Kneecap, the hip-hop trio from Northern Ireland that has fought to keep the Irish language alive while the government tried to kill it, does a good job of creating controversy. This might be unintentional, or perhaps it is a genius marketing ploy. It might speak volumes that more people probably know their name than know one of their songs.
Not that their tracks are not worthy of being heard, because they very much are. The trio of Mo Chara (Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh), Móglaí Bap (Naoise Ó Cairealláin), and DJ Próvaí (J.J. Ó Dochartaigh) are elite at churning out grooves and meaningful lyrics.
But they do have a way of finding trouble. Recently, Mo Chara had a warrant for a terrorism charge in the UK because Kneecap has used pro-Palestine images at their concerts, and there is a law against that. He is currently free to go about his normal life, but for how long?
With Kneecap and Glastonbury, it got weird
Ozzy Osbourne's wife and manager, Sharon, is someone who is not a fan. She states she doesn't mind if people have different political views than she does, but she doesn't like it when she perceives the artist as trying to incite violence or a non-peaceful attitude.
She recently said about Kneecap's appearance at the Glastonbury festival, "Shame on Glastonbury, they have destroyed it with one pathetic band." That, of course, is a stretch.
While Sharon Osbourne has a right to her views, she also shouldn't assume that everyone else's experience at the festival was ruined by the hip-hop trio's putting on a show.
What is even stranger, though, is Kneecap calling out Rod Stewart, who was set to play the following night, by asking the crowd, "Anyone going to Rod Stewart? Did I miss something? The man’s older than Israel. Google it."
Kneecap appeared to be upset that Stewart recently said people should give British politician Nigel Farage "a chance" to make a national impact. It gets complicated on all fronts, but Stewart, at least, has been outspoken about the poor treatment of people in Gaza. As we say, it gets complicated.
Still, Kneecap having a beef with Rod Stewart is quite comical. No one could have seen that coming in the weird world we live in. Music still matters, but in unexpected ways.