CONTROVERSIAL PUNK-RAP duo Bob Vylan paid a visit to Leinster House today for a tour of the parliament building and a meeting with pro-Palestinian TDs and Senators.

They were invited to visit Dáil Éireann by Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó Broin ahead of their gig in Vicar Street tonight. 

The duo were the focus of condemnation and massive public attention earlier this year after their performance at Glastonbury.

Within their set, frontman Bobby Vylan, whose real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster, had chanted “Death, death to the IDF” in reference to the Israeli Defence Forces and its crimes committed against Palestinians in Gaza.

The performance was broadcast live on the BBC, which apologised for the airing of the content.  The band had a number of gigs cancelled in the wake of the fallout, while UK prime minister Keir Starmer condemned the chant as “appalling hate speech”.

Bob Vylan meeting with public representatives and Oireachtas staff today.

Ó Broin told The Journal today that he is a music fan who likes the band and wanted to show the pair that they have the support of Irish politicians. 

He said the visit was “very uplifting”, adding: “It’s very nice to be able to invite people in and say welcome to Ireland”. 

Ó Broin said that it is not risk-free for musicians to take a “very strong stand” against genocide and against the Israeli government over what it has committed in Gaza over the last number of years.

“That comes with challenges, and I think it’s important that they hear from people like us that what they do is really important, that it has a resonance,” he said. 

By coincidence, the visit coincided with a pro-Palestine protest outside the gates of Leinster House. The duo were greeted with a round of applause by protesters as they were leaving, stopping to take photos with supporters on the way.

Representatives from Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Regional Independents were not invited to the meeting with the punk-rap duo.

Ó Broin explained that he invited specific TDs and Senators who have been vocal in their support of Palestine to meet with the duo.

“It was a small event, we wanted to keep it low-key,” he said.

People Before Profit TDs Richard Boyd Barrett and Paul Murphy were among those who attended the meeting, along with Independent Senator Frances Black and Social Democrats Senator Patricia Stephenson.

The duo with Sinn Féin staff and public representatives. Sinn Féin Sinn Féin

Asked if the duo had a particular message for TDs and Senators, Ó Broin said: 

“They are a band who are obviously very vocal on a range of issues, not just Palestine and Gaza, but anti-racism, anti-fascism, austerity, social justice. The environment in England at the moment is obviously a very negative one in many respects, so they were reflecting a little bit on that and the challenges, I suppose, of being in politically engaged positions.”

Ó Broin said he thinks the pair found it “refreshing” and were encouraged by what they were hearing from the politicians in the room.

Frontman Bobby Vylan recently appeared on Louis Theroux’s podcast to discuss the fallout from the duo’s Glastonbury set. Following the episode being aired, British Airways paused its sponsorship of the show.

During the Theroux interview, Vlyan said he did not regret the ‘death to the IDF’ chant. 

Asked what the chant meant, Vylan said it means an “end to the apartheid regime that has been created, an end to that”.

He added: “‘End, end the IDF’ does not rhyme, it wouldn’t have caught on.

“That’s what we’re up there to do, we are there to entertain, we are there to play music, I am a lyricist. ‘Death, death to the IDF’ rhymes, perfect chant.”