Glastonbury 2025: Toddla T claims “a very systematic powerful music agent” is attempting to remove Kneecap from line-up
Toddla T has claimed a “private and confidential” letter was recently sent to Glastonbury Festival bookers from a “very systemically powerful music agent” urging the festival to remove Kneecap from the line-up.
The DJ, who also produced Kneecap’s 2024 debut album Fine Art, took to Instagram to reveal that the letter was “signed by 30 individuals from within the music industry.” This resulted in a “coordinated attempt by 30 members of the musical elite, people with systemic influence, to silence the voices of three working-class artists from Belfast. All of it was done behind closed doors.”
The backlash comes as Kneecap member Mo Chara, real name Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, is set to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on June 18th, and the group have encouraged fans to show support on the day of the hearing. The charge relates to two on-stage incidents from shows in London in 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Toddla T’s post addresses the free speech discourse at the heart of the Kneecap controversy. “Everyone is entitled to their opinion. We live in a country that claims to value free speech. But do we really?” he writes, questioning why the letter was kept anonymous and not shared openly and transparently.
The DJ, married to Irish broadcaster Annie Mac, contrasts the letter with his display of solidarity. He writes, “In contrast, myself, my wife, Massive Attack, Bicep, and over 100 others signed a public letter in full support of Kneecap, openly, proudly, and with our names attached. We stand by our views. If the others do too, they should be just as willing to stand behind theirs publicly.”
The open letter in support of Kneecap is explicitly critical of the government. It reads in part, “As artists, we feel the need to register our opposition to any political repression of artistic freedom. In a democracy, no political figures or political parties should have the right to dictate who does and does not play at music festivals or gigs that will be enjoyed by thousands of people.” English Teacher, Idles, Dexys, Massive Attack, Pulp, Fontaines DC, Paul Weller, Primal Scream, and others signed the open letter.
Contrastingly, politicians such as the Labour MP for Hemel Hempstead, David Taylor, called for Kneecap’s removal at Glastonbury in 2025. In a letter to Michael Eavis, Taylor said Kneecap would be “undermining its proud tradition of promoting peace, unity and social responsibility”. Taylor wrote to Glastonbury on four occasions regarding Kneecap’s removal, but they didn’t issue a response.
Toddla T’s statement continues this sentiment, branding the private letter “another example of how power structures, cultural, governmental, and media, continue to favour and shield the actions of the Israeli state.” The DJ also highlights the lived reality of Palestinian suffering, including “the lives lost, the unbearable images, the children, the parents, the communities being erased, it has pushed many of us to question humanity itself. It’s exhausting, but it’s nothing compared to what those on the ground endure every single day.”
The post closed off with an insistence that the letter enables “genocide… through silence, complicity, and backdoor pressure… is precisely why it continues. And it’s our duty, as human beings, to call it out whenever and wherever it happens.”
Kneecap will perform on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury Festival on June 28th at 4pm.
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