Lorde cancels Israel show after calls for boycott due to treatment of Palestinians
Grammy nominated New Zealand artist Lorde cancelled her tour date in Israel after she says she received “an overwhelming number of messages and letters” asking her to reconsider what performing in Israel could mean for the Palestinians who are being subjected to de facto ethnic cleansing by the state of Israel.
Naturally, Israel’s culture minister Miri Regev and other pro-Israel groups and individuals have also called upon Lorde to reconsider her cancellation, reinforcing the trend that any criticism of Israel is quickly hailed by Israeli officials as “anti-Semetic.”
The 21 year old singer follows a list of musicians who have refused to perform in Israel, including Lauryn Hill, Elvis Costello, and the Gorillaz. Lorde stated on Twitter that she was taking advice and getting feedback on a complex political situation. To her credit, Lorde stated that she wasn’t too proud to admit that she hadn’t initially made the right call in deciding to play in Israel, and that she also is always learning and growing.
Read Lorde’s full statement, distributed on social media by her booking agency, below:
hey guys, so about this israel show – i’ve received an overwhelming number of messages & letters and have had a lot of discussions with people holding many views, and i think the right decision at this time is to cancel the show. i pride myself on being an informed young citizen, and i had done a lot of reading and sought a lot of opinions before deciding to book a show in tel aviv, but I’m not too proud to admit i didn’t make the right call on this one. tel aviv, it’s been a dream of mine to visit this beautiful part of the world for many years, and i’m truly sorry to reverse my commitment to come play for you. i hope one day we can all dance. L x