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

Controversial Chant and Official Responses

The outspoken music duo sparked widespread controversy when they led crowd calls of "down with the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their June performance. This chant was censured by festival organizers and Britain's leader the prime minister, who labeled it as "appalling hate speech."

Following the incident, Bob Vylan was dropped by its representation United Talent Agency, and the American government revoked the members' visas, forcing the duo to cancel a planned US and Canada tour.

Conversation with the Podcaster

In his first interview after the Glastonbury show, the musician, using his birth name is Pascal Foster, conversed on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After asked if he would do it all again, he responded:

"Oh yeah. Like what if I was to go on the festival again tomorrow, yes I would repeat it. I'm not regretful of it. I'd say it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

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

On the Chant's Importance

"I aim not to overstate the importance of the slogan," he elaborated. "It isn't what I'm trying to do, but if I have the Palestinian people's support, they're the individuals that I'm advocating for, they're the individuals that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to regret? Oh, because I've upset some rightwing politician or some rightwing news outlet?"

Surprising Response and Broadcaster Comments

The musician said he was surprised by the outcry triggered by the exclamation, and stated that members of the broadcaster employees at Glastonbury told him on the day that the performance was "excellent."

Yet, the broadcaster's ECU subsequently found that the network's broadcast of the show breached editorial standards in relation to offense and hurt.

He told Theroux there was no sign of a dispute in the immediate aftermath: "It didn't feel like we left stage, and everybody was like [shocked]. It felt normal. We leave stage. It was normal. Nobody thought anything. Not a soul. Even crew at the broadcaster were like 'That was fantastic! We loved that!'"

Response to Blur Frontman

The musician also hit back at Damon Albarn, who labeled the chant "a major misstep I've seen in my life" and characterized him as "marching in sport gear."

Albarn's comment was "letdown" and "lacked 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 position on Palestinian liberation is unplanned," he explained.

"I take great issue with the term 'marching' being used because it's only used around the Nazis," he added. "Precisely. And for him to use that language, I think is offensive. I think his response was appalling."

Intent Behind the Slogan

After asked what he meant by the chant "Death to the IDF," the artist said the slogan itself was "insignificant."

"The key issue is the situation that exist to allow that chant to even occur on that platform. And I mean, the conditions that are present in the region. Where the local population are being killed at an alarming rate. What matters about the chant?" he said.

"Death to the IDF rhymes," he noted: "Stop the IDF' does not rhyme, wouldn't have spread, right? … We are there to entertain. We are there to sing songs. I am a songwriter. 'Death, Death to IDF' rhymes. Perfect chant."

Denial of Antisemitism Claims

The musician also denied assertions from the CST, a monitoring and Jewish safety organisation, that their set led to a rise in anti-Jewish incidents recorded two days.

"I don't think I have created an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish people. Suppose there were many individuals of individuals acting and going like 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I might go, oh, I've had a bad effect here," he said.

Contrast with Different Bands

When he said he thought the band had been targeted more severely than different artists for voicing views about the situation, Theroux brought up the Irish band another band, who have likewise encountered criticism for their method to pro-Palestine advocacy.

"That's a notable point," he responded, "because as with all things race becomes a part in that we are an more convenient villain, seriously, than they are because we are inherently the opponent."