Billy Bragg shares support for Kneecap but says artist open letter “lacks any sense of nuance or understanding of why this whole furore kicked off”
Billy Bragg has said the recent letter of support for Kneecap “lacks any sense of nuance or understanding” of why “this whole furore kicked off”.
This week, politicians have sought to have the Irish rap trio removed from festival line-ups for the summer – including Glastonbury and TRNSMT – following the news that two videos from their previous gigs were being “assessed” by counter-terror police in the UK.
In one, footage appears to show a band member shouting “Up Hamas, up Hezbollah”, while another purportedly shows the group calling for the death of Conservative MPs. The band have since denied supporting either Hamas or Hezbollah and have denied promoting violence against MPs.
On Wednesday (April 30), Kneecap’s label Heavenly Recordings responded to the controversy by issuing a letter defending the band under the banner, “We stand for freedom of expression”. It has been signed by over 100 leading artists, including Pulp, Fontaines D.C., IDLES, Massive Attack, Paul Weller, Tom Morello, Brian Eno and CMAT. Read the full letter here.
In a lengthy response to the letter, Billy Bragg has declared his own support for Kneecap, but has made clear that he does not believe the letter addresses the full complexity of the situation.
Writing on Friday (May 2), Bragg began: “I’m glad to see that a number of artists have signed a letter defending Kneecap from attempts to remove them from various festival bills in the wake of comments made at shows over two years ago. The band have apologised for the hurt they caused to the families of murdered MPs and distanced themselves from Hamas and Hezbollah. Having taken that step, I believe they deserve to be reinstated on those bills that have removed them, and also confirmed as playing at those festivals where they are already scheduled to perform.”
It emerged earlier this week that Kneecap shows in Hamburg, Cologne and Berlin for this summer have been cancelled, as well as a date in Plymouth in July. Previously announced shows at Hurricane and Southside Festivals and an Eden Project gig have also been cancelled in the last fortnight.
Bragg continued: “However, I’m not sure I would have felt comfortable signing the letter (I wasn’t asked). My problem is that the wording lacks any sense of nuance or understanding of why this whole furore kicked off. And in trying to avoid the complexities of this issue by claiming that the politics of an artist’s views are irrelevant, the signatories are arguing that the only principle at stake here is free speech. I disagree. Andrew Tate uses that justification to avoid accusations that he is pedalling misogyny. Free speech absolutism has made Twitter a sewer of right wing bile and sexist bullying. Rock Against Racism was founded on the belief that artists should not be free to say whatever they want to say, without any consequence.”
“If we want to live in a society where everyone can exercise their liberty to freely express their opinions, then we have to take two other crucial dimensions into consideration,” he continued. “Firstly, we must give equal space for other opinions to be expressed. And secondly, to prevent those first two rights from being exploited by those who would abuse them by threatening and discriminating against others, we need to accept that words have consequences.”
“What that means in practice is that we must be careful not to allow the considered and cogent arguments we seek to make – Free Palestine, end the genocide – to be undermined by flippant statements that we later have to apologise for. I think the artist’s letter would have been much stronger, as would the case for reinstating Kneecap, if it had recognised this crucial dynamic, rather than seeking to brush all other considerations aside.”
Bragg went on to note that Kneecap have been outspoken in their support of the Palestinian people and said he believes their criticisms of the Israeli state are “totally justified”.
Kneecap “blindsided” Coachella organisers with overtly political statements in support of Palestine at the festival. In their Cover feature for NME last year, they also made their stance against what they call Israel’s “occupation and genocide” of Gaza clear, and they went on to help raise nearly £100,000 for a volunteer gym in the Aida Refugee Camp in Palestine. More recently, they hit out at Israel for breaking the Gaza ceasefire in a “slaughter” against the “most vulnerable people on earth”.
Bragg’s statement also states that Kneecap are “being punished” for their “anti-Israel statements” at Coachella, adding: “Sharon Osbourne’s complaints sent the right wing press off to scour the internet looking for a stick to beat the band with and, unfortunately, they found it.”
After Coachella, Osbourne called for a “revocation of Kneecap’s work visa”, describing their sets at the festival as having “compromised” Coachella’s “moral and spiritual integrity”. She has since told Piers Morgan Uncensored that the trio are “pathetic”, “uneducated” and “full of hate”. Kneecap have responded to Osbourne by saying: “Statements aren’t aggressive, murdering 20,000 children is though.”
Kneecap still retain their right to work in the US – but the band are said to be seeking new sponsors to renew their visa for upcoming shows after being dropped by their booking agent.
Bragg added: “The fact is, people say stupid things onstage in the heat of the moment. In calmer environments, the band make it clear that they do not support the targeting of civilians, be they non-combatants or members of parliament, citing the experience of their community during the Troubles. In doing so, they implicitly recognise that there are limits to freedom of expression, that some things cannot be said without consequence.”
“Perhaps if they addressed some of the complexities of this situation in an interview, putting their statements and subsequent treatment into context while defending their right to call out genocide, it might clear the air and garner wider support for Kneecap to perform as scheduled this summer.”
“What I don’t think helps them – or any of us who wish to engage in debate around highly contentious issues – is a blanket demand that artists be allowed to say whatever they want to say, without consequence.”
As for the counter-terror police’s involvement, on Friday (May 2), London’s Metropolitan Police have stated there are “grounds for further investigation” into the footage of the band’s shows.
The post Billy Bragg shares support for Kneecap but says artist open letter “lacks any sense of nuance or understanding of why this whole furore kicked off” appeared first on NME.
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