Radiohead’s Thom Yorke says he would ‘absolutely not’ play in Israel now | Radiohead
Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke says the band will no longer perform in Israel, eight years after challenging pro-Palestinian activists to perform in Tel Aviv.
“Absolutely not. I wouldn’t want to be within 5,000 miles of the Netanyahu regime,” he said Sunday Times magazine, He is referring to the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The interview with members of the British band, whose UK No.1 albums include OK Computer and Kid A, took place before a ceasefire agreement was signed between Israel and Hamas this month.
The band will start its first tour in seven years next month and will give 20 concerts in five European cities. Before the dates were officially confirmed, the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel had already shared a statement calling for a boycott of the tour as a result of band member Jonny Greenwood’s performance in Tel Aviv in 2024.
Radiohead’s 2016-2018 A Moon Shaped Pool world tour sparked backlash when the band performed in Tel Aviv despite calls for a boycott and public criticism from cultural figures, including British director Ken Loach.
One Explanation about X Yorke responded directly to Loach at the time, saying: “Playing in a country is not the same as supporting the government. We’ve played in Israel for over 20 years, through governments, some more liberal than others. As in America. We don’t support Netanyahu any more than Trump, but we’re still playing in America.”
Yorke has previously criticized the pro-Palestinian boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement, calling it “extremely arrogant” and “offensive”.
In his new interview, Yorke hinted at his regret over the decision to play in Tel Aviv in 2017, saying he was “horrified” when a senior Israeli turned up at their hotel to thank them for playing.
The group’s stance on Israel has dogged its members for years.
Yorke briefly left the stage during a solo concert in Australia last year after a pro-Palestinian crook shouted, “How many children will have to die to condemn the genocide in Gaza?”
He later issued a statement saying the incident in Melbourne left him “shocked that my so-called silence was somehow perceived as complicity” and called Netanyahu and his administration “extremists” who “must be stopped”.
Yorke’s bandmate Greenwood is married to an Israeli artist and has faced sustained criticism from boycott advocates for his long-term collaboration with Israeli-born rock musician Dudu Tassa. In 2024, Greenwood participated in protests in Israel calling for Netanyahu’s removal.
The Radiohead guitarist told the Sunday Times magazine that he spent a lot of time in Israel with his family and that he was “not ashamed of working with Arab and Jewish musicians.”
– Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.
