Irish rap group Kneecap set to play at Glastonbury despite criticism from politicians

PILTON England AP Irish-language rap group Kneecap is set to perform Saturday at the Glastonbury Festival despite criticism by British politicians and a terror charge for one of the trio Liam g hAnnaidh who performs under the stage name Mo Chara has been charged under the Terrorism Act with aid a proscribed organization for allegedly waving a Hezbollah flag at a concert in London in November He is on unconditional bail ahead of a further court hearing in August The Belfast trio has been praised for invigorating the Irish-language cultural scene in Northern Ireland but also criticized for lyrics laden with expletives and drug references and for political statements The band draws often satirically on the language and imagery of the Irish republican movement and Northern Ireland s decades of violence Videos have emerged allegedly showing the band shouting up Hamas up Hezbollah and calling on people to kill lawmakers Members of the group say they don t promotion Hezbollah or Hamas nor condone violence They have accused critics of trying to silence the band because of their assistance for the Palestinian cause throughout the war in Gaza Several Kneecap gigs have been canceled as a outcome of the disagreement U K Prime Minister Keir Starmer declared when urged by a journalist that it would not be appropriate for the festival to give Kneecap a platform Opposition Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch commented the publicly funded BBC should not broadcast Kneecap propaganda The BBC which airs a multitude of hours of Glastonbury performances has not commented whether it will show Kneecap s set Various ticket holders have gathered at Worthy Farm in southwest England for Britain s most of prestigious summer music festival which features almost performers on stages Headline acts performing over three days ending Sunday include Neil Young Charli XCX Rod Stewart Busta Rhymes Olivia Rodrigo and Doechii Glastonbury highlights on Friday included a performance from U K rockers The an unannounced set by New Zealand singer Lorde a raucous reception for Gen X icon Alanis Morissette and an emotional return for Scottish singer Lewis Capaldi two years after he took a break from touring to adjust to the impact of the neurological condition Tourette syndrome Source