German music company terminates agreement with Roger Waters after his scandalous statements on Ukraine and Israel
German music rights company BMG is terminating its agreement with Roger Waters, British musician and composer, co-founder of the legendary Pink Floyd band, over his scandalous statements about Israel, Ukraine and the United States.
Source: Variety
Details: BMG signed a deal with Waters in 2016 and planned to release a new version of Pink Floyd's 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon. However, the new CEO Thomas Coesfeld, who took office on 1 July 2023, cancelled the re-release of the record. Eventually, the re-recording was released by the British label Cooking Vinyl.
Now it is reported that the German music company is preparing to completely terminate all agreements with Waters. This decision is associated with Waters' controversial and scandalous statements on international politics: the war in Ukraine, the situation between Israel and Palestine, etc.
No mention of Russia having to stop.
Waters addressed the UN Security Council via video link at the invitation of Russia in February 2023. At the time, he said that Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 "was not unprovoked" and condemned some "provocateurs".
At the time, the media suggested that the aggressor country had invited Waters to speak at the UN because he criticised the supply of weapons to Ukraine. Moreover, in an interview with the Berliner Zeitung, he actually reiterated the messages of Russian propaganda and said that Vladimir Putin had offered the West to build a joint security system, but was rejected.
"How sad it is for his former fans to see him acting as another brick in the wall of Russian disinformation and propaganda," commented Ukraine's Ambassador Serhii Kyslytsia on Waters' speech at the UN [Another Brick in The Wall is one of Pink Floyd’s most popular songs – ed.].
In the spring of 2023, Waters faced a series of scandals in Germany. There were attempts to cancel his concerts in Frankfurt and Munich because of Waters' anti-Semitic and anti-Jewish statements. Opponents of his performances in Germany called him "one of the most famous anti-Semites in the world".
At the time, Claudia Roth, German Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, stated that she could not ban Waters' concerts, but advised the organisers to refrain from holding them: "And if they take place anyway, let him perform to empty halls."
Waters was criticised for his comments even by his former bandmates. However, he continued to make his scandalous statements during his concert tours.
For example, at a concert in Birmingham last year, Waters gave a 10-minute speech, condemning the "cruel" treatment he had received in Germany. He also said that the media is trying to destroy him for supporting human rights in Palestine: "They are trying to cancel me, just like they cancelled Jeremy Corbyn and Julian Assange."
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