Dutch venue says controversial punk duo’s comments ‘go too far’ as performer denies celebrating right-wing activist’s death
A music venue has pulled an upcoming Bob Vylan concert after the rap duo mocked the assassination of Charlie Kirk onstage in the Netherlands.
The 013 in the Dutch city of Tilburg announced the planned gig by the polarising punk duo on September 16 has been cancelled after saying the comments made by the singer “go too far”.
During a sold-out performance at Amsterdam’s Paradiso on Saturday evening, frontman Bobby Vylan, real name Pascal Robinson-Foster, told the audience: “I want to dedicate this one to an absolute piece of s*** of a human being.
“The pronouns was/were. Because if you talk s***, you will get banged. Rest in peace Charlie Kirk you piece of s***.”
The comments came just days after Kirk, 31, a prominent right-wing political commentator and close ally of President Donald Trump, was fatally shot at a Utah Valley University event last Wednesday in what authorities described as a targeted political assassination.
Venue Responses Split
In response to the on-stage outburst, Paradiso said: “In a world on fire, artists sometimes choose language that sounds confrontational or violent… That is part of artistic expression”.
The Amsterdam venue added: “Should the Openbaar Ministerie wish to investigate whether any criminal offences have been committed, Paradiso will cooperate.”
However, the 013 in Tilburg did not share the same view and axed the Ipswich-born duo’s upcoming performance. In a statement posted to its website, the venue said: “The planned performance by British rap-punk group Bob Vylan on Tuesday, September 16th, at Poppodium 013 in Tilburg has been cancelled.
“The reason for the cancellation is the controversial statements the artist made last night during a show at Paradiso in Amsterdam.
“Despite the controversy that arose after their Glastonbury performance, 013 decided to let Bob Vylan perform in Tilburg.
“While we understand that these statements were made in the context of punk and activism, and that the reporting on them is sometimes less nuanced than what actually happened, we still believe these new statements go too far. They no longer fall within the scope of what we can offer a platform.”
Performer Denies Celebrating Death
In response to the intense backlash, Mr Vylan posted a video on social media denying to have mocked Mr Kirk’s death and told people to “calm down.
The performer said: “At no point during yesterday’s show was Charlie Kirk’s death celebrated.
“If it was, go find me a quote. Go find me something that proves we were celebrating his death.
“You’re not going to find it because it didn’t happen.”
The punk artist added that he did “call him a piece of s***, that much is true”.
Previous Controversies
The group gained infamy after their performance at Glastonbury in the summer after chanting “death, death to the IDF” on live TV, causing Avon and Somerset Police to launch an investigation.
The BBC received nearly 3,400 complaints about the televised performance, and the fallout led to the duo being dropped by their agency UTA, as well as having their US visas revoked, putting their North American tour in jeopardy.
During Saturday’s Amsterdam performance, witnesses reported that Vylan also told the crowd: “Sometimes you have to kick Nazis in their fucking face… Fuck the fascists, fuck the Zionists. Go find them on the street!”
These additional comments have drawn condemnation from Jewish groups, with Hanan Herzberger, chairman of the Central Jewish Council of the Netherlands, stating: “The singer Bob Vylan’s call from the stage, ‘Go hunt them in the streets’ is nothing but a call for another pogrom in Amsterdam, like the one we saw last year.
Police Investigation Possible
Dutch police said they received around 30 reports about the Amsterdam show and would discuss the complaints with the public prosecution service, who will decide whether to bring charges.
Amsterdam’s mayor, Femke Halsema, said she would await the prosecution service’s decision, but posted on Bluesky: “Artistic freedom doesn’t mean that concert-goers or Amsterdammers should ever be threatened or face calls to hatred or violence.
The Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Jewish human rights organisation, released a statement condemning Amsterdam authorities for “failing to issue an unequivocal denunciation and decisive action” after the concert.
Celebrating a political assassination from a taxpayer-supported stage crosses every red line of decency and safety,” said Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the SWC. “Amsterdam’s mayor offered generalised remarks about limits to artistic freedom. That is not an adequate response to a performer who glorified murder and whipped up a crowd with rhetoric that Jewish communities recognise as incitement.”
UK Tour Still Scheduled
Bob Vylan are set to embark on a UK tour in November, performing in Leeds, Manchester, Glasgow, London, Bristol and Birmingham.
The duo’s next scheduled performance at Doornroosje in Nijmegen on Monday is still due to go ahead, with venue manager Joris Holter saying he would be talking to the artist about the content of the show.
We can’t simply let the show go ahead, but I don’t want to cancel it either,” Holter said, adding that the venue believes in “the social importance of a free pop culture” and that their stages are “a place of freedom of speech, artistic expression, and social dialogue.
The controversy has also attracted attention from prominent figures, with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani commenting on Vylan’s video: “How irresponsible and dangerous for you to utter such words to your fans. Your plea to ‘calm down’ is not enough. You should totally renounce your own words endorsing murder against those you disagree with.”
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