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The frontman of Bob Vylan has expressed he is "without regret" about his "death, death to the IDF" performance at the festival and asserted he would "do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Controversial Exclamation and Political Reactions

The outspoken music duo sparked significant controversy when they initiated audience chants of "death, death to the IDF," pointing to the Israel Defense Forces, during their June performance. This chant was condemned by Glastonbury and Britain's leader Keir Starmer, who labeled it as "shocking hate speech."

After the event, the band was released by its representation United Talent Agency, and the American government revoked the artists' visas, forcing them to cancel a scheduled North American concert series.

Conversation with the Podcaster

In his initial public discussion since the festival show, Vylan, whose birth name is Pascal Robinson-Foster, conversed on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After questioned if he would do it all again, he replied:

"Absolutely. Like suppose I was to go on the festival again tomorrow, yes I would repeat it. I'm not regretful of it. I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

The artist added that the criticism the duo faced was "minimal compared to what individuals in Palestine are going through."

On the Chant's Significance

"I don't want to exaggerate the significance of the chant," he continued. "It isn't what I'm attempting to do, but if I have their support, these are the people that I'm advocating for, these are the people that I'm being vocal for, then what is there to feel sorry about? Oh, because I've upset some conservative official or some rightwing news outlet?"

Unexpected Response and BBC Comments

The musician claimed he was taken aback by the uproar sparked by the exclamation, and asserted that members of the broadcaster staff at the event told him on the same day that the set was "excellent."

Yet, the broadcaster's ECU subsequently determined that the BBC's broadcast of the show violated content standards in relation to harm and hurt.

He told the host there was no indication of a dispute in the moment: "It didn't feel like we left stage, and everybody was like [shocked]. It's just normal. We come off stage. It's normal. Nobody thought anything. Not a soul. Even crew at the broadcaster were like 'That was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"

Response to Damon Albarn

The musician also responded at Damon Albarn, who labeled the chant "a major misstep I've seen in my life" and characterized Vylan as "goose-stepping in tennis gear."

His comment was "letdown" and "showed no self-awareness," he remarked.

"I need to say that categorising it as a 'huge mistake' suggests that somehow the views of the duo or our stance on Palestine's freedom is unplanned," he stated.

"I take great issue with the phrase 'marching' being used because it's only used around the Nazis," he continued. "That's it. And for him to use that wording, I think is disgusting. I think his answer was appalling."

Meaning Behind the Slogan

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

"The key issue is the situation that exist to permit that protest to even take place on that stage. And I mean, the circumstances that are present in Palestine. In which the Palestinian population are being slain at an disturbing rate. What matters about the slogan?" he said.

"The phrase rhymes," he added: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have spread, right? … We are there to entertain. We are there to play music. I am a songwriter. 'Death, Death to IDF' rhymes. Perfect slogan."

Rejection of Hate Speech Claims

Vylan also denied assertions from the CST, a watchdog and Jewish safety group, that their performance led to a spike in anti-Jewish incidents reported two days.

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

Contrast with Different Bands

When he mentioned he felt the band had been criticised more heavily than others for speaking about the situation, Theroux brought up the Ireland-based group another band, who have also encountered criticism for their approach to pro-Palestine messaging.

"That's a notable point," he said, "since as with all things ethnicity comes to play a factor in that we are an easier target, no pun intended, than others are because we are already the opponent."