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Kneecap (band)

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Kneecap
Background information
OriginBelfast, Northern Ireland
Genres
Years active2017–present
LabelsHeavenly Recordings
Members
  • Mo Chara (Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh)
  • Móglaí Bap (Naoise Ó Caireallain)
  • DJ Próvaí (J. J. Ó Dochartaigh)
Websitewww.kneecap.ie Edit this at Wikidata

Kneecap are an Irish hip hop trio from Belfast, Northern Ireland, composed of Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí,[1][2] the stage names of Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, Naoise Ó Cairealláin and J. J. Ó Dochartaigh, respectively.[3] They rap in a mixture of English and Irish. Their first single "C.E.A.R.T.A." (cearta is Irish for 'rights') was released in 2017, followed by their debut studio album 3CAG, in 2018.[4] Their second studio album Fine Art was released in 2024, and a biographical film about the group was released later the same year.[5]

The group's themes focus on working class Belfast youth culture, Irish republicanism and Irish language rights. Their name is derived from the extralegal punishment attacks meted out by Northern Ireland paramilitary groups. They are also outspokenly anti-Zionist.

Name

The name Kneecap is a word play, referring to both the practice of kneecapping, a punishment of gunshots to the knees which Republican paramilitaries would inflict on what they described as "political" and "normal" criminals, including drug dealers and others, as a form of vigilante justice,[6] and the Irish phrase "ní cheapaim" (which sounds like "kneecap him"), meaning "I don't think so".[7]

History

Their first single "C.E.A.R.T.A." was loosely based on Móglaí Bap's experience. On the day before the Irish Language Act march in Belfast, Móglaí Bap went out with a friend of his and spray-painted the word "Cearta" on a bus stop. The Police Service of Northern Ireland found that and arrested his friend, although Móglaí managed to escape. The friend only spoke Irish at the police station, and spent a night there, refusing to speak English. Following this incident, "C.E.A.R.T.A." was written.[8]

In late 2017,[9] their song "C.E.A.R.T.A." was banned from the Irish-medium radio station RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta (RnaG) for "drug references and cursing". Fans started a petition which garnered 700 signatures to put the song back on air. Kneecap defended the song as "a caricature of life in west Belfast" and "a satirical take on life for young people, particularly in West Belfast".[10]

The group's first full-length album, 3CAG, was released in 2018. The title references the drug MDMA: 3CAG means trí chonsan agus guta ('three consonants and a vowel'), slang for the substance. The group's name was the traditional wounding inflicted on alleged drug-dealers by paramilitary Irish Republicans. Móglaí noted that the irony is intentional, as they are "talking about things that would get us kneecapped".[11] The release was retrospectively described in The Skinny as "an irresistible collection of raucous hip-hop that fused the Irish and English languages with a wicked sense of humour."[12] It was retrospectively described in The Guardian as "self-aware and swaggering in equal measure as it flipped between nights on the town to the everyday reality of growing up in post-Troubles Northern Ireland."[13]

While Mo Chara and Móglaí Bap are from West Belfast, DJ Próvaí is from Derry.[14] He was a teacher until 2020, when he left his school after they were alerted to a video in which he had "Brits Out" written on his buttocks during a concert.[15]

In February 2019, they received condemnation from Belfast South Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MLA Christopher Stalford after videos of the trio were posted online, showing them chanting 'Brits Out' at a concert performed in the Empire Music Hall in Belfast. The concert took place the day after the then Duke of Cambridge and Duchess of Cambridge had visited the same venue.[16]

In 2021, Kneecap released their single "MAM" as a tribute to their mothers; the song was acknowledged as a shift away from their usual style saying that they wanted to do something more "real". Mo Chara stated in an interview that they wanted to show that "we can 'roundhouse' you off the stage but we can also give you a hug afterwards. We wanted to do something a bit sentimental, we don't wanna just box ourselves in with masculinity all the time."[17] The trio also revealed on Instagram that Móglaí Bap's mother had died of suicide before the song was ready for release, and that all proceeds from the song would be going to the Samaritans.[18]

In early 2023, the group began filming a motion picture, also titled Kneecap, depicting a fictionalised account of their rise to fame. Released in August 2024, the film was directed by Rich Peppiatt with Michael Fassbender in a supporting role.[19][20]

