Cornell University disinvites anti-Israel performer Kehlani from end-of-year concert after wave of backlash
Cornell University on Wednesday canned Jew-bashing entertainer Kehlani's upcoming on campus performance after facing overwhelming backlash over the decision to host the anti-Israel musician.
President Michael Kotlikoff said he'd rescinded the Grammy Award-nominated R&B artist's invitation to perform next month at the university's 'Slope Day' end-of-year celebration — just days after the school initially defended the move.
3 Kehlani
Advertisement
3 Kehlani attends the Fashion Trust U.S. Awards 2025 in Partnership with Google Shopping on April 08, 2025.
Getty Images for Fashion Trust U.S.
'Unfortunately, although it was not the intention, the selection of Kehlani as this year's headliner has injected division and discord into Slope Day,' he said in a letter to students and staff.
'In the days since Kehlani was announced, I have heard grave concerns from our community that many are angry, hurt, and confused that Slope Day would feature a performer who has espoused antisemitic, anti-Israel sentiments in performances, videos, and on social media.'
3 Cornell University sparked outrage over Kehlani's invitation to perform on campus.
Advertisement
'While any artist has the right in our country to express hateful views, Slope Day is about uniting our community, not dividing it,' he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Here Are the Performers & Presenters for the 2025 Tony Awards
The Tony Awards on Sunday night (June 8) will include performances from all five nominees for best musical and all four nominees for best revival of a musical — as well as two more 2024-25 shows — Just in Time, which stars Tony-nominated Jonathan Groff as legendary performer Bobby Darin, and Real Women Have Curves, which features Tony-nominated Justina Machado. There will also be a special 10th anniversary salute to Hamilton, with a performance by that show's original cast. Three of that show's stars, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Renée Elise Goldsberry and Ariana DeBose, are also set to present on the show. More from Billboard 'Buena Vista Social Club,' 'Death Becomes Her' and 'Maybe Happy Ending' Lead 2025 Tony Award Nominations: Full List Jon Bellion Was Tired of Songwriters Getting 'Paid F-king Dirt' - So He Flipped the Script With 'Father Figure' Elvis Crespo, Elena Rose, Kapo & More: Vote for the Best New Latin Music This Week There will also be a performance by Broadway Inspirational Voices. The ensemble, founded by Michael McElroy, won a 2019 Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theater. Cynthia Erivo, who won a Tony in 2016 for The Color Purple, is set to host the show for the first time. Brian Stokes Mitchell, who won a Tony for in 2000 for a revival of Kiss Me, Kate, will serve as the show's announcer. The show will air from Radio City Music Hall in New York City for the first time in three years. Other presenters include Adam Lambert, who played the emcee in Cabaret on Broadway; Lea Michele, who starred on Broadway in a revival of Funny Girl; and Sara Bareilles, a three-time Tony nominee and past Tonys cohost. Past Tony winners Aaron Tveit, Bryan Cranston, Kelli O'Hara, Kristin Chenoweth, Lea Salonga and Sarah Paulson are also set to present. Darren Criss and Renée Elise Goldsberry are set to host the pre-show, dubbed The Tony Awards: Act One. This could be a very big night for Criss, who is also a leading nominee for best performance by an actor in a leading role in a musical for Maybe Happy Ending. Two nominated shows, Buena Vista Social Club (which received 10 nods) and Stanger Things: The First Shadow (which got five) are guaranteed to go home with awards. The musicians who make up the band Buena Vista Social Club have been voted a special Tony Award. Other special Tonys will be presented to the illusions and technical effects of Stranger Things: The First Shadow. Other special Tonys will be presented to Harvey Fierstein, for lifetime achievement in the theatre; Celia Keenan-Bolger, the 2025 Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award; and Great Performances, Michael Price, New 42 and The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, 2025 Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre. The 78th annual Tony Awards will air live coast to coast on Sunday, June 8, from 8 to 11 p.m. ET on CBS (its network home since 1978) and streaming on Paramount+ in the U.S. The Tony Awards: Act One is available to viewers for free on Pluto TV from 6:40 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET/3:40 to 5 p.m. PT. Viewers can access the show on their smart TV, streaming device, mobile app or online by going to Pluto TV and clicking on the Live Music channel, found within the Entertainment category on the service. The Tony Awards are produced in collaboration with Tony Award Productions, a joint venture of the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League, and White Cherry Entertainment. Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss are executive producers and showrunners for White Cherry Entertainment. Weiss will serve as director. Here are the performers and presenters on the 2025 Tony Awards. Additional names will be added as they are announced. Buena Vista Social Club Dead Outlaw Death Becomes Her Maybe Happy Ending Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical Floyd Collins Gypsy: A Musical Fable Pirates! The Penzance Musical Sunset Blvd. Just in Time (Bobby Darin musical) Real Women Have Curves Hamilton original cast, 10th anniversary Broadway Inspirational Voices Aaron Tveit Adam Lambert Alex Winter Allison Janney Ariana DeBose Auli'i Cravalho Ben Stiller Bryan Cranston Carrie Preston Charli D'Amelio Danielle Brooks Jean Smart Jesse Eisenberg Julianne Hough Katie Holmes Keanu Reeves Kelli O'Hara Kristin Chenoweth LaTanya Richardson Jackson Lea Michele Lea Salonga Lin-Manuel Miranda Michelle Williams Oprah Winfrey Rachel Bay Jones Renée Elise Goldsberry Samuel L. Jackson Sara Bareilles Sarah Paulson Tom Felton Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Dawn French apologises for ‘Oct 7 attacks' video
