On Monday, Variety reported that the music rights company BMG has severed ties with Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters due to remarks he made concerning Israel, Ukraine, and the United States.
Following the appointment of Thomas Coesfeld as CEO, the Germany-based company canceled the release of a newly remastered version of Pink Floyd’s 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon, which it had previously planned to release in conjunction with a publishing agreement it had established with the 80-year-old musician in 2016. The re-establishment was ultimately released by Cooking Vinyl, a record label located in the United Kingdom.
The division, which is out of the ordinary for a major publishing agreement, is the most recent consequence of Waters’ progressively polarizing discourse regarding Israel, which has been deemed antisemitic by some in recent months.
Conspiracies Related to Roger Waters
Numerous criticisms have not deterred the rock star, including a German police investigation into a “Nazi-style” costume he donned during a Berlin performance last year. A legal dispute he won in April 2023 granted him permission to perform in Frankfurt, Germany, following a directive from Frankfurt magistrates to the venue to cancel the performance on the grounds that Waters was “one of the most widely known antisemites in the world.”
While Roger Waters condemned the conflict in Ukraine, he accepted an invitation from Russia to address the United Nations Security Council, where he asserted that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was not “unprovoked.”
The Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) conducted an inquiry against Waters in 2023 and spoke with former colleagues who said the artist had frequently made disparaging remarks about Jews.
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The CAA also released emails from Waters suggesting that an antisemitic slogan be written on an inflatable pig that floats over his concerts; in other emails from 2010, he suggested “bombing” audiences with confetti in the form of dollar signs, swastikas, stars of David, and other symbols.
In a video interview with Glenn Greenwald last November, Waters—who has always refuted accusations of antisemitism—spoke of being “fired” by BMG. The musician explained his breakup with the company as the consequence of pro-Israeli pressure on BMG’s parent company, Bertelsmann, and repression of his political views.
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Waters was no stranger to the accusation, having frequently discussed plots to prevent him from expressing his opinions in public. During a concert in Birmingham, UK, last year, Waters went on a 10-minute tirade in which he denounced his “brutal” treatment in Germany and claimed that he was being targeted by various media sources for his support of Palestinian human rights. He remarked, “They’re trying to cancel me like they cancelled Julian Assange and Jeremy Corbyn.” “I refuse to be canceled.”
Previous Hotel Cancellations
Waters stated in an interview with Glenn Greenwald that “resistance to the Israeli occupation” is both morally and legally justifiable and that the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel might have been a false flag operation. Following the interview with Greenwald in November 2023, Waters reservations at the Faena Hotel and the Alvear Palace Hotel in Buenos Aires were canceled without explanation. A number of Argentine deputies vehemently opposed Waters’ sojourn in their nation.
Waters was denied accommodations at the Hyatt Centric and the Regency Hotels in Montevideo on the grounds of the right of admission. A Colorado Party National Representative, Felipe Schipani, requested that the Municipality of Montevideo revoke the designation of “illustrious visitor to Montevideo” that was bestowed upon Waters in 2018.