British pop star Dua Lipa has reportedly fired her agent after he signed a letter calling for the pro-Palestinian Irish rap band Kneecap to be removed from the Glastonbury Festival in July.
Ahead of the festival, several music industry professionals and artists had signed a private letter that was sent to the festival founder, Michael Eavis, urging him to drop the group.
However, the letter was leaked and denounced by others in the music world, and Kneecap went on to perform their allotted slot.
Among the signatories of the letter was David Levy, Dua Lipa’s agent from the WME talent agency.
According to The Mail on Sunday report, citing a music industry source, Dua Lipaa's decision to fire Levy stems from her pro-Palestine stance that “doesn’t align” with her now former agent.
“She views him as being a supporter of Israel’s war in Gaza, and the terrible treatment of the Palestinians and that was made very clear through the letter that he signed and sent to Michael Eavis,” the unnamed source told The Mail.
Kneecap has been dealing with the fallout from accusations of supporting the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and the Palestinian group Hamas, which they deny.
In May, Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was charged under a United Kingdom terrorism offence for allegedly displaying a Hezbollah flag at a performance last November. Chara’s case has been adjourned to the end of this month.
Last week, Kneecap slammed the Canadian government for banning the rap trio from entering the country over accusations that it was endorsing political violence and terrorism by supporting groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.
In response, Kneecap said the comments from Vince Gasparro, a Liberal member of the Canadian parliament and parliamentary secretary for combating crime, are “wholly untrue and deeply malicious” and threatened to take legal action against him.
More pro-Palestinian music artists have called for the industry to take a stronger stance.
Comments
Post a Comment