Latest news with #KneecapNews
Sunday World
08-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
Kneecap apologise to fans as Vienna concert cancelled due to 'safety concerns'
The rap trio have said there is a smear campaign against them because of their support for Palestine. Belfast rap trio Kneecap have apologised to fans after their show in Vienna was cancelled "due to acute safety concerns". It comes after the group were banned from entering Hungary in July ahead of their scheduled performance at Sziget Festival on August 11. The group, known for their provocative lyrics and championing of the Irish language, have had several shows cancelled in recent months, including TRNSMT festival in Glasgow and at the Eden Project in Cornwall. They have said there is a smear campaign against them because of their support for Palestine and criticism of Israel's actions in Gaza. Kneecap News in 90 Seconds - Aug 8th In a social media post on Friday the group said: "Our planned show in Vienna on September 1st is cancelled." The social media post added: "To the 3500 people we were looking forward to seeing at our first headline show in Vienna, we are sorry: this is out of our hands. "All tickets will be refunded. "Yet again, it is clear that this is political distraction and a further attempt to silence those who call out genocide against the Palestinian people. "But as always, we will fight on for what is right." Kneecap at Glastonbury. Photo: PA A note on the venues website said: "Racoon Live Entertainment GmbH hereby cancels the planned Kneecap show on September 1, 2025, at the Gasometer Vienna due to acute safety concerns raised by the responsible authorities." Kneecap, comprised of Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, Naoise Ó Cairealláin and JJ Ó Dochartaigh, were formed in Belfast and released their first single in 2017. They hit headlines in April when footage emerged that appeared to show a band member saying "Kill your local MP" at one gig and and "Up Hamas, up Hezbollah" at another. In May, Ó hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara, was charged with a terrorism offence relating to allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a London gig in November 2024. Ó hAnnaidh and his bandmates were cheered by hundreds of supporters when they arrived at Westminster Magistrates' Court on June 18. Musicians including Nadine Shah and Gurriers have said they will attend court to support the group when Ó hAnnaidh returns on August 20. Kneecap have apologised to the families of murdered MPs and said they have "never supported" Hamas or Hezbollah, which are banned in the UK. They were also investigated over their set at Glastonbury Festival in June, but Avon and Somerset Police said they would be taking no further action in July.
Sunday World
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
Kneecap fans charged €30 for balaclavas and ‘free Mo Chara' tshirts at Dublin gig
Fans who did buy them at official merchandising stalls may feel they got a bit of a bargain as the same items are fetching over €110 online. KNEECAP fans are not only lapping up their music but also their imaginative merchandising. Woolen Irish tricolour balaclavas, as famously sported by band member DJ Provai, were on sale at last night's gig in Dublin's Fairview Park for €30. Many fans took delight wearing them, with security signs on nearby entrances earlier anticipating the craze by signalling: 'Balaclavas may be worn but please show your face if asked by security staff'. Kneecap News in 90 Seconds - June 20th Fans who did buy them at official merchandising stalls may feel they got a bit of a bargain as the same items are fetching over €110 online. Kneecap t-shirts, primarily in black, were also generally priced at €30. The most popular one being snapped up had 'Free Mo Chara' on its front, in obvious reference to band member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh's current court case in London. Tshirts on sale at the gig This was the group's first show since Liam's appearance at a magistrates court in London on Wednesday on alleged incitement of terrorism charges (for displaying a Hezbollah flag at a gig in the British capital several months ago), with his case being put back until August while he's released on unconditional bail. Other t-shirts read 'Kneecap: England get out of Ireland' and 'Take these yokes and we'll go for a dance'. A Kneecap hoodie was on sale for €70 and shorts for €40. There was also a separate stall selling pro-Palestinian items. Much of the marketing ideas are originated by the band's enterprising Dubliner manager Daniel Lambert. Daniel is also the C.E.O. of Bohemians FC, where he has had a phenomenal success of bringing sales of merchandising of replica jerseys from just over €100,000 a year to an estimated €2 million. A sign on display at the gig The jerseys, many of which are bought online from abroad, have already have themes such as Bob Marley (who played in Dalymount Park in 1980), 'Refugees Welcome' and 'Fontaines DC'. Environmentalist Greta Thunberg was spotted wearing a Bohs' Fontaines DC on her recent attempted boat trip to Gaza. 'I'm a free man', announced Liam as he took to the stage last night, to whoops of support from the sold-out crowd of 8500 who packed out a giant marquee. Free Mo Chara tshirts were on sale Liam also later wryly stressed that 'I'm not the first lad from west Belfast' that ended up in a British court. The band also highlighted that while their fans got to enjoy an exhilarating show they should also contemplate about Palestinians being slaughtered in Gaza and the West Bank. Balaclavas on sale online The group too paid a touching tribute to their late lightning designer Conor Biddle, offering sympathy to his family and husband Sean. Kneecap will play Glastonbury on Saturday of next weekend, where they're expected to have one of the biggest crowds of the famous festival given not just the curiosity, they're attracting for being perhaps the most high-profile anti-establishment act at the moment but also because their catchy and thought-provoking music is attracting a growing army of fans.
