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Punk duo frontman Bobby Vylan has stated he is "not regretful" about his "death, death to the IDF" act at Glastonbury and asserted he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Controversial Chant and Political Reactions

The outspoken music duo sparked widespread debate when they initiated crowd chants of "death, death to the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their June set. This slogan was condemned by festival organizers and Britain's leader Keir Starmer, who described it as "appalling hate speech."

Following the event, Bob Vylan was released by its representation UTA, and the American government revoked the members' travel documents, compelling the duo to cancel a planned US and Canada tour.

Interview with Louis Theroux

During his initial public discussion since the festival performance, the musician, using his real name is Pascal Foster, conversed on a popular podcast. After questioned if he would do it all again, he replied:

"Oh yeah. For instance suppose I was to perform at Glastonbury again tomorrow, definitely I would repeat it. I'm without regret of it. I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

He added that the backlash the duo faced was "minimal compared to what individuals in Palestine are going through."

On the Chant's Significance

"I aim not to exaggerate the significance of the chant," he elaborated. "It isn't what I'm attempting to do, but if I have their support, they're the people that I'm advocating for, they're the people that I'm being vocal for, then what is there to regret? Well, because I've angered some rightwing politician or some conservative news outlet?"

Surprising Reaction and Broadcaster Comments

The artist claimed he was surprised by the outcry sparked by the exclamation, and stated that staff of the broadcaster employees at the event told him on the day that the performance was "fantastic."

However, the corporation's ECU subsequently determined that the BBC's airing of the show violated editorial standards in relation to harm and offence.

Vylan told the host there was no indication of a dispute in the moment: "It didn't feel like we came off stage, and everybody was like [shocked]. It felt normal. We come off stage. It was normal. Nobody suspected anything. Not a soul. Even staff at the BBC were like 'It was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"

Response to Blur Frontman

The musician also hit back at Damon Albarn, who called the chant "a major misstep I've seen in my life" and described him as "goose-stepping in tennis gear."

His comment was "disappointing" and "lacked self-awareness," Vylan said.

"I just want to say that labeling it as a 'huge mistake' suggests that in some way the views of the band or our position on Palestinian liberation is not thought out," he stated.

"I take great issue with the phrase 'goose-stepping' being used because it's typically associated around Nazi Germany," he continued. "That's it. And for him to use that language, I think is disgusting. I think his answer was disgusting."

Intent Behind the Chant

When asked what he meant by the chant "Death to the IDF," Vylan clarified the slogan itself was "unimportant."

"What is important is the situation that exist to allow that chant to even occur on that platform. And I mean, the conditions that exist in Palestine. Where the local people are being killed at an alarming rate. What matters about the slogan?" he stated.

"Death to the IDF rhymes," he noted: "Stop 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 songwriter. 'The chant' rhymes. Ideal chant."

Rejection of Antisemitism Allegations

Vylan also denied claims from the Community Security Trust, a monitoring and Jewish safety group, that their performance contributed to a spike in antisemitic events reported later.

"I believe I have created an unsafe environment for the Jewish community. Suppose there were large numbers of individuals acting and saying 'We made me do this'. I might go, oh, I've had a bad impact here," he commented.

Comparison with Different Artists

When he said he felt the duo had been criticised more heavily than others for speaking about the conflict, Theroux brought up the Irish group Kneecap, who have also faced criticism for their method to pro-Palestinian messaging.

"That's an interesting one," he said, "since as with everything race comes to play a factor in that we are an more convenient target, seriously, than they are because we are already the opponent."