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Punk duo lead singer Bobby Vylan has stated he is "not regretful" about his "death, death to the IDF" act at the festival and declared he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Controversial Chant and Political Responses

This vocal punk pair sparked widespread controversy when they initiated audience calls of "death, death to the IDF," referring to the IDF, during their summer performance. The chant was condemned by Glastonbury and Britain's leader Keir Starmer, who labeled it as "appalling hate speech."

Following the incident, Bob Vylan was dropped by its representation UTA, and the American government revoked the artists' travel documents, forcing the duo to cancel a scheduled US and Canada tour.

Conversation with Louis Theroux

During his first public discussion after the Glastonbury show, Vylan, whose real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster, spoke on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After asked if he would do it all again, he replied:

"Absolutely. Like what if I was to go on the festival again tomorrow, definitely I would repeat it. I'm not regretful of it. I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

He noted that the criticism the band faced was "minimal compared to what individuals in Gaza are going through."

Regarding the Chant's Importance

"I don't want to exaggerate the importance of the slogan," he elaborated. "That's not what I'm trying to do, but since I have their support, they're the people that I'm advocating for, they're the people that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to regret? Well, because I've upset some rightwing politician or some rightwing media?"

Unexpected Response and Broadcaster Comments

The artist claimed he was taken aback by the outcry sparked by the exclamation, and stated that staff of BBC employees at Glastonbury told him on the day that the performance was "fantastic."

Yet, the corporation's executive complaints unit later determined that the network's broadcast of the performance violated content standards in regard to offense and offence.

He told the host there was no indication of a controversy in the moment: "It wasn't like we left stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It's just normal. We come off stage. It's normal. Nobody thought anything. Nobody. Including crew at the broadcaster were like 'It was fantastic! We loved that!'"

Reply to Damon Albarn

The musician also hit back at the Blur singer, who called the protest "one of the most spectacular misfires I've witnessed in my life" and characterized him as "marching in tennis gear."

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

"I just want to say that categorising it as a 'spectacular misfire' suggests that in some way the politics of the band or our stance on Palestine's freedom is unplanned," he explained.

"I strongly object with the phrase 'marching' being used because it's only used around Nazi Germany," he added. "That's it. And for him to use that wording, I think is disgusting. I think his response was appalling."

Meaning Behind the Slogan

When questioned what he meant by the phrase "Down with the IDF," the artist clarified the chant itself was "insignificant."

"What is important is the conditions that exist to allow that chant to even take place on that platform. And I mean, the conditions that exist in Palestine. In which the local population are being slain at an disturbing rate. Who cares about the chant?" he stated.

"The phrase rhymes," he noted: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have caught on, would it? … We are there to entertain. We are there to play music. I am a songwriter. 'The chant' rhymes. Perfect slogan."

Rejection of Antisemitism Claims

Vylan also denied claims from the CST, a watchdog and Jewish community safety group, that their set contributed to a rise in anti-Jewish incidents recorded later.

"I believe I have created an unsafe environment for the Jewish community. Suppose there were large numbers of individuals acting and going like 'We made me do this'. I could go, oh, I've had a bad impact here," he commented.

Comparison with Different Artists

As he said he thought the duo had been targeted more heavily than others for speaking about the conflict, the host brought up the Ireland-based group Kneecap, who have likewise encountered backlash for their approach to pro-Palestinian advocacy.

"That's an interesting one," he responded, "since as with all things race becomes a factor in that we are an more convenient villain, no pun intended, than they are because we are already the enemy."