30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
The Indo Daily: Kneecap controversy: Moral panic or violent incitement? And who gets to decide?
What started as post-Coachella backlash has snowballed into one of the most explosive rows in the music industry in years.
The Belfast rap group have claimed that snippets of their gigs have been taken out of context in a 'smear campaign' that has followed on from their pro-Palestinian messages during their recent Coachella performance in the US. They ended their set at the recent festival with pro-Palestinian messages, sparking calls for their US visas to be revoked.
Police in the UK are now investigating the group after a clip from a November 2023 gig appeared to show one member saying 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP'. Another video emerged from a gig last November that appeared to show a band member saying 'Up Hamas, up Hezbollah'.
There have also been calls for the band to be dropped from Glastonbury.
Kneecap released a lengthy statement this week in which they said they didn't support Hamas and Hezbollah, and they also apologised to the families of two British MPs who were killed.
So, is all of this defiant political art or is it dangerous incitement disguised as satire?
Where do we draw the line between protest and provocation — and who gets to decide? Today on The Indo Daily, Kevin Doyle is joined by Irish Independent journalist Dave Hanratty, and the Belfast Telegraph's Kurtis Reid, to ask whether Kneecap's actions amount to self-sabotage or made them martyrs for their loyal fans.