Dawn French has apologised 'unreservedly' after she posted a 'one-sided' video in which she appeared to dismiss the Hamas terrorist attacks of October 7 2023. The 67-year-old comedian and actress was accused of belittling the attacks in a clip she posted on social media in which she said the murder of 1,200 people was 'a bad thing'. In the video, posted on X on May 5, she mimicked apparent defences of Israel's huge military campaign in Gaza and was accused of appearing to belittle the Hamas-led murders of 1,200 people and adopting a 'mocking' tone. On Saturday, she removed that video and issued an apology, adding that she was 'sorry' her 'disgust at Hamas didn't figure'. The message, also on X, said: 'Ok, it's important to address this. I posted a video in the style I've been using for social media in an effort to convey an important point. I clumsily used a mocking tone. 'My intention was NEVER to mock, or dismiss, or diminish the horror of what happened on Oct 7 2023 and what continues to unfold from that brutal, unthinkable, unforgivable, savage attack.' She said her 'heart broke' for the innocent people 'killed, tortured, r@aped [sic] and kidnapped', adding that it was 'appalling' that hostages were still being held. She insisted that her 'intention was to mock and point the finger of shame at the behaviour of the cruel leaders on ALL sides of this attricious [sic] war, who have continued to behave like the worst, dangerous, sickening bullies and seem to relish the tyrannical and childish one-upmanship of violence.' She added she was 'feeling increasingly helpless and hopeless as we witness the carnage and destruction worsen', adding that she was 'haunted … day and night ' by 'images of starving children.' The Vicar of Dibley actress wrote: 'History has taught us never to stand by and allow this kind of inhumane violence to be wrought on anyone, especially innocent children. 'I have felt my silence is complicit or even somehow sanctioning. So in my small way, I wanted to voice my desire to say NO – to both sides – to any further violence. 'I hope you will understand my intention was not to offend, but clearly I have. For which I am sorry and I have removed the video.' She was accused of adopting a baby-like face in the original 40-second video, in which she filmed herself saying: 'Complicated, no, but nuanced. But [the] bottom line is no.' She went on, imitating someone defending Israel's actions in Gaza, then replying to them: ''Yeah, but you know they did a bad thing to us...' Yeah, but no. 'But we want that land and there's a lot of history…' No. 'These people are not even people, are they really?' No.' The video was viewed more than half a million times in the 24 hours after it was posted. Credit: X/@Dawn_French Tracy-Ann Oberman, an actress who has appeared in numerous West End shows, accused the comedian of adopting a 'mocking' tone. Lee Kern, a comedy writer and self-described 'champion of Jewish rights', wrote: 'What you sneeringly mock as a 'bad thing' included the grieving children I met in hospital whose friends and family had been murdered, kidnapped and raped and who themselves were coming to terms with their own life-altering injuries. 'It also includes the 1,200 people murdered and tortured on October 7… You proactively broadcast – with misplaced pride – a wicked glee in your mockery and dismissal of Jewish suffering, pain and death.' Israel began its ground offensive in Gaza in response to Hamas's terrorist attack, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. There are 56 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive. Israel was criticised by Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, for its recent 'appalling' military action. He described the conduct of Benjamin Netanyahu's government as 'intolerable' following claims that more than 50,000 people, including many women and children, had been killed by Israeli forces. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Dawn French says sorry for posting 'one-sided' Gaza video
Dawn French has taken down a video she posted on Instagram about the war in Gaza, saying she apologised "unreservedly" for it. The video sparked a backlash, with critics accusing the actress and comedian of appearing to "mock" the 7 October 2023 attack. On Saturday, French acknowledged on Instagram that the video "appeared one-sided", and said she never meant to "mock, or dismiss, or diminish the horror" of that day. "I hope you will understand my intention was not to offend, but I clearly have. For which I am sorry and I have removed the video," she added. In the 40-second video, posted earlier this week, the Vicar of Dibley star shared her views on the ongoing war, saying: "Complicated, no, but nuanced. But [the] bottom line is no." Switching into a high-pitched voice, she went on to say: "Yeah, but you know they did a bad thing to us, yeah but no. But we want that land... and we have history… No. Those people aren't really even people, are they really? No." On social media, people were quick to criticise her, with actress Tracy-Ann Oberman saying she was "so saddened" by the post. "This mocking voice 'bad thing' of October 7 that Dawn (who I revere by the way) appears [to] be mocking involved the most horrific terrorist attack involving rape, sexual violence, burning alive, child mutilation and taking of civilian hostages," she wrote. "Why would Dawn seem to deny that which has affected so many of us personally in the most painful way possible." MP Rosie Duffield commented on Oberman's post, writing: "One can, and should hate what is happening in Gaza and also condemn the hideous events of October 7th. "It is agonising to see events unfold, and requires extremely careful, measured and well-considered comments and actions. This is not that." Meanwhile, screenwriter and activist Lee Kern called her video "sneering mockery". Responding to the backlash, French said that she had posted a video in the style that she has been using for social media "in an effort to convey an important point". She added that she had "clumsily used a mocking tone". "My intention was NEVER to mock, or dismiss, or diminish the horror of what happened on 7 October 2023 and what continues to unfold from that brutal unthinkable, unforgiveable, savage attack," she said. She said her intention had been "to mock and point the finger of shame at the behaviour of the cruel leaders on all sides of this atrocious war". "THEY were my target, but clearly I failed to do that, and that's on me. I apologise unreservedly, and I'm particularly sorry that my disgust at Hamas didn't figure. It appeared one-sided and that is wrong." Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led cross-border attack almost 20 months ago, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. Some 54 of those captured during the attack remain in captivity, including 31 the Israeli military says are dead. At least 54,607 people have been killed in Gaza since then, including 4,335 since Israel resumed its offensive on 18 March, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry.
