Shared by members of the Sisu Crew, a community for female and non-binary DJs, on Tuesday (April 29), the open letter states that “We are a coalition of artists who come together to stand against Israel’s genocide in Gaza”.

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Superstruct – the company that own Field Day and many more festivals across Europe – was acquired by KKR for $1.3 billion in June 2024. As the world’s second largest investment firm, KKR has ties to several Israeli corporations that allegedly operate in occupied Palestinian territories.

The letter states: “The consequences of KKR’s complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza and apartheid regime against all Palestinians are not only countless violations of human rights and international law, but the systematic destruction of Palestinian life and society.

“KKR invests billions of pounds in companies which, for example, develop Israeli underground data centres, and advertise real estate on illegally occupied land in Israeli settlements in the West Bank.”

Since the acquisition of Superstruct, The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) have led the calls to boycott any festival under the companies umbrella, including Boiler Room.

Now the attention has turned to Field Day, with the open letter demanding that the festival adopts an ethical programming and partnerships policy. 

Although the letter states that they understand the difficult position the festival has been put in, the collective of artists have called on Field Day bosses to have an open dialogue with musicians, saying: “While we understand that this acquisition was not the choice of Field Day, it nonetheless means that the festival is now implicated in the crimes against humanity of apartheid and genocide.

“We are open to constructive dialogue with the Field Day team about how to urgently and most effectively achieve these demands, given the challenging position they have been put in.”

Field Day have yet to respond to the demands, but will be expected to tackle it in a similar fashion to how Boiler Room did earlier this year.

After receiving similar criticism, the electronic festival was quick to respond with a statement reaffirming it’s “unapologetically pro-Palestine” stance, saying: “We continue to adhere to BDS [Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement] and PACBI guidelines regarding artist programming and brand partnerships and engage with Palestinian artists and organisers in order to formalise our internal policies in line with this commitment.”

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Following Boiler Room’s publicised distancing from KKR, the PACBI called on “all other Superstruct-owned live music events to distance themselves from KKR’s investments in Israel’s complicit tech sector.”

Only time will tell if Field Day accept the demands of the Sisu Crew and PACBI.

This is not the only open letter signed by Massive Attack this week, as the Trip Hop icons joined a growing list of more than 100 names supporting Kneecap’s “freedom of expression”. This follows alleged attempts from politicians and the media to censor the Irish rap trio after the group showed their support for Palestine whilst performing at Coachella. Check out the mxdwn coverage here.

FLASH WARNING LET’S RAVE pic.twitter.com/h1MSaiQD8J

— Charli (@charli_xcx) January 30, 2024

Joining Charli XCX on stage are the likes of A.G. Cook, George Daniel of The 1975, and Easyfun, with promises of more special guests to be revealed. The announcement came alongside a snippet of her new track, with a sneak preview of her upcoming album preliminarily referred to as ‘xcx6′, offering fans a glimpse into her ever-evolving artistic direction.

Scheduled for February 22, the highly anticipated Boiler Room event has already ignited speculation regarding its venue. While the location remains under wraps, rumours suggest a likely setting in London, these rumours beckoning the possibility of The Colour Factor in Hackney Wick. As excitement builds, tickets for Boiler Room events are notorious for being elusive due to their overwhelming popularity. Fans eager to attend can attempt to secure their spots by signing up for guest list access via the official Boiler Room website here.

In a recent text alert, Charli XCX personally invited fans to join the revelry, stating, “LET’S RAVE – BOILER ROOM 2/22. gonna play some stuff from the album. think i’m also giving away tickets later this week.” Those seeking updates and exclusive alerts can subscribe to text notifications by dialing ‘1-310-861-2831′, as advertised on the artist’s Twitter feed.

This marks Charli’s return to Boiler Room after her memorable live-streamed performance in 2020, where she showcased tracks from the pandemic-inspired album ‘how i’m feeling now.’ A groundbreaking project, the album was among the first major artist releases entirely crafted during the COVID-19 lockdown, reflecting 38 days of intense collaboration with her dedicated fanbase.

Charli XCX’s artistic endeavours extend beyond her solo career, as she is reportedly contributing to the upcoming Britney Spears album. Additionally, she recently announced her engagement to George Daniel, the drummer for the 1975 and her Boiler Room collaborator, via Instagram in November of last year.

