Controversial Irish hip-hop group Kneecap parted methods with their reserving company Unbiased Artist Group, sources affirm to The Hollywood Reporter.
It’s unclear what led to the band’s cut up from the company, which befell between the primary and second weekends of the Coachella music competition. Kneecap had confronted vital backlash from Jewish music executives and teams after sharing a “fuck Israel, free Palestine” message throughout their Coachella set final weekend. After their weekend one set, the band claimed Coachella had censored their pro-Palestine messages from the competition’s official livestream. (Weekend two’s Kneecap efficiency was not live-streamed, however photographs of the onstage projections circulated broadly on social media.)
A consultant for IAG (which counts Billy Joel, Metallica and Mary J. Blige on its artist roster) confirmed the company now not represents Kneecap however didn’t present any additional particulars. IAG was fashioned in 2023 with the merger of mid-sized businesses APA and AGI. Kneecap’s administration didn’t instantly reply to request for remark. The group has a busy touring schedule within the months forward, enjoying main festivals together with Primavera Sound in Spain and Glastonbury in England in June.
With the band now having a gap for his or her reserving company, the query now turns into who will symbolize them, or in the event that they’ll face any struggles discovering a brand new company as teams just like the Inventive Neighborhood for Peace referred to as it “outrageous” for Coachella’s organizers AEG and Goldenvoice to have platformed them “at a time of document ranges of antisemitism.” The band’s critics have pointed towards statements Kneecap have made at concert events in assist of Hamas and Hezbollah, each of which the U.S. labels as international terrorist organizations.
Kneecap’s Mo Chara responded to the criticism to Rolling Stone on Wednesday, claiming that their message is “about [the Israeli government’s] authorities’s sickening actions, not odd individuals.”
“We imagine we have now an obligation to make use of our platform after we can to lift the problem of Palestine, and it was necessary for us to talk out at Coachella because the USA is the primary funder and provider of weapons to Israel as they commit genocide in Gaza,” Chara mentioned.