displaying a Hezbollah flag during one gig.
He responds to the “dead Tory” line in the new Guardian interview, insisting “it was a joke - we’re playing characters, it’s satirical, it’s a fucking joke”. And, he adds, the line wasn't an issue “until we said ‘Free Palestine’ at Coachella”. Prior to that “nobody batted an eyelid - everybody agreed it was a fucking joke”.
Of course, the group’s critics are unlikely to be placated by the “it's a joke” or the “I was playing a character” defences - even though they are commonly employed when comedians get in trouble for saying controversial things.
Those critics would likely point out that at least some of Kneecap’s political statements are meant to be taken seriously, and therefore how is the audience meant to distinguish between the jokes and the actual politics?
Asked about that by The Guardian, Chara says, “It’s not our job to tell people what’s a joke and what’s not. Our job is: we make music as a band. We are going to have political messaging in our songs - it’s not for us to dissect it for other people”.
As for the flag incident that resulted in the terror charge Chara is fighting through the courts, he says, “Shit is thrown on stage all the time. If I’m supposed to know every fucking thing that’s thrown on stage, I’d be in Mensa, Jesus Chris. I don’t know every proscribed organisation - I’ve got enough shit to worry about up there. I’m thinking about my next lyric, my next joke, the next drop of a beat”.
Following the controversial performance at Coachella, Kneecap were dropped by their US agents, who also sponsored the group’s US visas. Many critics have since been calling on the US authorities to deny the group entry into the country.
On that point, Chara adds, “maybe visas get revoked” and we’re “not allowed in America again. It’s not ideal, but Jesus Christ, there’s people being bombed from the fucking skies and people being starved to death”.
Confirming the group are in the process of applying for new visas, he concludes, “hopefully it works, but if it doesn’t, I can go about my day without having to worry about my next meal or my family being bombed. Visa revoked, I can get over it”.