Amidst her return to Boiler Room and engagement bliss, Charli XCX has also garnered a nomination for a BRIT Award in the Best Pop Act category, a testament to her enduring influence and innovation in the industry. Fans and industry insiders alike eagerly await Charli XCX’s resplendent return to the hallowed halls of Boiler Room on February 22.

Since then, Fred has shared new music featuring Swedish House Mafia and Future ‘Turn Out the Lights Again..’ and ‘I. Jordan (‘Admit It (U Don’t Want 2)’. His Boiler Room set in July 2022 received critical acclaim and fans have been long awaiting his follow-up. “I really truly really really wanna say thank you so so much for all of the love on this @boilerroomtv” he wrote on Instagram reflecting on the performance, “I can’t tell you how much it means.”

Before the release of the new album, he shared clips on his Instagram of him sharing songs from Actual Life 3 with fans at his shows and to strangers on trains via AirDrop and filming their reactions. “Okayyyy SO I am so so really very VERY happy to say that Actual Life 3 will be out on October 28th!!!!! You can pre-order it today and the first song is out nowwwww!!” he said on Instagram. The post also revealed he will be playing shows across Europe alongside a hometown gig at his “favourite venue ever”, Brixton Academy. Tickets go on sale on Friday 23rd September but fans can get early access to tickets if they pre-order the album from the official store before 2 pm on Wednesday 20th September. “I really really can’t wait”, he said.

Despite his debut album being released in 2021, Fred had received notable acclaim working as a producer for some of the biggest recording artists today. He worked with Ed Sheeran on his fourth studio album, No.6 Collaborations Project, and is credited with writing and/or producing 12 of 15 of the tracks. His credited songs collectively held 14 weeks at Number 1 in the charts. Prior to this, he co-wrote ‘Shotgun’ with George Ezra which also reached number one, and worked with Demi Lovato, Clean Bandit and Rita Ora. He went on to win Producer of the Year at the 2020 Brit Awards and he still continues to write and produce songs for artists including Ed Sheeran, Stormzy and AJ Tracey.

Fred Again.. UK tour dates:

08/12/22 – O2 Academy Brixton – London

Albarn’s stream is the latest of many in the Boiler Room’s ‘Streaming From Isolation’ series, with more to come soon. This instalment is a 20-minute long video combining Albarn’s pieces with poignant visuals of Icelandic landscapes, which inspired the project. It is also the first performance of ‘The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows’ since the songwriter’s tour was disrupted by Covid-19 before it began.

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This Sunday 17th May (7.00pm BST), Damon will perform music from ‘The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows’, in The Barn on @boilerroomtv ⁣ ⁣ This is as part of @boilerroomtv’s ‘Streaming From Isolation’ series in support of The Global FoodBanking Network⁣ ⁣ Content will go live on @boilerroomtv’s YouTube channel

A post shared by Damon Albarn (@damonalbarn) on May 16, 2020 at 8:08am PDT

To begin, Albarn spoke to the audience to introduce the session, saying “I just wanted to give you something – I’m not in Brussels, I’m not anywhere but here. And I just felt like this was something that myself and all the musicians and all the people who’ve been involved in this would want you to hear.”

With music created by a 14-piece ensemble, it serves as an apt escape for the mind during this chaotic time. The project takes the listener through an emotional journey using sound, with many uplifting pieces using piano or guitar, and some interludes of screeching violin, suggesting stormy weather. Fans are responding wonderfully to Albarn’s innovative composing and feel lucky to be able watch him perform despite being in isolation.

For each ‘Streaming From Isolation’ session, Boiler Room are asking fans for donations which will support The Global FoodBanking Network throughout this time. So far, a total of $28,000 has been raised.

The full tour dates which were originally planned are set out below - these have all been postponed, with new dates to be announced.

17/05/2020 – Bozar – Brussels, Belgium
18/05 – Bozar – Brussels, Belgium
20/05 – Mupa – Budapest, Hungary
21/05 – Muziekgebouw – Eindhoven, Netherlands
23/05 – Philharmonie – Paris, France
24/05 – Philharmonie – Paris France
25/05 – Auditorium, Orchestre National de Lyon – Lyon, France
26/05 – The Barbican – London, UK
27/05 – Cité des Congrès – Nantes, France
29/05 – Philharmonie – Luxembourg
31/05 – National Concert Hall – Dublin, Ireland
01/06 – National Concert Hall – Dublin, Ireland
03/06 – The London Palladium – London, UK
12/06 – Harpa Concert Hall – Iceland

Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat