Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Artist and poet Gil Scott Heron cancels Israel gig


Gil Scott-Heron, whose political poetry influenced a generation of rap artists, last night sensationally announed the cancellation of his planned gig in Tel Aviv. Speaking on-stage at London's Royal Festival Hall, Scott-Heron told the audience he “hated war” and, in a lengthy monolougue, told the packed audience his Israel tour date would not be going ahead. His concert had earlier been disrupted by fans dismayed at the booking, repeatedly heckling the performer and asking him to cancel. Security was called and audience members threatened with removal. A Facebook page was set up to urge the legendary perfomer against going ahead with his Israel appearance. It stated:

"This is a huge mistake from an enduring cultural and political hero. Let’s see if we can change his mind."

3 comments:

  1. Make it a complete sentence for me please. I'm a bit slow. And yeah, try to make sense too.

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  2. Here's a c;assoc from Gil:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGaRtqrlGy8

    I'm surprised that it took him so long to get hip to the Palestinians, and that he has been playing in Israel this whole time. If you watch this video you will see he has been radical for a long time. He always seemed the type to play in refugee camps rather than resorts. It's good he's coming around, but he does have a message the Israelis need to hear.

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