Radiohead guitarist's gig with Israeli musician cancelled: 'Those supporting free speech for Kneecap are determined to curb ours'
Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood has said the pro-Palestine voices who are championing Kneecap’s freedom of speech are “the same ones most determined to restrict ours.
He was speaking in a joint statement with Israeli musician Dudu Tassa after two of their upcoming gigs were cancelled amid “threats” aimed at the venues.
The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), a member of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, welcomed the axing of the gigs.
It had launched a campaign for the venues to cancel the dates, claiming the duo’s performances “would have whitewashed” the war in the Gaza Strip.
It comes amid a wave of support for the Belfast group Kneecap, which has seen some of its upcoming gigs cancelled after video circulated showing a member draped in the Hezbollah flag shouting “tiocfaidh ar la, up Hamas, up Hezbollah”, and another showing a member telling a crowd: “The only good Tory is a dead Tory – kill your local MP”.
A letter circulating in support of Kneecap and opposing “censorship” of the group has been signed by artists including Massive Attack, Tom Morello, and Brian Eno.
Greenwood and Tassa had been due to perform at Bristol Beacon’s Lantern Hall and London’s Hackney Church in June, but these have now been axed.
“The venues and their blameless staff have received enough credible threats to conclude that it’s not safe to proceed,” they said, adding that the “cancellation will be hailed as a victory by the campaigners behind it, but we see nothing to celebrate and don’t find that anything positive has been achieved”.
When it comes to Kneecap they said: “We have no judgment to pass on Kneecap but note how sad it is that those supporting their freedom of expression are the same ones most determined to restrict ours.”
They added: “We agree completely with people who ask ‘How can this be more important than what’s happening in Gaza and Israel?’ They’re right – it isn’t. How could it be?”
Greenwood’s band Radiohead have previously resisted calls to boycott gigs in Israel.
Greenwood and Tassa went on to say: “Forcing musicians not to perform and denying people who want to hear them an opportunity to do so is self-evidently a method of censorship and silencing.
“We believe art exists above and beyond politics; that art that seeks to establish the common identity of musicians across borders in the Middle East should be encouraged, not decried; and that artists should be free to express themselves regardless of their citizenship or their religion – and certainly regardless of the decisions made by their governments.”
The musicians said their touring show features singers from Syria, Lebanon, Kuwait and Iraq, adding: “We find ourselves in the odd position of being condemned by both ends of the political spectrum.
“For some on the right, we’re playing the ‘wrong’ kind of music – too inclusive, too aware of the rich and beautiful diversity of Middle Eastern culture.
"For some on the left, we’re only playing it to absolve ourselves of our collective sins.
“We dread the weaponisation of this cancellation by reactionary figures as much as we lament its celebration by some progressives.”
Kneecap have since apologised for the “kill MPs” remark, but claim it was taken out of context. They have also denied supporting Hamas and Hezbollah.