In February 2024, the group was awarded a grant of £14,250 from the Music Export Growth Scheme, which was then blocked by the Department for Business and Trade.[21] Business secretary Kemi Badenoch said that the grant should not be awarded "to people that oppose the United Kingdom itself."[22] The group filed a discrimination case against the UK government, winning the case and receiving the total grant amount in November 2024.[23] They split the grant to two youth organisations who work with Protestant and Catholic communities in Northern Ireland.[14]

Film

The 2024 biographical film Kneecap, in which the band members play themselves alongside more experienced actors including Michael Fassbender, Josie Walker, and Simone Kirby, is set in the West Belfast Gaeltacht Quarter in 2019. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on 18 January 2024, being the first film in the Irish language at the festival.[24]

In August 2024, the Irish Film and Television Academy announced that they had selected Kneecap as their official submission to represent Ireland in the International Film Category at the 97th annual Academy Awards.[25] On 17 December 2024 Kneecap were shortlisted for two Academy Awards for the Best International Feature and Best Original Song with their song "Sick in the Head".[26]

Political views

Irish republicanism

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Irish republicanism
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Active parties
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Media
Culture

Kneecap are heavily associated with Irish republicanism, which advocates for the reunification of Ireland and opposes British rule in Northern Ireland. Kneecap refer to themselves as "Republican Hoods" and their fans as "Fenians".[27] Despite their republican themes, Kneecap says that republican paramilitaries would have given them punishment shootings (kneecappings) for some of the things they rap about. As is common in hip-hop, their lyrics and imagery are also hostile to the police; in 2022 they commissioned a mural in Belfast of a burning Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) vehicle.[28][29] They promote greater use of and support for the Irish language in Northern Ireland. Kneecap say they are anti-sectarian and want to foster working class solidarity among Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland.[4] Mo Chara said "It doesn’t matter who you are, where you’re from. Just because we rap in Irish and might not align with your political views — we can be friends with people that we don’t align with politically".[4]

Móglaí Bap explained "we’re political, but it’s very tongue-in-cheek. We wanted to take the seriousness and the sting out of it and incorporate elements of life that we as young people enjoy — like partying and taking Class A drugs. ... We’re political with small p’s".[30] Referring to sectarian divisions in Belfast, he said that "The two communities in the [Catholic] Falls Road and [Protestant] Shankill suffer from a lot of the same problems — food banks, poverty, suicide ... The wall, unfortunately, doesn’t stop these things going from one community to another.… I think a lot of politicians in the North would rather people focus on certain aspects of us to create division, but there’s a lot more that we have in common”.[4]

On 14 March 2025, the head of a statue of King George V appeared on stage during a Kneecap gig in Melbourne, Australia. It had been cut off by protesters during the 2024 King's Birthday.[31][32] Kneecap made reference to the cut-off head in an Instagram post, writing "Remember, every colony can fall".[31][32]

Israel-Palestine conflict

Kneecap supports Palestinian nationalism. They fly Palestinian flags at concerts and pledge to boycott Israel.[33][34] The Irish Independent reported that members of Kneecap have supported politician Clare Daly for her stance on Palestine.[35] They have links with a volunteer gym in the Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, having helped raise funds for it and promoted it on their Instagram; further, in 2022, Irish writer Manchán Magan released a cover of Kneecap's song "C.E.A.R.T.A" to raise money for the gym.[36][37]

During their set at the April 2025 Coachella Festival, Kneecap displayed the messages "Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people" ... "It is being enabled by the US" ... "Fuck Israel / Free Palestine".[38] This was widely covered by US news outlets, further raising interest in the group.[39] Sharon Osbourne led calls for their visas to be revoked for alleged "hate speech", and the band were sent death threats. Kneecap replied, "Statements aren't aggressive, murdering 20,000 children is though".[40]

Shortly after their Coachella appearance, counter-terrorism police in the UK began an investigation into the band, after videos of two Kneecap concerts were reported to them. In one video, from November 2023, a band member says "The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP".[41] In the other video, from November 2024, Mo Chara chants "up Hamas, up Hezbollah" while draped in a Hezbollah flag. In February 2025, the group tweeted an image of a member reading a book of statements by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.[42] In the UK, expressing support for those groups is a crime under the Terrorism Act 2000.[43][44] A spokesperson for UK prime minister Keir Starmer said that people with such views should not receive government funding as Kneecap had done, and Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that the group should clarify their position on Hamas and Hezbollah, pointing out that Hezbollah had killed Irish peacekeeper Sean Rooney in Lebanon.[45]

