Irish rap trio Kneecap’s open and unabashed support of Palestine has kept them at the center of controversy, legal investigations, court hearings, and criminal charges, all of which their fellow Ireland native Deego, the bassist of Fontaines D.C., finds to be nothing more than a “witch hunt.”
Deego shared his thoughts while speaking to NME at the 2025 Mercury Prize, saying, “I stand in solidarity with the boys, d’you know what I mean? I think it’s amazing what they stand up for. I think it’s a very, very difficult situation for anyone to be put on the line in that way, but to not waver as well, to really stick to those beliefs. I think that it is a witch hunt. They’re trying to make an example of them, clearly.”
Kneecap has been facing allegations of anti-semitism for months, due to their open support of Palestine.
Back in April, during their Coachella set, Kneecap displayed some messages from the stage, including: “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people…It is being enabled by the U.S.,” and “Fuck Israel / Free Palestine.” This and other comments they’ve made have led to the band being investigated by authorities.
All the controversy has led to some acclaim, however, with Tom Morello labeling them “the Rage Against The Machine of now.” The guitarist, a founding member of Rage Against The Machine, appeared on The Strombo Show earlier in the summer and, during the conversation, host George Stroumboulopoulos asked Morello if there were any newer music artists that he felt embodied the anti-establishment attitude that helped catapult RATM into notoriety
Very quickly, he called out Kneecap, saying, “[They’re at] the top of the list. I mean, they’re clearly the Rage Against The Machine of now. Like, there’s them and there’s a gap to the next one.”
Sony Allegedly Told Kneecap to ‘Stop Speaking About Palestine’
Interestingly, it was recently alleged that Sony tried to stop Kneecap from talking about Palestine, once telling the Irish rap trio to “stop speaking about Palestine,” according to their manager.
In a recent interview with the Belfast Telegraph, Kneecap manager Daniel Lambert said that after the premiere of the group’s self-titled biopic at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, Sony Pictures Classics — who acquired distribution rights to the movie — asked them to tone down their rhetoric.
“I know in the case of Kneecap, they’ve made a lot of decisions that have been and will be fairly detrimental to their careers,” Lambert said. “I met Sony in a skyscraper in Manhattan… and the first thing was, they had just bought the Kneecap film, and they said: ‘You need to stop speaking about Palestine.’ And the lads said: ‘That’s not going to happen.”
The post ‘I Stand in Solidarity With the Boys’: Fontaines D.C. Bassist Calls Controversy Around Kneecap a ‘Witch Hunt’ appeared first on VICE.
