Irish hip-hop band Kneecap apologized on Tuesday to the families of two British MPs in the past decade, in a 2023 show where a trio appeared in a video of a trio that seemed to say “kill your local MP”.
However, the panel's statement has been overshadowed by several members of David Armis and Joe Cox and former colleagues, as Kneecap's problems piled up after a controversial show at Coachella earlier this month.
Kneecap apologized to the family of Conservative MP Amess in 2021 and also died to the relatives of Jo Cox, a labor lawmaker who was fatally shot and stabbed in 2016.
“We have a heartfelt apology to the Americans and the Cox family, and we never intend to cause harm,” the organization said.
In the video, at a London concert that took place over two years in London's murder, one band member seemed to say: “The only good Conservative party is the dead Conservative party. Kill your local MP.”
Labor government interior minister Yvette Cooper said police are checking the video.
“Whether it's a terrorist organization or a terrorist security, it's dangerous when we see two MPs killed in recent years,” she told the Times Radio.
The group’s apology is part of a larger statement slammed in the “Smear Movement.”
“The urgent hope to silence us build characters have combed through hundreds of hours of footage and interviews, a few words from months or years ago to create moral hysteria,” Knikap said.
The team said the “excerpted video” was “intentionally out of context” without elaboration.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the apology “half-hearted”.
Jo Cox's widow, Brendan Cox, told the BBC broadcast network that the apology was “unfortunately, especially true sincerity”. He said he was disappointed to hear the group “hint it was a conspiracy and they were unfair.”
Kate Amess, the daughter of the slain Conservative legislator, called the camera “heartbreaking” and although she told Sky News, she was willing to meet with the group to explain why people in her own position should not incite such violence. ”
The impact of Coachella Set
Kneecap was under scrutiny at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival earlier this month, and the Pro-Palestinian message was projected on the screen: “F – Israel. Israel. Free Palestine.”
Some observers were angry, including talk show host and music manager Sharon Osborne.
“Coachella 2025 will be remembered as a holiday that undermines its moral and spiritual integrity,” Osborne said in a social media post.
The booking agency Independent Artists Group split with Kneecap and the organizers of the German music festival in June stood out from the lineup, Hollywood Reporter said.
The group issued a statement following the U.S. performance, saying it caused “deliberate distortion and falsehood.”
“The only thing we care about is the Palestinian people – 20,000 murdered children and the number,” the statement said. “The young people we performed saw in the lies. They were on the side of humanity and justice.”
But social media users unearthed a video clip from another concert in 2024, which seemed to show a group member saying, “Up Hamas, Up Hezbollah.”
Hamas and Hezbollah are both on the UK's banned terrorist groups.
Kney said on X: “Let's say it clearly: We don't support Hamas or Hezbollah.”
Glastonbury, a Canadian show planned this year
Kneecap consists of Liamógógógógógóghaidh, naoiseÓ Cairealláin and Jjjó Dochartaigh, although each of them has a stage name.
Knee rap about Irish identity and support the Republican cause, uniting British-run Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland. Its name comes from the punishment of victims of paramilitary gunman victims in decades of confrontation between Irish nationalist militants, pro-British “loyalists” paramilitary personnel and British security agencies.
Opposition leader Kemi Badenoch:
OK
Kneecap's glory for terrorism and anti-British hatred has no place in our society.
Now, the video shows one of them saying, “The only good Conservative party is a dead Conservative party. Kill local MPs.”
After Sir David's murder, this requires prosecution. https://t.co/hfoxflvqqs
In addition to the band’s rise in the music industry since the band released their first single in 2017, the Belfastian has helped write the script and appeared on screen in a 2024 biopic, patellathe award has been nominated for six BAFTA awards.
The organization has a high bet.
“The government minister is unwilling to say who will appear in Glastonbury, which is aimed at organizers and festivals,” said Security Secretary Dan Jarvis.
But, Jarvis said: “The government will urge the organizers of Glastonbury Day to think very carefully about who will be invited there to perform later this year.”
Likewise, Coachella's performance will be the trailer for the North American tour later this year. According to the group's website, two shows in Toronto history from October 14 to 15, and the dates for Oct. 23 at Vancouver's Vogue Theatre have been sold out.
But Democratic Union MP Carla Lockhart said in a Facebook post on Monday that she “written to authorities in the U.S. and Canada urging them to reject KNEECAP based on an ongoing counter-terrorism investigation.”
The controversy this month is not the first to cause Kneecap. The group won a case against the former Conservative government, which attempted to revoke an art grant worth about $26,000. The group said it would donate the proceeds to a pair of charities that help high-risk youth.
