Sharon Osbourne slams Kneecap – again - and says rap trio need to be more like Bono
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'Bono is pro-Palestine, God bless him, but he does it in a way that doesn't incite violence from a crowd.'
On Thursday, anti-terror police in London confirmed that there are 'grounds for further investigation' over videos in which a member of Kneecap appeared to shout 'Kill your MP' from the stage and, in a separate incident, shouted 'up Hamas, up Hezbollah'.
The trio, comprising Mo Chara (Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh), Móglaí Bap (Naoise Ó Cairealláin) and DJ Próvai (JJ Ó Dochartaigh), have been embroiled in controversy since the emergence of the videos, which were recorded in November 2023 and November 2024.
Kneecap have had concerts cancelled in Germany and England and are facing calls to be dropped from both the Glastonbury Festival and Belfast Vital line-ups this summer.
Former X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne, who is the wife of rock star Ozzy, was one of the first to comment on the controversy surrounding the group when she called for the west Belfast rap group's US work visas to be revoked following their performance at Coachella in which they displayed pro-Palestinian messaging.
Kneecap have since released a statement in which they apologised to the families of murdered MPs Jo Cox and David Amess, as well as denying they support Hamas and Hezbollah, both of which are defined as terror organisations by the UK Government.
They also hit out at media coverage of the controversy, claiming it was distracting from the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
Speaking on Piers Morgan's YouTube programme, Piers Morgan Uncensored, Mrs Osbourne said she supported the group having 'their own political beliefs' but said they should follow the style of U2 frontman Bono.
'These little people are backtracking, [saying] they don't support Hezbollah and Hamas. Give me a break,' she said.
'My stance is have your own belief politically, but don't bring it to a musical festival. Music unites people; music doesn't separate people.
'Their entire attitude is one of anger — it's not of peace. Put your point across, yes, but they should follow the masters, U2. He [Bono] talks about Palestine, and he does it in peace.
Sharon Osborne.
Today's News in 90 Seconds - Friday May 2
'Bono is pro-Palestine, God bless him, but he does it in a way that doesn't incite violence from a crowd. If anyone knows about festival crowds, it's me — it's been my entire life. It's ignorance, and they're just trying to sell more music.'
Dublin-born rocker Bono has long supported the Palestinian cause. Earlier this year, he wrote a piece for political magazine The Atlantic in which she said: 'Freedom must come for the Palestinian people. It does not take a prophet to predict Israel will never be free until Palestine is free.'
The former talent judge has a history with music festivals. She was the creator and founder of Ozzfest, dedicated to performances of heavy metal and rock music, typically fronted by her Black Sabbath frontman husband Ozzy Osbourne.
Reacting to Mrs Osbourne's comments, Piers Morgan said the group's statement 'irked him' and he branded their denial of support for Hezbollah and Hamas 'a complete lie'.
'They're liars,' he said, 'and they're lying to try and save their careers, because America won't let them back in.' Read more
Mrs Osbourne also went on to claim that the group are 'uneducated' and accused them of deflecting accountability by using references to Gaza.
She also criticised the trio's manager, Daniel Lambert, who appeared on RTÉ and reiterated the group's belief that they 'are not the story'.
'What a great decision. They're uneducated. When was the last time they went to the Middle East? It's clichéd slogans, and [they] bring nothing to the table except anger,' added Mrs Osbourne.
'Their manager had the audacity to say people were thanking them for bringing this to attention. You'd have to be deaf and blind to not know what is going on in the Middle East.'
Speaking on Newstalk's The Pat Kenny Show, Mr Lambert said the clip of the band speaking about Tory MPs was 'taken out of context' and that the group are performance artists portraying characters. He also said that someone in the crowd had shouted 'F**k the Tories' prior to one of Kneecap's members, in the footage, appearing to say 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory'.
'On the band's website, it describes Kneecap as 'a band with socially conscious lyrics that mixes the satirical with reality and absurdity,'' he said.
'That can be seen in everything Kneecap have done, from everything from the fact they use stage names. The very fact that they call themselves quite silly stage names — like DJ Provaí, Mo Chara — they're playing a role and playing a character.
'Before the bit that got cut [in the video clip], they spoke about the Tory Government and an absolute lack of support for the North of Ireland and the mental health crisis,' he said.
'You know that there was a guy last year, Fin Taylor, and he said: 'What you should do next year is bomb Glastonbury.'
'If you print that as a headline out of context from what the guy was saying — he's a comedian — it appears like he's appealing for mass murder.
'This is an absolutely manufactured level of outrage.'
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