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Punk duo lead singer Bobby Vylan has stated he is "without regret" about his "anti-IDF chant" performance at the festival and declared he would "do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Disputed Exclamation and Political Responses

The vocal music pair sparked widespread debate when they led audience chants of "down with the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their June performance. The slogan was censured by Glastonbury and Britain's leader Keir Starmer, who described it as "appalling hate speech."

After the incident, Bob Vylan was dropped by its representation UTA, and the American state department cancelled the members' travel documents, forcing them to call off a scheduled North American tour.

Interview with the Podcaster

During his first interview after the festival show, Vylan, using his real name is Pascal Foster, conversed on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After questioned if he would do it all again, he replied:

"Absolutely. For instance what if I was to perform at Glastonbury again tomorrow, yes I would repeat it. I'm without regret of it. I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

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

On the Chant's Significance

"I don't want to overstate the significance of the chant," he elaborated. "It isn't what I'm attempting to do, but since I have their support, they're the people that I'm doing it for, these are the people that I'm being vocal for, then what is there to feel sorry about? Well, because I've angered some rightwing politician or some rightwing news outlet?"

Unexpected Reaction and Broadcaster Feedback

This musician said he was surprised by the outcry sparked by the exclamation, and asserted that members of the broadcaster staff at Glastonbury told him on the same day that the set was "fantastic."

However, the corporation's ECU subsequently determined that the BBC's broadcast of the show breached content standards in regard to offense and hurt.

He told Theroux there was no sign of a dispute in the immediate aftermath: "It didn't feel like we left stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It felt normal. We come off stage. It's normal. Nobody suspected anything. Nobody. Even crew at the broadcaster were like 'It was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"

Reply to Damon Albarn

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

Albarn's comment was "letdown" and "showed no self-awareness," Vylan remarked.

"I just want to say that labeling it as a 'huge mistake' implies that somehow the politics of the duo or our stance on Palestine's freedom is unplanned," he explained.

"I strongly object with the term 'marching' being used because it's typically associated around Nazi Germany," he added. "That's it. And for him to use that wording, I think is offensive. I think his answer was appalling."

Meaning Behind the Slogan

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

"What is important is the situation that persist to permit that protest to even take place on that stage. And I mean, the circumstances that are present in the region. Where the Palestinian population are being killed at an alarming rate. Who cares about the chant?" he stated.

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

Denial of Hate Speech Allegations

The musician also rejected claims from the Community Security Trust, a watchdog and Jewish safety group, that their set led to a spike in antisemitic incidents reported later.

"I believe I have created an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish community. If there were large numbers of people acting and going like 'We made me do this'. I could go, oof, I've had a negative effect here," he said.

Contrast with Different Artists

As Vylan said he felt the band had been criticised more severely than others for speaking about the conflict, Theroux referenced the Irish group another band, who have also faced criticism for their approach to pro-Palestinian messaging.

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