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The frontman of Bob Vylan has stated he is "not regretful" about his "anti-IDF chant" performance at the festival and declared he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Controversial Chant and Official Responses

This vocal music pair sparked significant controversy when they led crowd chants of "down with the IDF," referring to the IDF, during their June performance. This slogan was censured by Glastonbury and UK Prime Minister the prime minister, who labeled it as "shocking hate speech."

Following the event, the band was released by its representation United Talent Agency, and the American state department revoked the members' travel documents, forcing them to cancel a planned US and Canada concert series.

Interview with Louis Theroux

During his first interview after the Glastonbury show, the musician, whose real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster, conversed on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After asked if he would repeat his actions, he replied:

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

The artist added that the backlash the duo faced was "minimal compared to what individuals in Gaza are experiencing."

Regarding the Protest's Importance

"I don't want to exaggerate the significance of the chant," he continued. "It isn't what I'm attempting to do, but since I have the Palestinian people's support, they're the individuals that I'm advocating for, they're the people that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to regret? Oh, because I've upset some rightwing official or some conservative news outlet?"

Unexpected Reaction and Broadcaster Comments

This artist said he was taken aback by the outcry sparked by the exclamation, and asserted that members of BBC staff at the event told him on the day that the performance was "excellent."

However, the corporation's executive complaints unit subsequently determined that the BBC's broadcast of the performance breached content standards in relation to offense and offence.

He informed the host there was no sign of a controversy in the moment: "It didn't feel like we left stage, and everybody was like [shocked]. It felt normal. We come off stage. It was normal. Nobody suspected anything. Nobody. Even staff at the BBC were like 'That was fantastic! We loved that!'"

Reply to Damon Albarn

The musician also hit back at Damon Albarn, who called the protest "one of the most spectacular misfires I've witnessed in my life" and described him as "goose-stepping in tennis gear."

Albarn's reaction 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 views of the band or our stance on Palestinian liberation is unplanned," he stated.

"I take great issue with the term 'marching' being used because it's typically associated around the Nazis," 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 Chant

When questioned what he meant by the chant "Down with the IDF," the artist said the slogan itself was "unimportant."

"What is important is the conditions that persist to allow that protest to even take place on that stage. And I mean, the conditions that exist in the region. Where the Palestinian people are being killed at an alarming rate. Who cares about the slogan?" he said.

"Death to the IDF rhymes," he added: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have spread, would it? … We are there to entertain. We are there to sing songs. I am a lyricist. 'Death, Death to IDF' rhymes. Perfect chant."

Denial of Antisemitism Allegations

The musician also denied assertions from the Community Security Trust, a monitoring and Jewish safety organisation, that their set contributed to a rise in antisemitic incidents reported two days.

"I believe I have created an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish people. If there were many individuals of people acting and going like 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I might go, oh, I've had a bad impact here," he said.

Comparison with Different Artists

As Vylan mentioned he thought the band had been targeted more heavily than others for speaking about the conflict, the host brought up the Ireland-based band Kneecap, who have also encountered backlash for their method to pro-Palestinian messaging.

"That's a notable point," Vylan said, "because as with all things ethnicity comes to play a part in that we are an more convenient villain, no pun intended, than others are because we are inherently the enemy."