Barclays pull out of Download Festival amid boycott
Download Festival has severed ties with Barclays following the news that multiple bands expected to be performing will be boycotting the festival. The boycott and subsequent protests arose because the festival’s sponsor has alleged financial ties with organisations responsible for weapons manufacturing and supplying arms to Israeli forces.
The news was confirmed by Enter Shikari, who are due to be performing at the festival on Saturday, June 15th. The band made a statement via X: “We have been in talks with Download themselves, expressing our serious objection at Barclays involvement. We have considered all options, and along with other artists have been working tirelessly on this.”
They continued: “We don’t believe in rushed reactions and always want the best outcome for all involved. Thanks to this collective pressure we now believe we have achieved that – Barclays have pulled out of Download Festival.”
The band confirmed they are taking direction from the Palestinian-led BDS campaign, and they “urge others to do the same”. Enter Shikari also confirmed the campaign has a list of companies that should be targeted with boycotts. “(Even though Barclays isn’t on this list, it is still a genocide-complicit entity, and we support all actions that apply pressure on Barclays to withdraw its investments in Israeli weapons manufacturers)” they said.
The band finished their statement with, “Though public support for an Israeli weapons embargo is strong, political will is small. In order to change this we must stand strong together.”
A spokesperson for Live Nation told The Guardian: “Following discussion with artists, we have agreed with Barclays that they will step back from sponsorship of our festivals.”
Meanwhile, Barclays statement issued to the same newspaper stated: “Barclays was asked and has agreed to suspend participation in the remaining Live Nation festivals in 2024. Barclays customers who hold tickets to these festivals are not affected and their tickets remain valid. The protesters’ agenda is to have Barclays debank defence companies which is a sector we remain committed to as an essential part of keeping this country and our allies safe”.
A number of bands and artists had dropped out of Download prior to this news, and it remains to be seen whether or not it is too late for them to retake their place on the line-up. Acts who had dropped out include Pest Control, Speed, Zulu and Negative Frame. Negative Frame took to their social media to write, “Just imagine a piece of every card transaction at the fest going towards real evil terror. We are not part of it.”
Download was not the only festival to be impacted by association with Barclays. Earlier in the year, The Great Escape in Brighton had a huge amount of bands pull out of the festival in a bid to boycott Barclays. Sharing the same message, The Menstrual Cramps wrote, “As a band, we have consistently been against Israel’s genocidal assault on Palestinians and fully support the Palestine Solidarity Campaign’s ongoing calls to boycott Barclays Bank.”
The news about Download cutting ties with the band will be seen as a victory by many and might not come as news to some people. There was already speculation about the event’s relationship with the bank when, on June 12th, they were removed as a partner from the Download website.
Other festivals that had ties with the bank include Latitude, Isle of Wight and Camp Bestival; however, it appears the bank will no longer be affiliated with any of them.
This remains a developing story, as more information on the bands that were supposed to be boycotting the festival and their eligibility to play has yet to be determined.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.