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The lead singer Bobby Vylan has expressed he is "without regret" about his "death, death to the IDF" performance at Glastonbury and asserted he would "do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Disputed Exclamation and Official Reactions

The vocal music pair sparked significant controversy when they initiated audience calls of "down with the IDF," referring to the Israel Defense Forces, during their summer performance. The slogan was condemned by Glastonbury and Britain's leader the prime minister, who described it as "appalling hate speech."

Following the incident, the band was released by its agency United Talent Agency, and the US government cancelled the artists' travel documents, compelling them to cancel a scheduled North American tour.

Conversation with Louis Theroux

During his first public discussion after the Glastonbury show, Vylan, whose birth name is Pascal Foster, conversed on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After asked if he would do it all again, he responded:

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

The artist added that the backlash the band encountered was "minimal compared to what people in Palestine are going through."

On the Protest's Significance

"I don't want to overstate the importance of the chant," he continued. "It isn't what I'm attempting to do, but if I have their support, they're the individuals that I'm doing it for, these are the people that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to regret? Oh, because I've angered some conservative politician or some conservative news outlet?"

Unexpected Reaction and Broadcaster Comments

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

Yet, the broadcaster's ECU later found that the BBC's broadcast of the performance violated content guidelines in relation to offense and offence.

Vylan told the host there was no sign of a controversy in the moment: "It didn't feel like we came off stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It's just normal. We leave stage. It's normal. No one suspected anything. Not a soul. Including staff at the broadcaster were like 'That was fantastic! We loved that!'"

Response to Blur Frontman

Vylan also responded at the Blur singer, who labeled the protest "a major misstep I've seen in my life" and described him as "goose-stepping in sport gear."

Albarn's comment was "disappointing" and "lacked self-awareness," Vylan remarked.

"I just want to say that labeling it as a 'huge mistake' implies that somehow the views of the band or our stance on Palestinian liberation is not thought out," he explained.

"I strongly object with the term 'goose-stepping' being used because it's only used around Nazi Germany," he added. "Precisely. And for him to use that wording, I think is disgusting. I think his answer was appalling."

Meaning Behind the Chant

After asked what he meant by the chant "Down with the IDF," the artist said the slogan itself was "insignificant."

"What is important is the conditions that persist to permit that chant to even occur on that platform. And I mean, the conditions that are present in the region. In which the Palestinian population are being slain at an alarming rate. What matters about the chant?" he stated.

"Death to the IDF rhymes," he added: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have spread, right? … We are there to entertain. We are there to sing songs. I am a lyricist. 'The chant' rhymes. Perfect chant."

Rejection of Hate Speech Claims

The musician also rejected assertions from the CST, a monitoring and Jewish safety organisation, that their set contributed to a rise in anti-Jewish events recorded two days.

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

Comparison with Other Bands

As he said he thought the band had been criticised more severely than others for speaking about the conflict, Theroux referenced the Irish group Kneecap, who have likewise faced backlash for their approach to pro-Palestinian advocacy.

"That's an interesting one," Vylan responded, "since as with everything ethnicity comes to play a part in that we are an more convenient target, seriously, than they are because we are inherently the enemy."