A sea of flags covers the crowd at Glastonbury Festival in Somerset, England, June 2025. Ben Birchall/PA Images via Getty Images Musical activism is nothing new. Think of Jimi Hendrix protesting the Vietnam War at Woodstock with his distorted, electronic take on the "Star-Spangled Banner." So it should come as no surprise that the most contentious political issue of our time - the ongoing war in Gaza - is being voiced, debated and fought over on stages at music festivals and in clubs worldwide. On the festival circuit, artists condemning Israel or calling for a "free Palestine" have become as common as a chorus sing-along. Pop stars - Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish, Lana Del Rey, The Weeknd, Olivia Rodrigo, and many more - regularly take to social media to call attention to the humanitarian crisis in the region. Groups like DJ for Palestine and Ravers for Palestine have injected activism into the club scene. Related Stories Movies Golshifteh Farahani on Leaving Iran, Hijabs, Music, and Working With Leonardo DiCaprio Movies Kristin Scott Thomas on Her Directorial Debut, Cold Calling Scarlett Johansson and Telling Her Family Story: "I Wanted to Do a Personal Project" The pro-Palestinian views espoused by many musical artists appear to be popular with their young, mostly left-wing audiences - the recent Glastonbury Festival was a sea of Palestinian flags - but within the broader music industry, the issue of Gaza, and sharply escalating criticism of Israel, is proving divisive. Bands find themselves at odds with venues, artists at odds with their agencies, and festivals with their corporate owners. Outspoken acts have had gigs cancelled and travel visas revoked. A few have been brought up on criminal charges. Artists, with the support of activist groups like the pro-Palestinian BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) and PACBI (Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel) movements, have blacklisted clubs and festivals for their corporate links, however tenuous, to Israel's war effort. The result is a rising tension between political expression and institutional pushback; a clash that has erupted in full view in recent weeks as prominent acts speak out against what they describe as coordinated efforts to silence pro-Palestinian voices in music. On July 17, British trip hop collective Massive Attack, together with Brian Eno and Irish bands Fontaines DC and Kneecap - a group that has been at the center of a media storm over pro-Palestine and anti-Israel comments made on festival stages in Coachella and Glastonbury - announced the formation of a syndicate to support musical artists who speak out for Palestine and against Israel's military campaign in Gaza. Posting on Instagram, the musicians said they were aware of "aggressive, vexatious campaigns" carried out by the political advocacy group U.K. Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) and of "multiple individual incidences of intimidation within the music industry itself" designed, they said, solely "to censor and silence artists from speaking their hearts and minds." Olivia Rodrigo performs at Glastonbury. Samir Hussein/WireImage Asked for comment by The Hollywood Reporter, UKLFI said their actions "regarding bands who stir up racial hatred are neither vexatious nor aggressive, but have been taken seriously by the police and venues." The post came in the wake of media and legal backlash against Kneecap and British punk-rap group Bob Vylan after their Glastonbury performances. THR was in the crowd for Kneecap's June 28 set in front of the West Holts stage on an uncharacteristically sweltering day in England as the Irish hip-hop trio chanted "Free Palestine" and "F**k Keir Starmer," the latter a reference to the U.K. Prime Minister. Fans at home weren't chanting along. U.K. broadcaster the BBC dropped Kneecap from its live coverage of Glastonbury, citing concerns over the band's previous conduct at Coachella in April, where they displayed slogans - one containing an expletive - accusing Israel of genocide. But Bob Vylan's set, which preceded Kneecap's on the same stage, and included chants of "Death to the IDF," referring to the Israel Defense Force, was carried live on the BBC and remained online for hours after. The response was immediate. The UKLFI reported Bob Vylan frontman, Bobby Vylan (real name Pascal Robinson-Foster), to local police. The charge was violating public order laws by the use of "threatening and abusive words and behavior" likely to stir up racial hatred. The Avon and Somerset police force began investigations into both Bob Vylan and Kneecap. Police dropped the Kneecap case on July 18, citing "insufficient evidence." The Bob Vylan investigation continues. The BBC said it "regretted" not pulling the livestream of Bob Vylan's performance and joined the U.K. government and many Jewish and pro-Israeli groups in branding the band's statements as anti-Semitic. "We deeply regret that such offensive and deplorable behavior appeared on the BBC and