Kneecap Respond To Sharon Osbourne Calling For Revocation Of Their Visas Over Israel Message At Coachella

On Friday (Apr. 18) Kneecap performed at Coachella and received help from leftist social media personality Hasan Piker in broadcasting pro-Palestine messages on stage and on livestreams to bring awareness to the ongoing Israeli genocide. The Northern Irish rap trio is facing backlash from many people, including Sharon Osbourne and Fox News.

"While festivals like Coachella showcase remarkable talent from around the globe, music's primary purpose is to unite people," Osbourne wrote yesterday (Apr. 22) in an exhaustingly long tweet. She continued:

It should not be a venue for promoting terrorist organizations or spreading hate. Green Day, a band I personally admire, chose to share their views on the Middle East during their Coachella performance. While I respect their right to express their opinions, such discussions would have been more appropriate at their own concert, not at a festival. Kneecap, an Irish rap group, took their performance to a different level by incorporating aggressive political statements. Their actions included projections of anti-Israel messages and hate speech, and this band openly support terrorist organizations. This behavior raises concerns about the appropriateness of their participation in such a festival and further shows they are booked to play in the USA. Reports indicate that Goldenvoice was unaware of Kneecap's political intentions when they were booked. However, after witnessing their performance during the first weekend, allowing them to perform again the following weekend suggests support of their rhetoric and a lack of due diligence.

She ended the tweet with, "I urge you to join me in advocating for the revocation of Kneecap’s work visa."

Kneecap responded today via Rolling Stone: “Her rant has so many holes in it that it hardly warrants a reply but she should listen to ‘War Pigs’ that was written by Black Sabbath (her husband),” Mo Chara said.

Despite Osbourne saying there were reports indicating Goldenvoice was unaware of Kneecap's political intentions, Chara points out that they've spoken about Palestine “at every single gig since the band’s formation, long before October 2023 as the oppression and brutal occupation of Palestine has been ongoing for 77 years." He added:

We believe we have an obligation to use our platform when we can to raise the issue of Palestine, and it was important for us to speak out at Coachella as the USA is the main funder and supplier of weapons to Israel as they commit genocide in Gaza. As I said from the stage, ‘the U.S. government could stop the genocide tomorrow.’ It’s important that young Americans hear and know it.

Kneecap have been sharing the reactions to their performance, including the clip of Fox News discussing it with anti-trans activist and former swimmer Riley Gaines who called Kneecap "a band I've never even heard of." Meanwhile, Kneecap's whole North American tour is sold out.

Unsurprisingly Disturbed's David Draiman thanked Osbourne and also wants to talk to Billie Joe Armstrong, who changed a lyric in "Jesus Of Suburbia" to speak up for Palestine.

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