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Roger Waters Concert in Frankfurt Canceled Over Anti-Semitism Claims

Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter

Roger Waters had a show scheduled for May 28 in Frankfurt, Germany, but the local city council has canceled it due to some of Waters’ past statements which have been deemed anti-Semitic.

Frankfurt City Council issued a statement on February 24 saying, in part, “The background to the cancellation is the persistently anti-Israel attitude of the former Pink Floyd frontman, who is considered one of the most far-reaching Anti-Semites of the world. He repeatedly called for a cultural boycott [of] Israel and drew comparisons to the apartheid regime of South Africa.”

The show was scheduled to take place at the Festhalle Concert Hall. Prog notes, “The city council share a 60% ownership of the venue along with Hesse’s state government, and sought legal permission to shut down the show … The statement also noted the historical significance of the venue, Festhalle, being the site where 3,000 Jewish men were held under arrest in 1938 ahead of their deportation to concentration camps following Kristallnacht, the violent anti-Jewish demonstrations which saw Nazis destroy Jewish-owned stores, buildings and synagogues.”

In response to the cancelation, Waters shared a video from Dr. Ramzy Baroud titled “The Real Reason Why Germany Canceled Roger Waters” which points to the musician’s support of Palestine.

David Gilmour & Wife vs. Roger Waters: Nasty War of Words Continues

David Gilmour and Roger Waters have engaged in their war of words in the media for several years now. For those hopeful they’d resolve their differences, that appears not to be happening anytime soon.

The past 24 hours have seen Gilmour and his wife, Polly Samson, take aim at Waters over a recent interview he did with German newspaper Berliner Zeitung. Waters, himself, shared the translated interview to his official website.

He prefaced the interview with a personal message on his website saying, in part, “Against the backdrop of the outrageous and despicable smear campaign by the Israeli Lobby to denounce me as an anti-semite, which I am not, never have been and never will be.”

Waters also alleges the “Israeli Lobby” tried to cancel his “85% sold out series of concerts in Germany.”

From Waters’ remarks in the interview to Samson and Gilmour’s responses, here’s a breakdown of the situation:

  • Waters' interview contains many controversial statements

    The entire interview Waters gave to Berliner Zeitung is worth reading. However, among his most notable remarks, Waters defends Russian President Vladimir Putin and says people are “brainwashed” into seeing him as the aggressor in the current conflict between Russian and Ukraine. Additionally, he claims there’s Nazism in Ukraine and that “Israelis are committing genocide.”

  • Polly Samson's remarks

    Samson took to Twitter in response to Waters’ interview. She wrote, “Sadly @rogerwaters you are antisemitic to your rotten core. Also a Putin apologist and a lying, thieving, hypocritical, tax-avoiding, lip-synching, misogynistic, sick-with-envy, megalomaniac. Enough of your nonsense.”

  • Waters responds to Samson

    Following Samson’s tweet, Waters shared the following statement to social media:

    “Roger Waters is aware of the incendiary and wildly inaccurate comments made about him on Twitter by Polly Samson which he refutes entirely. He is currently taking advice as to his positions.”

  • Gilmour Chimes In

    After Waters’ response, Gilmour injects himself in this back-and-forth by retweeting his wife’s comments and adding, “Every word demonstrably true.”

Erica Banas is a news blogger who's been covering the rock/classic rock world since 2014. The coolest event she's ever covered in person was the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Sir Paul McCartney inducting Foo Fighters? C'mon now!) She's also well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights

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Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter
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