Sunday World
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
Kneecap appear at first major gig since terror charge in defiant mood
The band have denied the offence, calling it "political policing" and "a carnival of distraction" away from Gaza Kneecap took to the stage for their first major gig last night since a terror charge was levelled at one of their members in defiant mood. The Irish-language hip-hop trio appeared at London's Wide Awake just days after Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh was charged by the Metropolitan Police for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Lebanese organisation Hezbollah last year. The band have denied the offence, calling it "political policing" and "a carnival of distraction" away from Gaza, while urging supporters to gather outside court for the first hearing of their bandmate. The rapper, who goes by the stage name Mo Chara, said the authorities were "trying to silence us" before Glastonbury and urged fans not to be "on the wrong side of history." "I know we're out, we're enjoying ourselves and we're trying to listen to some tunes at a festival, believe me lads, I wish I didn't have to do this," he said, according to the BBC. "But the world's not listening. The world needs to see solidarity of 20,000 people in a park in London chanting, 'free, free Palestine'. Kneecap News in 90 Seconds - May 24th 2025 "Let's remember how lucky we are to be in a field with our friends and not being bombed from the sky. Kneecap's first big gig since the investigation was launched followed a smaller "secret" set at London's 100 club the night before. There, they performed a new track entitled 'The Recap' posted online only hours earlier and includes a clip of a news report about the counter-terrorism investigation. One fan, Myrtle from Brighton, told BBC News she agreed with the band's views on Gaza. "I think it's amazing. I think they're completely right," she said. "Imagine in a few years if we get to a state where it's [even worse] and you can't say that you've been on the right side of history and you've not made an effort to make that change, how do you not feel guilty?" Kneecap waded into controversy at the Coachella music festival in California last month, wher they described Israel's military action in Gaza as a US-funded genocide. Historic footage from two of their gigs in the UK that later emerged, including one appearing to show a band member shouting "up Hamas, up Hezbollah", was assessed by counter-terrorism police. Both groups are banned in the UK and it is a crime to express support for them, while another video allegedly showed them calling for Conservative MPs to be killed. The band later apologised to the families of murdered MPs Sir David Amess and Jo Cox but claimed footage of the incident had been taken out of context. They repeated the claim they were "being made an example of" on stage on Friday. While he organisers of the Wide Awake Festival said they had a 'proud history of supporting the alternative music scene, other Kneecap gigs have been cancelled in the wake of the controversy. Some politicians including Tory leader Kemi Badenoch have called for Kneecap to be banned and Commons Leader Lucy Powell has said the group should not be allowed to perform at Glastonbury next month, where they are listed for the Saturday. The message 'free Palestine' was shown on the screen before the band came on stage last night as one of them said: 'Thank you very much. They tried to stop this gig.' Another was heard saying: 'Honestly lads you have no idea how close we were to being pulled off this gig.' As they urged supporters to gather outside court for the first hearing of their bandmate, one member was heard saying: 'If anybody's about on June 18…we're all going to gather outside the Westminster court to show support.' One of the trio said: 'Anybody who's free on June 18- get a big bag of Ket and we'll go on the steps of Westminster.' Liam Ó hAnnaidh said: 'They are trying to silence us' after he was charged with a terror offence over the alleged display of a Hezbollah flag. He told the crowd: 'And the reason it was that quick was because Glastonbury is just around the corner, they're trying to silence us.' Ó hAnnaidh told the crowd he believes the rap group are 'being made an example of'. O hAnnaidh said: 'We are being made an example of, the Israeli lobbyists are trying to prove to other artists 'that if you speak out, we're going to hit you where it hurts most'. 'They're trying to cancel gigs, they trying to cancel my freedom of travel. 'And the fact that I'm speaking to this amount of people, and I assume the majority of you will agree, shows that we're on the right side of history.'
