Radiohead’s Thom Yorke Addresses Gaza Protester During Australian Concert

Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke temporarily departed the stage during his solo tour in Australia following an interaction with an audience member who interrupted his performance with a protest regarding deaths in Gaza. Videos uploaded online by attendees of the Melbourne concert on Wednesday depict a man in the crowd shouting at Yorke. While not all of his remarks are audible, he urged the vocalist to “condemn the Israeli genocide of Gaza”. Yorke responded by instructing the heckler to “hop up on stage” to deliver his comments. “Don’t stand there like a coward, come here and say it. You want to piss on everybody’s night? Ok you do it, see you later,” Yorke continued, before removing his guitar and pausing his set. His departure occurred as the heckler had reiterated his demand and further questioned, “how many dead children will it take”. Portions of the audience could be heard booing the disruption, and Yorke subsequently returned to applause shortly after to perform the Radiohead song Karma Police. Concert attendee Elly Brus stated that the protester “did not have support” from the Sidney Myer Music Bowl crowd. She informed the BBC that “He was escorted away by security. He then continued to engage with people outside the venue as well.” Israel initiated a military campaign to eliminate Hamas in response to the group’s unprecedented assault on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, which resulted in approximately 1,200 fatalities and the capture of 251 individuals as hostages. Since that time, over 43,160 people have been killed in Gaza – including thousands of women and children – according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry. Both parties deny allegations of having violated the laws of war. In the past, Radiohead has encountered pressure to cancel performances in Israel and participate in a cultural boycott of the country over its policies concerning Palestinians. Yorke resisted this pressure, asserting that “playing in a country isn’t the same as endorsing its government”. “We’ve played in Israel for over 20 years through a succession of governments, some more liberal than others,” Yorke stated in 2017, defending a decision to proceed with a scheduled concert in Tel Aviv. He added at the time, “We don’t endorse [Israeli Prime Minister] Netanyahu any more than Trump, but we still play in America. Music, art and academia is about crossing borders not building them.” Earlier this year, pro-Palestinian activists also accused Yorke’s bandmate Jonny Greenwood of “artwashing” for performing alongside Israeli-Arabic musician Dudu Tassa in Tel Aviv. Greenwood declared in a statement on X, “No art is as ‘important’ as stopping all the death and suffering around us.” He continued, “But… silencing Israeli artists for being born Jewish in Israel doesn’t seem like any way to reach an understanding between the two sides of this apparently endless conflict.” The BBC has contacted representatives for Yorke’s Australian tour. The Arts Centre Melbourne, which oversees the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, chose not to comment. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external sites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is available.