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Punk duo frontman Bobby Vylan has expressed he is "without regret" about his "anti-IDF chant" performance at the festival and asserted he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Disputed Chant and Official Responses

This vocal music duo ignited widespread debate when they initiated audience calls of "down with the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their summer performance. This slogan was condemned by Glastonbury and Britain's leader Keir Starmer, who labeled it as "appalling hate speech."

Following the event, the band was dropped by its agency UTA, and the US state department cancelled the members' visas, forcing the duo to cancel a scheduled US and Canada tour.

Conversation with Louis Theroux

In his initial public discussion since the Glastonbury performance, Vylan, whose real name is Pascal Foster, conversed on a popular podcast. After asked if he would repeat his actions, he replied:

"Oh yeah. Like suppose I was to go on Glastonbury again tomorrow, definitely I would repeat it. I'm without regret of it. I'd say it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

He noted that the criticism the duo encountered was "small compared to what people in Gaza are experiencing."

Regarding the Chant's Significance

"I aim not to overstate the importance of the slogan," he elaborated. "That's not what I'm trying to do, but since I have the Palestinian people's support, these are the individuals that I'm advocating for, these are the individuals that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to regret? Well, because I've upset some conservative official or some conservative media?"

Unexpected Response and Broadcaster Feedback

The artist claimed he was taken aback by the outcry sparked by the exclamation, and asserted that staff of the broadcaster staff at the event told him on the same day that the performance was "fantastic."

However, the corporation's executive complaints unit subsequently found that the BBC's broadcast of the show violated content standards in regard to harm and hurt.

He informed Theroux there was no indication of a dispute in the immediate aftermath: "It wasn't like we left stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It's just normal. We come off stage. It's normal. Nobody suspected anything. Nobody. Including staff at the broadcaster were like 'That was fantastic! We loved that!'"

Reply to Blur Frontman

The musician also responded at the Blur singer, who called the protest "a major misstep I've witnessed in my life" and described Vylan as "goose-stepping in sport gear."

Albarn's comment was "letdown" and "showed no self-awareness," he said.

"I need to say that categorising it as a 'spectacular misfire' suggests that somehow the views of the band or our stance on Palestinian liberation is unplanned," he explained.

"I take great issue with the term 'goose-stepping' being used because it's only used around Nazi Germany," he added. "Precisely. And for him to use that wording, I think is offensive. I think his response was appalling."

Intent Behind the Chant

When asked what he meant by the chant "Death to the IDF," Vylan said the chant itself was "unimportant."

"The key issue is the situation that exist to allow that chant to even occur on that platform. And I mean, the circumstances that are present in Palestine. In which the Palestinian population are being slain at an alarming rate. What matters about the slogan?" he said.

"Death to the IDF rhymes," he noted: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have spread, would it? … We are there to perform. We are there to play music. I am a lyricist. 'Death, Death to IDF' rhymes. Perfect chant."

Denial of Hate Speech Claims

Vylan also rejected assertions from the CST, a monitoring and Jewish community safety group, that their set contributed to a spike in antisemitic incidents recorded later.

"I believe I have caused an unsafe environment for the Jewish community. Suppose there were large numbers of individuals going out and saying 'We made me do this'. I might go, oof, I've had a negative effect here," he said.

Comparison with Different Bands

When he mentioned he felt the band had been criticised more severely than different artists for speaking about the situation, Theroux brought up the Irish group Kneecap, who have likewise encountered criticism for their method to pro-Palestine messaging.

"That's a notable point," he said, "since as with all things ethnicity becomes a part in that we are an more convenient target, seriously, than others are because we are inherently the enemy."