What did Kneecap say, and are they playing Glastonbury? ...Middle East

Irish rap trio Kneecap is at the centre of fresh controversy after some of their alleged inflammatory comments sparked outrage and condemnation.

The Belfast band is waist-deep in a war of words over statements they are reported to have made about local MPs, Hamas and Hezbollah.

Kneecap has issued a statement on social media saying this is the result of “manufactured moral hysteria” and their comments have been taken out of context and distorted.

They said they “have never supported Hamas or Hezbollah” and “reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual”.

But the Met Police’s counter-terrorism unit is examining footage from two of their gigs – and a number of venues and festivals have already cancelled their appearances this year.

The comments are alleged to have come from footage of a November 2023 gig.

During the performance, one person from the band appeared to tell the crowd: “The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP.”

A second piece of video footage from November 2024 is also being examined by the police, in which a band member appeared to be shouting “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” during a performance in Kentish Town, London.

The Met Police said it had been “made aware of a video on 22 April, believed to be from an event in November 2024, and it has been referred to the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) for assessment and to determine whether any further police investigation may be required.”

The force said it has also been “made aware of another video believed to be from an event in November 2023”.

Kneecap issued a statement on Wednesday 28 April saying: “Establishment figures, desperate to silence us, have combed through hundreds of hours of footage and interviews, extracting a handful of words from months or years ago to manufacture moral hysteria.

“Let us be unequivocal: we do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah.

“We condemn all attacks on civilians, always.

“It is never okay. We know this more than anyone, given our nation’s history.

“We also reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual. Ever.

“An extract of footage, deliberately taken out of all context, is now being exploited and weaponised, as if it were a call to action.

“This distortion is not only absurd – it is a transparent effort to derail the real conversation.”

Sir David Amess was murdered at his constituency surgery in 2021 (Photo: Chris McAndrew/PA)

What has the response to their comments been?

In response to their alleged comments, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called for Kneecap to be banned.

Asked whether the group should be banned from BBC playlists, She told PA: “I just think they should be banned full stop.

“It glorifies terrorism, it has called for MPs, politicians, to be killed.”

Badenoch blocked a grant to the Irish-speaking group when she was business secretary last year, a decision that was later overturned.

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “We completely reject in the strongest possible terms the comments that they’ve made, particularly in relation to MPs and intimidation as well as obviously the situation in the Middle East.

“It’s right that the police are looking into these videos.”

The group has apologised to the families of murdered MPs Sir David Amess and Jo Cox as part of its statement this week.

Sir David Amess was stabbed to death at a constituency surgery in 2021 while fellow MP Jo Cox was stabbed and shot in her West Yorkshire constituency in 2016.

The trio said: “To the Amess and Cox families, we send our heartfelt apologies, we never intended to cause you hurt.

“Kneecap’s message has always been — and remains — one of love, inclusion, and hope.

“This is why our music resonates across generations, countries, classes and cultures and has brought hundreds of thousands of people to our gigs.”

But Katie Amess, the daughter of the murdered MP Sir David Amess, called for the group to “take full accountability” before being allowed to perform on stage.

She said: “It was absurd – that’s not an apology. It’s deflection. It is not taking accountability – it’s making excuses.

“They don’t understand what they’re talking about, they obviously aren’t educated enough in what they’re speaking about to think that they can use those excuses and everybody will be like, ‘oh, never mind, let’s move on to something else’.”

While Brendan Cox, Ms Cox’s widower, told BBC Radio Ulster’s Talkback: “It’s fine to say that you’re sorry for it, but the way that they have actually spoken about it is to suggest that it’s a conspiracy, that they have been targeted unfairly, and for me, that then doesn’t come across as unfortunately particularly genuine.”

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper urged the promoters of gigs featuring the rap trio and their management to “take some responsibility”.

Asked if the band should still perform at Glastonbury in June, Ms Cooper told Times Radio: “That’s a matter for the organisers.

“What they’re reported to have said is a total disgrace.

“It’s dangerous and irresponsible to say these sorts of things, and I hope that everybody involved – not just the band but also those involved surrounding them and those involved in events – also take some responsibility on this and look very seriously at the consequences of these kinds of remarks, not just what’s been said.”

Kneecap is still due to play Glastonbury this summer, but they have been dropped from a number of other events as a result of the controversy.

They will no longer be playing at the Eden Project in Cornwall on 4 July this year.

An Eden Sessions spokesperson said: “Eden Sessions Limited announced today that the Kneecap show at Eden Project scheduled for July 4 2025 has been cancelled.

“Ticket purchasers will be contacted directly and will be fully refunded.”

A further three concerts have been dropped from the schedule in Germany.

A ticket site for the performances in Hamburg, Berlin and Cologne stated the summer shows were no longer going ahead.

Kneecap’s manager Daniel Lambert said “the last few days have been very challenging”, but he added: “At every point [the band members] have the absolute conviction that they are doing the right thing and they stand on the right side of history.”

What are Kneecap’s past controversies?

Kneecap are no strangers to controversy.

Formed in 2017, the trio – who use the stage names Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí – have always chosen a provocative path to stardom.

Their name stems from the term for a paramilitary punishment used during The Trouble in Northern Ireland.

And their first track “C.E.A.R.T.A” was a reference to one band member being stopped by police for spray-painting the Irish word for “rights” at a bus stop.

Rapping in a mix of English and Irish, the track was banned from Irish broadcaster RTÉ for a reference to drug-taking.

After Ms Badenoch blocked a grant for the band, which was initially approved by the British Phonographic Industry, they won a discrimination case against the UK Government last November, acquiring the same amount of money the original grant was worth.

Finally, at the Coachella Festival in the US this month, they were criticised for comments displayed on the big screen that read: “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people.”

Media personality Sharon Osbourne called for their US work visas to be revoked.

Kneecap has said: “Suddenly, days after calling out the US administration at Coachella to applause and solidarity, there is an avalanche of outrage and condemnation by the political classes of Britain.

“The real crimes are not in our performances; the real crimes are the silence and complicity of those in power.”

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