In response, Kneecap issued a statement, saying "We do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah. We condemn all attacks on civilians, always. ... We also reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual". The band alleged that an extract of footage had been "deliberately taken out of all context" and that they had faced a "coordinated smear campaign" for speaking out about "the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people".[46] The group also apologised to the families of murdered MPs Jo Cox and David Amess. DUP MP Carla Lockhart dismissed the apology as "forced", stating, "It very much screams of 'sorry because they were caught'."[47]

Over 40 musical artists have expressed support for Kneecap's freedom of expression and denounced the criminal investigation and cancelled gigs that Kneecap has experienced during the scandal. Damien Dempsey described Kneecap's members as "three young peaceful warrior poets".[48] English trip hop group Massive Attack supported Kneecap, stating that the criticism by "politicians and right-wing journalists" were "strategically concocting moral outrage over the stage uttering of a young punk band, while simultaneously obfuscating or even ignoring a genocide happening in real time (including the killing of journalists in unprecedented numbers)".[49]

In May 2025, Mo Chara was charged with a terror offence after allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah, a proscribed organisation, during a performance in November 2024.[50] The charge followed an investigation by the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command and the Crown Prosecution Service.[51]

Reception

Kneecap's logo is based on the balaclavas worn by paramilitaries during The Troubles. Band member Próvaí often wears an Irish tricolour balaclava in public.[28][29][52] The Guardian wrote that Kneecap's earlier work focused on merging Gaelic identity with hood culture.[28]

Journalist Malachi O'Doherty said Kneecap "have worked diligently at presenting themselves as worthless layabouts. There's a dishonesty at the heart of that" and "Maybe what their success suggests is that hood culture and provie [Provisional IRA] culture are both now parodied rather than preserved with any integrity."[28] Brendan O'Neill of Spiked concurred and has also questioned their authenticity: in a December 2024 article, he argued that Kneecap's radicalism is performative, with the band adopting republican imagery to entertain liberal, middle-class audiences. O'Neill stated "They're the cultural class larping as chavs, the Rachel Dolezals of republican chic" and argued that Kneecap only offer a sanitised, bourgeois-friendly version of resistance that flatters rather than challenges establishment sensibilities.[53] Tom Jones of The Critic wrote that the group "provide[s] an attractive combination of an edgy appearance without genuine transgression."[54]

Emer McLysaght of the Irish Times wrote that Kneecap "present an intelligent approach to social commentary and republicanism, more satire than sectarian. They punch up, not down. When they're not singing about more universal social topics like drugs, addiction and mental health, they’re taking shots at the RUC, the PSNI, Arlene Foster and the UK government. They approach issues from a class perspective and, rather than demonising Unionists and Protestants, they advocate for working-class liberation en masse".[55]

Discography

Albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions
Title Album details Peak chart positions
IRE
[56] 		SCO
[56] 		UK
[56]
3CAG — — —
Fine Art
  • Released: 14 June 2024
  • Label: Heavenly
  • Formats: LP, CD, digital download, streaming
 2 3 43

Extended Plays

Title EP details
Fine Art (Remixes)
  • Released: November 4, 2024
  • Label: Heavenly
  • Format: digital download
H.O.O.D 2025
  • Released: January 27, 2025
  • Label: Heavenly
  • Format: digital download

Singles

List of singles, with selected peak chart positions
Title Release date Peak chart positions Album
IRL
[57]
"C.E.A.R.T.A" December 2017 79 3CAG
"Amach Anocht" March 2018 —
"H.O.O.D" June 2019 23 Non-album singles
"Gael-Gigolos" June 2019 —
"Fenian Cunts" September 2019 —
"Get Your Brits Out" October 2019 60
"Mam"
(with Dyrt) 		December 2020 —
"Guilty Conscience" October 2021 28
"Thart agus Thart" —
"Its Been Ages" March 2023 —
"Better Way to Live"
(featuring Grian Chatten) 		November 2023 61 Fine Art
"Sick in the Head" February 2024 —[A]
"Fine Art" March 2024 —[B]
"Love Making"
(with Nino) 		May 2024 —[C]

Other charted songs

List of other charted songs, with selected peak chart positions
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
IRL
Home
[61]
"3CAG"
(featuring Radie Peat) 		2024 8 Fine Art

