Rapper pulls out of music festivals alleging they wanted her to make ‘free Palestine’ statements onstage
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Musician Azealia Banks said on Wednesday she canceled her performances at two upcoming U.K. festivals because they asked her to make anti-Israel statements on stage.
The rapper and singer took to X earlier this week to announce that she was pulling out of the Maiden Voyage Festival in London, as well as the Boomtown Festival in Hampshire. She alleged that event promoters said she needed to push pro-Palestinian slogans during her performances.
“So guys, I am cancelling Boomtown and Maiden Voyage, the promoters have been stressing me out for weeks trying to force me to say free Palestine and threatening to cut me from the bill because I won’t say free Palestine and I’m not dealing with the threats and I’m not putting on a f—— hijab,” she wrote.
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Rapper Azealia Banks recently accused two U.K. music festivals of trying to coerce her to make pro-Palestinian statements while performing. (Getty Images)
The “Luxury” singer’s lengthy post continued. She alleged that both events threatened to cut her acts if she didn’t comply with the requests, and noted that she went ahead and pulled out first because she didn’t agree with the demands.
“They’re both basically trying to extort me – by insinuating that I need to say I support Palestine or they will drop me from the gig BUT I would much rather drop them and not associate with anything that has cheap group think b——- attached to it.”
Still, Banks wasn’t finished.
She continued, “If they want to allow some no-name DJs to bully them into desecrating the nature of this music ecosystem and make ME the issue – whilst there being absolutely no ethical consumption under capitalism. Then that’s fine.”
“More thinly veiled racism and overt antisemitism from the f—— gays for Hamas.”
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Azealia Banks performs during the Noise Pop Music & Arts festival at The Warfield on February 27, 2022 in San Francisco, California. ((Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images))
Banks continued her thread, clarifying that she harbored no ill will towards Gaza or the Palestinian people, but that she was tired of the political statements surrounding it.
“And no, I’m not saying f— actual Palestine. But f— your dumb a– slogans and performative b——-. Yall wanna make a stance so bad but stand for absolutely nothing.”
She then accused people in the media of having outrage over something they know nothing about, adding, “And all of a sudden yall are throwing around words like genocide and Zionist not even knowing the meaning of those words while you drive around in ur teslas and leave comments from your iPhones all built off the backs and the blood of children working in mines from dusk til dawn.”
“Kiss my a–,” she added.
On Saturday, Banks followed-up on X, saying, “This Palestine s— is boring and exhausting. Now I have to mute the word on every platform and go back to ignoring it. I REALLY don’t give a f— anymore lmfao, yall are not getting in my happy music space with that s—.”
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In a statement, Boomtown Festival disputed Banks’ claims that promoters tried to get her to say anything, though it confirmed she had been dropped.
“Following her post on X in the early hours of this morning, we can confirm that Azealia Banks has withdrawn from the lineup and will no longer be performing at Boomtown Festival. For clarity, Boomtown does not and will never dictate the personal views and beliefs of performers,” a spokesperson stated.
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Maiden Voyage Festival did not immediately reply to Fox News Digital’s request for comment, though the festival’s Instagram page confirmed that Banks “will no longer be performing” at the event.