They have been removed from the TRNSMT line-up...
09 · 07 · 2025
During their performance at Glasgow’s O2 Academy last night (July 8th), Kneecap criticized Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney.
The Belfast band was taken out of the line-up for Glasgow's TRNSMT festival this summer after controversy arose regarding their comments on stage.
Kneecap faced terrorism charges after right-wing newspapers uncovered footage from their O2 Forum Kentish Town concert in London last year, where Mo Chara was seen waving a Hezbollah flag and stating, “the only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP.”
Following this, Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney supported the calls for Kneecap's removal from TRNSMT, the largest music festival in the country.
NEW: Kneecap has arrived at the O2 Academy in Glasgow. The Irish trio is scheduled to perform tonight after being cut from the festival this weekend pic.twitter.com/K8tuz4I4z3— The National (@ScotNational) July 8, 2025
Upon taking the stage at Glasgow’s O2 Academy, Kneecap quickly addressed the situation. “What’s your first minister’s name?” Mo Chara asked, adding: “They stopped us from playing TRNSMT, but they can’t stop us from playing Glasgow.”
With one member donning a Celtic jersey, Kneecap made several jokes about Rangers fans, while also expressing solidarity among the working class by stating that they had “more in common with a poor Rangers fan than a rich Celtic fan”.
According to the BBC, the loudest cheer of the night erupted when Kneecap declared to Glasgow that the British government had “done nothing for Ireland and nothing for Glasgow”.
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Kneecap criticized Scotland's First Minister John Swinney during their performance at Glasgow's O2 Academy last night (July 8th). The Belfast band are not present.