Pro-Palestine campaigners reiterate calls to boycott Radiohead tour
The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) has reiterated calls for a boycott of Radiohead‘s upcoming tour.
PACBI, which is a founding member of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, previously issued a statement urging people to boycott and protest the concerts in September before they had been officially announced.
Radiohead last performed in Israel in 2017 despite being urged to cancel the show by the BDS movement. It marked the eighth performance of their career in Israel, but their first since 2000.
In a recent interview with The Times, Yorke looked back on the concert with regret, sharing, “I was in the hotel when some guy, clearly connected high up, approached me to thank me. It horrified me, truly, that the gig was being hijacked. So I get it — sort of.”
Yorke added, “At the time, I thought the gig made sense, but as soon as I got there and that guy came up? Get me the fuck out.”
The singer also said that he would “absolutely not” play Israel under current circumstances, adding, “I wouldn’t want to be 5,000 miles anywhere near the Netanyahu regime, but Jonny (Greenwood) has roots there. So I get it.”
The ties that Yorke is referring to is Greenwood’s marriage to Israeli artist Sharona Katan. He also teamed up with Israeli musician Dudu Tassa in 2023 on the collaborative album, Jarak Qaribak. The pair, who most recently played Tel Aviv in March, cancelled concerts in Bristol and Hackney in June with Greenwood saying they had “faced enough credible threats to conclude that it’s not safe to proceed”.
In the same interview with The Times, Greenwood said he’d have no issues with playing Israel again, stating, “I would argue that the government is more likely to use a boycott and say, ‘Everyone hates us — we should do exactly what we want.’ Which is far more dangerous.”
Additionally, drummer Philip Selway said: “What BDS are asking of us is impossible. They want us to distance ourselves from Jonny, but that would mean the end of the band and Jonny is coming from a very principled place.”
Now, in a new statement, PACBA have responded to the band’s latest comments, “Radiohead is still refusing to distance itself from Jonny Greenwood’s continued insistence on crossing our picket line. By performing in apartheid Tel Aviv, alongside an Israeli artist who has repeatedly entertained the genocidal Israeli military, Greenwood is artwashing Israel’s genocide against 2.3M Palestinians in Gaza.”
It continued, “Of Greenwood’s shameful stance, Thom Yorke says ‘I get it.’ Well, Palestinians don’t. Drummer Phil Selway says it’s ‘impossible’ for Radiohead to distance itself from Jonny Greenwood’s artwashing of genocide. That’s their choice. Here’s ours: the Palestinian-led global BDS movement reiterates its call for the boycott and peaceful protest of Radiohead’s now-confirmed tour, which starts next week.”
The upcoming Radiohead tour is set to begin in Madrid, Spain, on November 4th, and will also see them visit Bologna, Copenhagen, London, and Berlin.
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