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

Disputed Chant and Official Reactions

This outspoken music duo sparked widespread debate when they led crowd calls of "death, death to the IDF," pointing to the Israel Defense Forces, during their summer set. The slogan was condemned by Glastonbury and Britain's leader the prime minister, who labeled it as "shocking hate speech."

After the incident, the band was dropped by its representation UTA, and the US state department revoked the members' travel documents, forcing the duo to call off a scheduled North American concert series.

Conversation with Louis Theroux

During his first interview since the festival performance, Vylan, whose birth name is Pascal Foster, spoke on The Louis Theroux Podcast. After asked if he would repeat his actions, he responded:

"Absolutely. For instance suppose I was to go on Glastonbury again tomorrow, definitely I would repeat it. I'm not regretful of it. I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

He noted that the criticism the band encountered was "minimal compared to what people in Gaza are experiencing."

On the Protest's Significance

"I aim not to overstate the significance of the chant," he continued. "That's not what I'm attempting to do, but if I have the Palestinian people's backing, these are the individuals that I'm doing it for, they're the individuals that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to feel sorry about? Well, because I've upset some rightwing politician or some rightwing news outlet?"

Unexpected Reaction and BBC Feedback

This artist claimed he was taken aback by the uproar triggered by the exclamation, and stated that members of the broadcaster staff at Glastonbury told him on the same day that the set was "excellent."

However, the broadcaster's executive complaints unit later determined that the BBC's airing of the show violated editorial standards in regard to offense and hurt.

He informed the host there was no indication of a dispute in the moment: "It didn't feel like we left stage, and everybody was like [gasps]. It felt normal. We leave stage. It's normal. No one suspected anything. Not a soul. Even staff at the broadcaster were like 'It was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"

Response to Damon Albarn

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

Albarn's reaction was "letdown" and "lacked self-awareness," Vylan said.

"I just want to say that categorising it as a 'huge mistake' implies that in some way the views of the band or our stance on Palestine's freedom is not thought out," he explained.

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

Intent Behind the Slogan

After questioned what he intended by the chant "Down with the IDF," the artist clarified the slogan itself was "unimportant."

"The key issue is the conditions that exist to allow that chant to even occur on that platform. And I mean, the conditions that are present in the region. In which the local population are being killed at an alarming rate. Who cares about the slogan?" he said.

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

Denial of Antisemitism Allegations

The musician also denied claims from the Community Security Trust, a watchdog and Jewish community safety group, that their performance led to a rise in anti-Jewish incidents recorded later.

"I believe I have caused an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish people. If there were many individuals of individuals going out and saying 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I might go, oof, I've had a bad effect here," he commented.

Contrast with Other Artists

When Vylan said he felt the duo had been criticised more heavily than others for speaking about the situation, Theroux referenced the Ireland-based group Kneecap, who have likewise faced backlash for their approach to pro-Palestinian messaging.

"That's an interesting one," Vylan responded, "because as with all things ethnicity comes to play a factor in that we are an easier villain, seriously, than they are because we are inherently the opponent."