Notes

  1. ^ "Sick in the Head" did not enter the Irish Singles Chart, but peaked at number five on the Irish Homegrown chart.[58]
  2. ^ "Fine Art" did not enter the Irish Singles Chart, but peaked at number five on the Irish Homegrown chart.[59]
  3. ^ "Love Making" did not enter the Irish Singles Chart, but peaked at number 18 on the Irish Homegrown chart.[60]

References

Citations

  1. ^ Earley, Kelly (4 March 2019). "Who are KNEECAP? Everything you need to know about the Irish rappers in trouble with both BBC and RTÉ". The Daily Edge. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  2. ^ Mullally, Una (16 March 2024). "A Celtic Revival, in Hip-Hop and More". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  3. ^ Kula 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d Blistein, Jon (20 February 2024). "Kneecap Want to Piss Off the World — And Unite It". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  5. ^ "Kneecap movie trailer released ahead of UK premiere in London". Belfast Telegraph. 6 June 2024. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  6. ^ Lynskey, Dorian (1 May 2025). "Listen closely to the Kneecap furore. You'll hear hypocrisy from all sides". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 May 2025.
  7. ^ "Kneecap – an Electrifying Ode to Language, Identity, and Modern Belfast – Culture Matters". 18 January 2025.
  8. ^ Mullally, Una. "Kneecap: 'Low-life scum' of west Belfast rap whose day has come". The Irish Times. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  9. ^ O'Toole, Lucy. "KNEECAP spark controversy in Belfast with 'Brits Out' chant". Hotpress. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Belfast Irish language rappers Kneecap banned by radio station". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  11. ^ O'Toole, Lucy. "12 INTERVIEWS OF XMAS: KNEECAP on Controversies, Misconceptions, Mental Health and Generational Trauma". Hotpress. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  12. ^ Sneddon, Chris (12 June 2024). "KNEECAP – Fine Art album review: The Skinny". The Skinny. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
  13. ^ Coney, Brian (19 August 2022). "'We're not an army – we're three boys from Belfast': rap crew Kneecap laugh off their week of controversy". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
  14. ^ a b Hargan, Garrett (29 November 2024). "Youth group thanks Kneecap for donation after UK Government's High Court settlement". Belfast Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 29 April 2025.
  15. ^ Savage, Mark (29 April 2025). "Kneecap: Rap group are no strangers to controversy, but is this time different?". BBC News. Retrieved 29 April 2025.
  16. ^ O'Dornan, David. "Belfast rappers chant 'Brits out' at Empire following Royal visit". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  17. ^ Allen, Owen (16 September 2021). "An Interview with KNEECAP". New Sound Generation. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
  18. ^ "Kneecap release gorgeous song to pay tribute to their mams". JOE.ie. 4 December 2020. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
  19. ^ "Kneecap's Irish Language Film is Heading to Cannes". District Magazine. 10 May 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  20. ^ Ramachandran, Naman (4 April 2024). "'Kneecap,' 'Dìdi' to Bookend Sundance London". Variety. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  21. ^ "Kneecap: Belfast rap group take legal action after UK blocks grant". 9 February 2024. Retrieved 17 December 2024.
  22. ^ Morrison, Catherine; Mandeville, Adam (29 November 2024). "Kneecap: Kemi Badenoch blames 'cowardly' Labour for settlement". BBC. Retrieved 17 December 2024.
  23. ^ Snapes, Laura; O'Carroll, Lisa (29 November 2024). "Kneecap: UK government acted illegally in withholding funding from Irish rap trio". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 17 December 2024.
  24. ^ O'Broin, Cian (6 December 2023). "Belfast rap group Kneecap make history with new film becoming first Irish language movie at Sundance Festival". Irish Independent. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  25. ^ "IFTA Announces Kneecap As Ireland's Entry For Oscars® 2025 - International Feature Film". www.ifta.ie. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  26. ^ "Kneecap shortlisted for Best International Oscar". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 17 December 2024.
  27. ^ Kula 2024: "Republicanism is one of the central themes of Kneecap's music (they refer to themselves as “republican hoods” and their fans as "fenians") as well as hostility to the police (whom they call the RUC, despite the RUC having disbanded in 2001, when they were children)."
