Boy George ended up at the center of a violent controversy after publishing a new song entitled “We Will Dance Again” on his X and Instagram profiles, shared with the Hebrew title “עוד נרקוד” (“Od Nirkod”) and accompanied by the word “Shalom”. The song, which is currently not available on the main streaming platforms, openly takes a position in favor of Israel and contests the definition of “genocide” referring to the Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip.
The title recalls one of the slogans that became a symbol of Israeli resilience after the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023 on the Nova music festival, in which hundreds of people were killed and numerous participants taken hostage. The same expression was also used as the title of a 2024 documentary dedicated to that tragedy.
The verses
Boy George's stance is explicit from the opening verses: “You say genocide / I say war / When you're attacked / That's what the army is for”, or: “You say genocide, I say war. When you're attacked, that's what an army is for”. In the text the leader of the Culture Club therefore presents the Israeli military operation as a response to the attacks of 7 October and rejects the accusations of genocide leveled against the Jewish State.
The singer also criticizes the artists who have expressed solidarity with the Palestinian cause, accusing them of having a selective memory and of allowing themselves to be influenced by online propaganda: “You condemn the Jews, with selective memory/ Musicians holding flags, mouthing like sheep/ Propaganda fueled by the Internet feels so weak”. In other passages he recalls the violence committed during the Hamas attack, citing the rapes and murders that occurred on 7 October.
Reactions on the web
However, the release of the song caused a very harsh wave of reactions on social media. Many users accused Boy George of ignoring the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and denying the conclusions of numerous international organizations. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and various United Nations commissions have in fact argued that there are elements attributable to genocide or other serious international crimes in Israeli military operations, accusations that Israel continues to firmly reject. Online criticism has been particularly fierce. One user wrote: “Don't you know that more than 20,000 children have been killed, that a population has been subjected to ethnic cleansing and that over 80% of the infrastructure has been destroyed? Shame.” Another called the song “repellent Zionist propaganda designed to justify the massacre of Palestinians.” There are those who also attacked the figure of the English artist, commenting: “Horrible music, horrible person. You destroyed any good faith anyone might have had towards you”, while another disappointed fan wrote: “He sold his soul. His Irish relatives who fought for freedom would be horrified”.
References to the singer's judicial past also resurfaced among the comments: several users recalled the sentence imposed on Boy George in 2009, after he was found guilty of kidnapping and assaulting an escort in his London apartment, an episode for which he served a prison sentence.
However, there was also no shortage of positive reviews from some fans. “Thank you for your moral clarity and for making your voice heard,” wrote one of them, while another commented: “As an Israeli artist, I have lost the courage to speak. I am truly grateful to you, because the attacks have been too heavy to bear.”
The precedents
It is not the first time that Boy George has publicly intervened on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In a recent interview with the Telegraph he spoke of the strong personal bond that unites him to the Jewish community. After the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green last April, he also publicly expressed his solidarity, declaring: “We must let our Jewish community know that we support them.”
Just a few months ago, however, the singer had adopted a more nuanced position. On the occasion of his participation in the Eurovision Song Contest with San Marino, responding to the controversy over the boycott of the event by some countries opposed to the presence of Israel, he stated: “They ask me, who have principles, to turn my back on my Jewish friends? This will never happen. From the beginning of my career I have worn the Star of David… I feel very attached to the Jewish people. I am not necessarily linked to Israel. I don't have a precise opinion on the matter. But the mission of music is to unite the people.”
With “We Will Dance Again”, however, that position appears to have decidedly changed: the new song in fact represents explicit support for Israel's reasons and marks a clear stance on one of the most divisive issues of international current affairs.
Daniel D`Amico for SANREMO.FM
