In August, Lana Del Rey defended her decision to perform at Tel Aviv’s Meteor Festival, despite criticism from Palestinian activists and supporters of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) movement, who objected to her performing in Israel. Now, though, the singer (among others) has decided to pull out of the festival, citing a desire to “treat her fans equally”.
The decision was announced in an August 31 tweet reading: “It’s important to me to perform in both Palestine and Israel and treat all my fans equally. Unfortunately it hasn’t been possible to line up both visits with such short notice and therefore I’m postponing my appearance at the Meteor Festival until a time when I can schedule visits for both my Israeli and Palestinian fans, as well as hopefully other countries in the region.”
US artist Shlohmo also apologized to fans and festival staff today, after pulling out of Meteor Festival following “the government’s recent human rights atrocities”.
After consideration, many other acts have pulled out of the festival in recent days, including US-based DJ Volvox and DJ Python. Other significant acts, however – including Flying Lotus, A$AP Ferg, Nina Kraviz, Soulwax, Mura Masa, and Kamasi Washington – don’t seem to have joined the boycott. This is despite frequent appeals on Twitter and an online petition by Jewish Voice for Peace and PACBI (Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel).