Kneecap Condemns ‘Coordinated Smear Campaign’ Against Them After Anti-Israel Coachella Performance
Northern Irish hip-hop group Kneecap condemned the “coordinated smear campaign” against them on Friday following their pro-Palestine performance at Coachella 2025. Their statement came in response to some members of the public calling for their United States visas to be revoked.
“Since our statements at Coachella — exposing the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people — we have faced a coordinated smear campaign. For over a year, we have used our shows to call out the British and Irish governments complicity in war crimes,” their social media message began. “The recent attacks against us, largely emanating from the U.S., are based on deliberate distortions and falsehoods. We are taking action against several of these malicious efforts.”
“Let us be absolutely clear. The reason Kneecap is being target is simple — we are telling the truth, and our audience is growing,” they continued. “Those attacking us want to silence criticism of a mass slaughter. They weaponize false accusations of antisemitism to distract, confuse and provide cover for genocide.”
“We do not give a f–k what religion anyone practices. We know there are massive numbers of Jewish people outraged by this genocide just as we are,” the band added. “What we care about is that governments of the countries we perform in are enabling some of the most horrific crimes of our lifetimes — and we will not stay silent.”
“No media spin will change this. Our only concern is the Palestinian people — the 20,000 murdered children and counting,” Kneecap concluded. “The young people at our gigs see through the lies. They stand on the side of humanity and justice. And that gives us great hope.”
TheWrap has reached out to Kneecap for further comment.
Friday’s message came two days after Sharon Osbourne spoke out against the trio, DJ Próvaí, Mo Chara and Móglaí Bap. “As someone with both Irish Catholic on my Mother’s side and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage on my Father’s side, and extensive experience in the music industry, I understand the complexities involved,” she said. “I urge you to join me in advocating for the revocation of Kneecap’s work visa.”
“You had a band here that is an extremist band that supports Hezbollah and Hamas that whipped this crowd of thousands into an anti-Israel, anti-Zionist, antisemitic frenzy at a music festival that could have led to who knows what,” Ari Ingel, executive director of pro-Israel entertainment nonprofit Creative Community for Peace, previously told TheWrap. “Say there was some young kid with a Star of David on his neck. Could that kid have gotten beat up and lynched?”
The Nova music festival exhibition also issued the following statement: “When our exhibit first came to Los Angeles, the founder of Coachella himself, Paul Tollett, was one of our first visitors. He did not know our story, but after witnessing, he saw his own humanity and his own festival within ours. He sat with us, cried with us, and advocated for us. Today, we will do the same for him. Coachella, like Nova, is a place of love.”
Following their “F–k Israel” message at weekend No. 2 at the California music festival, Kneecap’s booking agency Independent Artist Group has parted ways with the trio.
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