Kneecap announced their performance at the Glasgow festival TRNSMT in July has been axed “due to concerns expressed by the police about safety at the event.”
“To the thousands of people who bought tickets, flights and hotels to see us play, we are sorry… it is out of our hands,” the Northern Irish trio wrote on social media. “Glasgow has always been a huge city for us. We’ve played there many many times, with no issues – ever. Make of that what you will.”
The band added that they will instead be performing at the O2 Academy in Glasgow on July 8. Tickets go on sale on Saturday at 10 a.m. BST.
TRNSMT is set to take place at Glasgow Green on July 11-13. A spokesperson for the festival told NME, “Due to concerns expressed by the police about safety at the event, Kneecap will no longer perform at TRNSMT on Friday July 11. We thank fans for their understanding.”
Kneecap headlined Wide Awake festival in London last weekend with no safety issues. However, the band’s appearance at TRNSMT is not the only show they’ve had canceled recently. These include Germany’s Hurricane Festival and Southside Festivals, and Cornwall’s Eden Project.
Following the news about TRNSMT, 2000trees festival, set for July 9-12 at Upcote Farm in Cheltenham, England, confirmed they were not deterred by the controversy surrounding the band.
“After loads of speculation & numerous requests from the press of late, we are happy to confirm that YES! @kneecap32 are still headlining the Thursday at 2000trees this July,” the festival shared on Instagram. “If their recent shows in London are anything to go by, this promises to be one of the most memorable headline sets we’ve ever had at 2000trees.”
The festival added, “You may have even seen Kneecap at 2000trees before, this will be their 3rd visit after all. But headlining the main stage this summer is going to be something else entirely! We will ALL be there in the pit with you for one of the most exciting, fun & historic sets you’ll see this summer.”
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Kneecap member Mo Chara – real name Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh – was recently charged with a terror offense charge after he allegedly displayed a Hezbollah flag onstage during a show in London last year. “We deny this ‘offense’ and will vehemently defend ourselves,” the band wrote in response, adding: “This is a carnival of distraction. We are not the story. Genocide is.”
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During their performance at Wide Awake, Ó hAnnaidh told the crowd, “They tried to stop this gig. Honestly lads, you’ve no idea how close we were to being pulled off this gig.” He also alleged that his charge was accelerated in order for Kneecap’s high-profile, televised set at Glastonbury next month to be pulled.
“I’d like to take the time to say, bear in mind I went for an interview with the counter-terror police and within days they came to a verdict that they were going to charge me, never has it been that quick,” he told the crowd. “The reason it was that quick is because Glastonbury is just around the corner. They’re trying to silence us from speaking on stage at Glastonbury the way we did at Coachella. That’s a fact.”
