Sharon Osbourne blasts Coachella, Kneecap and Green Day for making festival political
Sharon Osbourne has slammed Kneecap for "incorporating aggressive political statements" into their Coachella set after they made calls to Free Palestine.
Sharon Osbourne has accused Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap of "incorporating aggressive political statements" into their Coachella set.
The veteran music manager and husband of Black Sabbath legend Ozzy Osbourne has put the three-piece on blast after they ended their performance at the annual festival in Indio, California with a 'Free Palestine' message as they criticised the U.S. government's funding of Israel's ongoing attacks.
Further to this, Sharon - whose relatives are Jewish and Catholic - called out Green Day for sharing their views on the Middle East during their set.
The 72-year-old star added that the whole event "compromised its moral and spiritual integrity".
After the conclusion of Coachella this weekend, Sharon penned on Tuesday morning (22.04.25) on her social media profiles: "Coachella 2025 will be remembered as a festival that compromised its moral and spiritual integrity. Goldenvoice, the festival organizer, facilitated this by allowing artists to use the Coachella stage as a platform for political expression. At a time when the world is experiencing significant unrest, music should serve as an escape, not a stage for political discourse.
"While festivals like Coachella showcase remarkable talent from around the globe, music's primary purpose is to unite people. It should not be a venue for promoting terrorist organizations or spreading hate.
"Green Day, a band I personally admire, chose to share their views on the Middle East during their Coachella performance. While I respect their right to express their opinions, such discussions would have been more appropriate at their own concert, not at a festival.
"Kneecap, an Irish rap group, took their performance to a different level by incorporating aggressive political statements. Their actions included projections of anti-Israel messages and hate speech, and this band openly support terrorist organizations. This behavior raises concerns about the appropriateness of their participation in such a festival and further shows they are booked to play in the USA. "
Kneecap - comprising Móglaí Bap, Mo Chara, and DJ Próvaí - had their message cut from the livestream of their performance, but the live show itself featured a projection which read: "Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people. It is being enabled by the U.S. government who arm and fund Israel despite their war crimes. F*** Israel Free Palestine."
The former 'X Factor' judge also thinks there has been a "lack of due diligence" from concert promoter Goldenvoice and cannot understand how the 'C.E.A.R.T.A' rockers were booked to play in the first place.
She added: "Reports indicate that Goldenvoice was unaware of Kneecap's political intentions when they were booked. However, after witnessing their performance during the first weekend, allowing them to perform again the following weekend suggests support of their rhetoric and a lack of due diligence.
"Scooter Braun, who has been involved in organizing the Nova Music Festival exhibit—a tribute to the victims of the October 7th attacks in Israel—has defended Goldenvoice CEO Paul Tollett as he attended the Nova Exhibit. If Tollett visited the Nova exhibit, he would have seen the portraits of every person that was killed that day and heard some of their voices on cell phone recordings, sent home to their loved ones. It is difficult to comprehend how if somebody saw this exhibit firsthand that they could book a band on their festival that is in support of what was done that day and supports the group responsible for this mass murder. Not one IDF solider was killed that day, just 1400 innocent civilians.
" Furthermore, the Independent Artists Group, which represents Kneecap, includes individuals of Jewish heritage. It is disheartening that they have not used their positions to prevent the promotion of such controversial messages. Shame on them. "
Sharon called BS on Coachella being "blindsided" by the political statements and went as far as to call for the band's visa to be revoked to stop them performing in the US.
She said: "As someone with both Irish Catholic on my Mothers side and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage on my Fathers side, and extensive experience in the music industry, I understand the complexities involved. "Goldenvoice's claim of being "blindsided" by Kneecap's performance seems implausible given the circumstances. I know for a fact that certain people in the industry had written to Goldenvoice, airing their concerns around the booking of Kneecap."
Sharon concluded: "I urge you to join me in advocating for the revocation of Kneecap’s work visa."
