Backlash

Over the past year, Radiohead has faced growing criticism for their past decisions to perform in Israel, as well as for guitarist Jonny Greenwood’s continued collaborations with Israeli musicians and his performances in Tel Aviv even after the country’s invasion of Gaza. As a result, both Greenwood and frontman Thom Yorke have been met with protests. Yorke was notably heckled by a pro-Palestine audience member during a solo concert in Melbourne, Australia, in October 2024, prompting him to briefly walk offstage. Greenwood, meanwhile, recently canceled two UK shows with Israeli musician Dudu Tassa after receiving alleged threats linked to protests against Israel.

Ahead of their comeback tour in November, Radiohead’s members addressed the controversy — and their increasingly divergent individual stances on the issue — in a new interview with The Sunday Times.

Earlier this year, Yorke published an extensive statement responding to criticism over his reaction — or perceived lack thereof — to Israel’s war in Palestine, while condemning what he described as “social media witch hunts.”

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Expanding on the subject with The Sunday Times, Yorke said, “This wakes me up at night. They’re telling me what it is that I’ve done with my life, and what I should do next, and that what I think is meaningless. People want to take what I’ve done that means so much to millions of people and wipe me out. But this is not theirs to take from me — and I don’t consider I’m a bad person.”

“A few times recently I’ve had ‘Free Palestine!’ shouted at me on the street,” Yorke continued. “I talked to a guy. His shtick was, ‘You have a platform, a duty and must distance yourself from Jonny.’ But I said, ‘You and me, standing on the street in London, shouting at each other? Well, the true criminals, who should be in front of the ICC [International Criminal Court], are laughing at us squabbling among ourselves in the public realm and on social media — while they just carry on with impunity, murdering people.’ It’s an expression of impotency. It’s a purity test, low-level Arthur Miller witch-hunt. I utterly respect the dismay but it’s very odd to be on the receiving end.”

Greenwood was also critical of perceived attempt cancel both him and Radiohead. “It’s the embodiment of the left,” Greenwood told The Sunday Times. “The left look for traitors, the right for converts and it’s depressing that we are the closest they can get.”

The Radiohead guitarist revealed he’s working on a new record with Israeli and Middle Eastern musicians, adding, “And it’s nuts I feel frightened to admit that. Yet that feels progressive to me — booing at a concert does not strike me as brave or progressive.”

He continued, “Look, I have been to antigovernment protests in Israel and you cannot move for all the ‘Fuck Ben-Gvir’ stickers. I spend a lot of time there with family [he is married to an Israeli artist, Sharona Katan] and cannot just say, ‘I’m not making music with you fuckers because of the government.’ It makes no sense to me. I have no loyalty — or respect, obviously — to their government, but I have both for the artists born there.”

When asked about the possibility of playing another concert in Israel, Yorke was firm in his response: “Absolutely not. I wouldn’t want to be within 5,000 miles of the Netanyahu regime. But Jonny has roots there, so I get it.”

“I would also politely disagree with Thom,” Greenwood replied. “I would argue that the government is more likely to use a boycott and say, ‘Everyone hates us — we should do exactly what we want.’ Which is far more dangerous.”

“It’s nuts,” Greenwood added. “The only thing that I’m ashamed of is that I’ve dragged Thom and the others into this mess — but I’m not ashamed of working with Arab and Jewish musicians. I can’t apologize for that.”

Yorke also admitted to being concerned about Radiohead’s upcoming tour being disrupted by protestors. “But they don’t care about us. It’s about getting something on Instagram of something dramatic happening and, no, I don’t think Israel should do Eurovision. But I don’t think Eurovision should do Eurovision. So what do I know?”

As for the other members in Radiohead?

Guitarist Ed O’Brien, who previously posted in support of a Free Palestine on social media, pointed out that Radiohead played Ramallah in the West Bank as well. He added that he was “not going to judge anybody… But the brutal truth is that, while we were once all tight, we haven’t really spoken to one another much — and that’s OK.”

Drummer Phil Selway remarked that, “What BDS [ Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions] are asking of us is impossible. They want us to distance ourselves from Jonny, but that would mean the end of the band and Jonny is coming from a very principled place. But it’s odd to be ostracized by artists we generally felt quite aligned to.”

And bassist Colin Greenwood recalled the hours after September 11th, when Radiohead were playing a concert in Berlin. [Some Americans in the audience] started to shout at Yorke: “Say something!” Greenwood remembered the singer eventually responded: “What do you want me to say?”

Elsewhere in their interview with The Sunday Times, the decision to go on hiatus, their impending comeback tour, the possibility of new music, and more.