Rapper Bobby Vylan has reiterated his decision to chant “death, death, death to the IDF” at Glastonbury Festival this summer, noting that he would “do it again tomorrow” if given the chance.
Vylan, who is one half of the English punk rap duo Bob Vylan (his musical partner is named Bobbie Vylan), spoke about the controversial festival appearance and the backlash that followed during an appearance on “The Louis Theroux Podcast.”
“If I had to go back to Glastonbury tomorrow, yes, I would do it again,” Vylan noted. “I don’t regret it. I would do it again tomorrow, twice on Sunday. I don’t regret it at all.”
He added: “The negative reactions I’ve faced. It’s minimal. It’s minimal compared to what people in Palestine are going through… What is there to regret? Oh, because I upset a right-wing politician or right-wing media?”
This is Vylan’s first interview since he sparked controversy with his comments at Glastonbury, which saw the band publicly condemned by festival organizers, their visas revoked by the US State Department and their agency, UTA, subsequently abandoning them.
Still, Vylan made it clear that he disagreed with the response to his onstage statement, telling host Theroux that he felt it was “so disproportionate” to the real issue at the moment – the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
“My whole problem with this thing is that the singing really doesn’t matter,” he continued. “What’s important are the conditions that exist to allow this chant to take place on this stage. And I mean, the conditions that exist in Palestine. Where the Palestinian people are being killed at an alarming rate. Who cares about this chant?”
Nonetheless, Vylan said the repercussions of his actions were swift, confirming that the UTA abandoned Bob Vylan the very next day.
According to Vylan, the decision came from “the most senior members of the company,” adding that their agent “didn’t have a choice.”
He then lambasted the US State Department over the visa decision, alleging it was simply an “intimidation tactic” aimed at making them “persona non grata”.
As for the accusations of anti-Semitism he faced after calling for the death of the Israel Defense Forces, Vylan didn’t think that was a fair assessment of the situation.
“I don’t think I created a dangerous atmosphere for the Jewish community,” he stressed. “If there were a lot of people who came out and said, ‘Bob Vylan made me do this,’ I might say, phew, I had a negative impact here.”
For the record, Vylan’s episode was recorded on October 1, a day before the Manchester synagogue attacks and a few days before the ceasefire agreement was concluded.
The group previously released a statement on social media following the controversy, in which it said it was “not in favor of the death of Jews, Arabs or any other race or group of people.”
“We are for the dismantling of a violent military machine,” continued the two men. “A machine whose own soldiers were ordered to use ‘unnecessary lethal force’ against innocent civilians awaiting help. A machine that destroyed much of Gaza.”
New episodes of “The Louis Theroux Podcast” release Tuesdays on Spotify.
