Elvis Costello has become the third major international artist in the last few days to announce he will not play in Israel. Costello said:
It is after considerable contemplation that I have lately arrived at the decision that I must withdraw from the two performances scheduled in Israel on the 30th of June and the 1st of July.
One lives in hope that music is more than mere noise, filling up idle time, whether intending to elate or lament.
Then there are occasions when merely having your name added to a concert schedule may be interpreted as a political act that resonates more than anything that might be sung and it may be assumed that one has no mind for the suffering of the innocent.
Read his statement in full
A victory for ethical responsibility of international artists: PACBI’s Reaction to Elvis Costello’s Cancellation
Send him a message of support
Gil Scott-Heron’s announced that he will not go to Israel at
the first concert of his European tour; this follows the similar decision by Massive Attack. At the Royal Festival
Hall in London on 24 April he said he wouldn’t play where everyone
wasn’t welcome.
Read about the campaign to get him to cancel
Gil Scott-Heron boycotts Tel Aviv, sends powerful message to Israelis