Kneecap, the rap trio accused of supporting Hamas and Hezbollah, received a standing ovation at Rock en Seine

It was a meeting dreaded by the authorities. This Sunday, late afternoon, the rap trio Kneecap , from West Belfast (Northern Ireland), took over the stage of the Rock en Seine festival in Saint-Cloud in front of a few thousand spectators. Even before the band arrived, the crowd, almost intergenerational and mostly dressed in green, shouted "Free, free Palestine" several times. Followed by: "Everyone hates the police" and anti-fascist chants. But the atmosphere remained calm.

Around 6:30 p.m., DJ Próvaí kicks off the set, followed by his two sidekicks, one of whom, Mo Chara, is wearing a Palestinian jersey. Flags rise in the sky at Rock en Seine. “Hello France ,” they all three say. “We’re here for love and entertainment,” Móglaí Bap warns right away. They move on to “Better Way To Live ,” their most famous track released in 2023, and drink on stage. “It’s a pleasure to be here, they tried to take us off the lineup. They want us to be angry, but that’s not going to happen,” Mo Chara declares.

Also read : “Any excess will be prosecuted”: Bruno Retailleau warns the Irish group Kneecap

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Crowd movements erupted from the very next song. But security kept a watchful eye out for any unrest. A young boy of about fifteen was evacuated. "There is a lot of pressure in Palestine right now, and we will not remain silent in the face of this genocide, that will not change," Mo Chara explained once again to the crowd. He added: "Netanyahu is a war criminal. If you don't call that genocide, I don't know what is."

"Free Mo Chara," his fans respond. Then chants of "Macron resign" echo after the rapper brings up the French president and Prime Minister François Bayrou's involvement in funding arms for Israel. "I'm going to have problems after this," Mo Chara worries. It's hard to see anything in the crowd, from which a cloud of smoke emerges amidst Palestinian and Irish flags.

The three rappers follow up with a frenetic rhythm, impressive technique, and high energy, while the security services smile at the spectacle. "What have the French done for Ireland," jokes Móglaí Bap. "But I still love snails. Who loves snails here?"

On the next track, Get Your Brits Out, fans climb on the backs of other fans. Mo Chara mocks someone wearing a t-shirt with the name of the Stone Roses, the English rock band from the 1980s. "We are happy because you, French, also carry our message of peace," Mo Chara rejoices. And his colleague Móglaí adds: "Put pressure on your governments." Finally, in an electrifying atmosphere, the group plays their hit HOOP . The DJ, more discreet on stage, takes a walkabout while Móglai takes off his t-shirt for the single The Recap . As expected, they leave chanting "Free Palestine." But the feared excesses did not materialize.

Four days before the Paris concert, Mo Chara appeared before Westminster Magistrates' Court on charges of "terrorist offenses" after waving a Hezbollah flag and chanting "Go Hamas, Go Hezbollah" on stage at a London concert last year. The verdict at that hearing was eventually adjourned until September 26 , allowing the band to perform freely in Paris today. However, their appearance at Rock en Seine provoked some backlash from political figures.

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After the Saint-Cloud town hall decided in July to withdraw its 40,000 euro subsidy from Rock en Seine, on Friday, the Île-de-France region did the same - 295,000 euros -, ensuring that there would be "not a single euro" paid to the festival for maintaining the concert. The day before, the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF) also called for its cancellation , declaring that "apologists for terrorism have no place in festivals in France." Ten days ago, it was the turn of Bruno Retailleau , Minister of the Interior, to speak out about the arrival of the Northern Irish rappers in Saint-Cloud. "I strongly condemn the comments made by this group and I would like to assure you of my intransigence towards any comments of an anti-Semitic nature, apology for terrorism or incitement to hatred, which will be directly subject to legal proceedings," wrote the tenant of Place Beauvau in a letter on August 14.

But it was no use. Despite multiple cancellation requests from the country's various authorities, the event ultimately went ahead. And the group, which was asked to sign a code of conduct, performed for over an hour to close the five-day festival. They present themselves as the "Republican Hoods," individuals advocating the reunification of Ireland and opposed to English domination in the north of the territory. In their lyrics, Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap, and DJ Próvaí—the respective stage names of Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, Naoise Ó Cairealláin, and JJ Ó Dochartaigh—enjoy criticizing the Northern Ireland police and the British government, like former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who was heavily insulted during their performance at Coachella on April 19 in California.

"They're fighting a legitimate fight, shedding light on years of overshadowed conflict in Ireland," remarks Niels, a Parisian fan of the group for a year and a half. And his girlfriend, Mathilde, adds: "They must be using their notoriety to say things. They're not the only ones doing it. It's easy to bash young rappers, all because rap is supposedly turbulent." In the aisles leading to the stage, Hugh, 29, originally from New Zealand, is delighted to see Kneecap "carrying the voice of the Northern Irish people . " "They sing in their language on every stage internationally," continues the man who has followed them since their beginnings and who proudly wears a jersey of the Irish Replica football team, emblazoned with the name of Roy Keane, one of the country's icons.

Since 2020, the three artists have taken on a new front, publicly supporting an independent Palestine by waving Palestinian flags at each of their concerts and calling for a boycott of Israel. In recent months, their pro-Palestinian positions have taken on a whole new dimension, particularly due to the escalating conflict in the Gaza Strip. "Israel, fuck you, free Palestine," they projected onto a giant screen during their performance at Coachella. "We can't criticize them for that," tempers Miriam, 54, from Dublin. "They simply want to show that Benjamin Netanyahu is wrong." Her friend Claire, 49, also from the Republic of Ireland, adds that Kneecap "simply wants to express itself on what is happening in Palestine, on the ongoing genocide carried out by the Israeli government . The British judicial authorities unfortunately want to censor them," she regrets.

Between now and Mo Chara's next hearing in a British court on September 26, the band will have the opportunity to perform seven more times on European soil. First in Belfast, then in Warsaw, Hamburg, Amsterdam, and finally London. If not found guilty, the band will then head to North America, where they are expected to perform throughout October.