  28. ^ a b c d Carroll, Rory (14 August 2024). "How Northern Irish rap trio Kneecap rose to fame by subverting the Troubles". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  29. ^ a b Whitington, Paul (6 June 2024). "Kneecap review: An honest and irreverent insight into Belfast rappers' free-living republicanism". The Irish Independent. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  30. ^ Chesler, Josh (26 May 2024). "A night out with Kneecap, Ireland's political hip-hop rebels". LA Times. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  31. ^ a b Quinn, Karl (17 March 2025). "Going off, with the king's head: Bronze George V turns up at Kneecap gig". The Age. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
  32. ^ a b Smee, Ben (16 March 2025). "Severed head of King George V statue may have resurfaced at Irish rappers' Melbourne gig". Guardian Australia. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
  33. ^ "Belfast hip hop trio Kneecap and the new Irish rebel music". IrishCentral.com. 24 March 2020. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
  34. ^ Brayden, Kate. "Over 1000 Irish artists pledge to boycott Israel in support of Palestine". Hotpress. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
  35. ^ Coyne, Ellen (22 November 2024). "'I don't say anything different than the Pope or Michael D' – Clare Daly on Russia, Mary Lou McDonald, and middle-aged men who really don't like her". Irish Independent. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
  36. ^ @kneecap32 (19 February 2020). "My Brother and co are building a gym at the moment at the Aida refugee camp in Palestine. That's the bais in the físeán there [...]" – via Instagram.
  37. ^ Newsdesk, The Hot Press. "Irish writer Manchán Magan covers KNEECAP's 'C.E.A.R.T.A' in aid of volunteer gym in Palestine". Hotpress. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
  38. ^ Jefferson, Dee (24 April 2025). "Kneecap say 'statements aren't aggressive' after denouncing Israel at Coachella". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 April 2025.
  39. ^ "Kneecap hit back at 'sh*te' reporting on Fox News, which branded them 'rogue judge activists'". SundayWorld.com. 22 April 2025. Retrieved 22 April 2025.
  40. ^ "Kneecap say statement at Coachella 'not aggressive' after criticism". BBC News. 23 April 2025.
  41. ^ "Kneecap 'kill MP' footage being assessed by police". BBC News. 27 April 2025.
  42. ^ Gilson, Grace (30 April 2025). "Facing police investigation, Irish band Kneecap denies supporting Hamas, Hezbollah". The Forward. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  43. ^ "Counter-terror police looking into Kneecap 'up Hamas and Hezbollah' video". Belfast News Letter. 23 April 2025. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
  44. ^ "Footage of Kneecap gig being assessed by counter-terrorism police". The Independent. 23 April 2025. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
  45. ^ Wood, Jake (28 April 2025). "UK government condemns 'unacceptable' Kneecap comments". BBC News. Retrieved 28 April 2025.
  46. ^ "Kneecap apologise to families of murdered MPs over 'dead Tory' comments". The Guardian. 29 April 2025.
  47. ^ Kula, Adam (29 April 2025). "Kneecap apology 'screams of damage limitation' says MP after group says comments 'taken out of context' and they are all about 'love'". Belfast News Letter. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  48. ^ "Kneecap open letter: Kevin Rowland supports trio's freedom of speech". www.bbc.com. 2 May 2025. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  49. ^ Madarang, Charisma (1 May 2025). "Massive Attack back Kneecap amid Coachella backlash: 'Gaza is the story'". Rolling Stone UK. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  50. ^ "UK police charge Kneecap's 'Mo Chara' with terrorism offence". RTÉ. 21 May 2025.
  51. ^ "Kneecap member charged with terror offence". BBC News. 21 May 2025. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  52. ^ Ainsworth, Paul (31 July 2024). "Balaclava 'emoji' in Irish flag colours added to X platform for posts related to Kneecap". Irish News. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
  53. ^ Brendan O'Neill (23 December 2024). "Kneecap reveal the scourge of phoney radicalism". Spiked.
  54. ^ Jones, Tom (20 March 2025). "Kneecap are the establishment's idea of rebellion". The Critic. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  55. ^ McLysaght, Emer (26 July 2024). "A middle-class millennial at a Kneecap gig: am I just cosplaying at republicanism?". The Irish Times. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
  56. ^ a b c "Kneecap songs and albums | full Official chart history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  57. ^ "Discography Kneecap". irish-charts.com. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  58. ^ "Irish Homegrown on 27/12/2024". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  59. ^ "Irish Homegrown on 10/01/2025". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  60. ^ "Irish Homegrown on 10/5/2024". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 December 2024.
  61. ^ "Irish Homegrown on 6/12/2024". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 December 2024.

Sources

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