It would have been much more helpful, instead of an opinion piece about the fuss surrounding Kneecap, to simply present, without any commentary, Massive Attack’s stance on the issue. You’ll find it below.
To make it easier, I could have included 13 words from them and nothing else: “Kneecap are not the story. Gaza is the story. Genocide is the story.” In other words, “the issue is not the Kneecap, but the genocide in Gaza.”
Let’s start from the beginning, though. Who are Kneecap? They are an Irish band (from Northern Ireland, as someone who doesn’t vote for the Tories might say) that raps in Gaelic, taking a stand in favor of preserving the language, which until recently was banned in Northern Ireland (again, Northern Ireland).
To avoid repeating myself, you can read our explainer by clicking on the word explainer. Let’s move on.
So, Kneecap, in addition to supporting a united Ireland, also publicly take a stance on the genocide in Gaza. They express their views at their concerts, on social media, in interviews, and during award ceremonies at the Brits.
They did the same at the Coachella festival in California, displaying their stance on the issue on a video wall. “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people. It is supported by the US government, which arms and funds them, despite the war crimes they commit.” We won’t write the rest out fully because we risk a shadow ban—like the Gen Z version of the National Broadcasting Council—but they awkwardly labeled Israel and wrote “Free Palestine” underneath.
From the beginning of their band, they have taken a stance on this issue, which has been unfolding since 1948: the displacement of the Palestinians.
Nothing unusual for them, of course. From the start of their band, they have taken a stance on this issue, which has been unfolding since 1948: the displacement of Palestinians, the shrinking of Palestinian territories, the bombings and attacks by Israel on civilians, and much more. In short, everything that has been happening in fast-forward since October 2023 is now taking on the characteristics of genocide.
What was the reaction from politicians and the media to the political messages they presented to the California audience? “You’re anti-Semites, supporters of terrorists,” Kneecap replied, “No, we’re not, we don’t support Hamas or Hezbollah.” They were then told, “But we saw you shouting something in support of them in your music video, and you also said to kill your local MP.” They responded, “You’ve isolated one sentence from an entire statement.” That’s it. But what did we say earlier? Kneecap are not the issue. The genocide in Gaza is.
Of course, they were waiting for them around the corner.
To put it into perspective, long before the fuss that erupted in April, in December 2024, the Daily Mail, with its typical British cynicism, published the following headline about an award Kneecap won for their film: Anti-British Irish-language movie funded by UK public money wins Best British Film gong (Anti-British film supporting the Irish language, funded by the UK, wins the award for Best British Film).
It was a bit like Giorgos Mino’s reports, which often go something like this: PAOK won at PAOK’s stadium in Toumba, and PAOK’s fans cheered for their PAOK team at the end of the PAOK match.
In any case, everyone was waiting for a reason to latch onto, to label them with accusations of terrorism and anti-Semitism, as they’ve done to anyone who publicly opposes Israel’s attacks on Palestine, and they found it.
The result? Their concerts in Germany, the UK, and elsewhere were canceled, and an investigation into incitement to terrorism was launched.
Meanwhile, after Coachella, they’ve received death threats, and their visa for their sold-out tour in the US is at risk of being revoked, according to the BBC. Terrible things.
Fortunately, many artists signed a joint statement in support of Kneecap: Fontaines DC, Pulp, Annie Mac, among others.
In the statement, the bands and artists highlight that there was a “clear, coordinated effort to censor and ultimately mislead” the band, and accuse “high-ranking political figures” of the British government and the British media of “openly participating in a campaign to remove Kneecap from the public.”
The statement was also signed by Massive Attack, to return to them.
“Do politicians and right-wing journalists, who strategically create moral outrage over the stage expressions of a youth band, while simultaneously covering up or even ignoring a genocide happening in real-time (including the murder of journalists in unprecedented numbers), have the right to intimidate at festival events and engage in acts of political censorship?
Kneecap are not the issue. Gaza is the issue. Genocide is the issue.”
As a conclusion? Dead in Gaza: 52,000+. Most of them are women and children. The injured exceed 100,000, while the missing (and most likely dead) number 15,000.
Do we need to say more?
P.S.: Kneecap are coming to Greece on July 13, at Terra Vibe. Unless the concert gets canceled for “inciting terrorism.” Tiocfaidh ár lá!
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