“My dear fans, it saddens me to write this to you, our sold-out show tonight at the House of Blues in Chicago has been canceled due to the threat of protests. Although the actual details surrounding this decision remain murky, and while all parties are throwing blame at each other, I I can assure you that my security team, which was vigilant about everything happening in the city, did not receive any threats of violence.” This is what the musician Matisyahu shared with his followers in a Facebook post.
A concert by the successful Jewish reggae singer, Matisyahu, in Chicago was canceled due to a “threat of protests” – this is what the musician said on social networks, but he added – that since the venue paid him for the cancellation – he will donate all proceeds to Bring Them Home Now: “On the occasion of International Women’s Day And the girls who are still being held captive by Hamas.” Part of the money will also be donated to the Rescue Union in Israel: “a medical emergency organization run entirely by volunteers from different backgrounds, Jews and Muslims alike,” he wrote.
“Although my fans and I are very hurt by this, know that we will not allow these thugs and the pressure they exert on us to sweep us away,” he wrote at the end of his words, “the effects of this behavior are not only for me and the past of the Jewish people. People and organizations that break under their pressure threaten the freedom of artistic expression , the intellectual honesty and the possibility to show empathy for people with different opinions and worldviews. We will continue to show up and stand tall in the face of hatred, on the way to the real goal in the long run – peace for everyone.”
The venue where the show was supposed to take place, the House of Blues in Chicago, confirmed the news, but did not state the reason for the cancellation.
About three weeks ago Matisyahu shared with his followers the cancellation of two of his performances:
“The team that works at the places where we were supposed to perform refused to come to work, and they were forced to cancel,” he said at the time, “The venue in Santa Fe told our fans that the cancellation was due to ‘security concerns,’ when in reality the problem was that part of their staff was not ready to work with us… they They do this either because they are anti-Semitic or because they confuse their empathy for the Palestinian people with hatred for someone who has empathy for both Israelis and Palestinians.”
These cancellations of course come after the musician’s many statements regarding his support for Israel, when he even performed in Israel last January – and donated all the proceeds to the families of the abductees. As part of this, about two weeks ago, David Dreyman, the Jewish lead singer of the metal band Disturbed, announced that he was raising funds to fund security for Mytisiah.
The musician is not the only Jewish artist who had to deal with such situations, for example, since the outbreak of the war, events with the participation of the Jewish actors Maim Bialik and Bret Gelman have been canceled or interrupted due to their support for Israel.