Gorillaz kicked off their 2026 North American dates on Thursday (September 17), using their set to urge the audience not to be “neutral” about the genocide.
Damon Albarn and co. played a 24-song set at Orlando’s Kia Center, drawing from their self-titled debut, as well as ‘Plastic Beach’, ‘Demon Days’, ‘Humanz’, and their most recent album, ‘The Mountain’.
At one point in the set, Albarn took a Palestinian flag from an audience member, lifting it above his head and telling the crowd: “Don’t forget this. Ever. Stand your position. Don’t ever be neutral.”
It comes at a time where artists’ ability to freely express their thoughts about Palestine has been called into question, given Macklemore’s impassioned “free Palestine” speech while opening for Ed Sheeran prompted calls for Macklemore’s removal from figures like Pink and the Israeli American Council.
He was then dropped from the tour, with Gillette Stadium owner Robert Kraft later confirming that he found Macklemore’s speech “deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community”, resulting in his dismissal.
Damon Albarn of Gorillaz holds up a Palestinian flag at their show last night in Orlando, FL: “Don’t forget this. Ever. Stand your position. Don’t ever be neutral” 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸 (Video: 0beco0 / TikTok) pic.twitter.com/hYAYKXAMVh
— Marco Foster (@MarcoFoster_) September 18, 2026
Sheeran would later speak out about the situation, saying he was “not complicit” and that he was “appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine” and sees the “suffering and pain caused on both sides” as a “tragedy”.
A United Nations-appointed Commission of Inquiry concluded in September 2025 that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, and Amnesty International reached the same conclusion.
Israel has repeatedly denied committing genocide or war crimes, maintaining that its military campaign followed the Hamas-led attacks of October 7 and was an act of self-defence. It rejected the UN Commission’s findings as “distorted and false” and a “libellous sham”.
A more recent Commission of Inquiry from the UN said in June that “Israeli authorities and security forces have deliberately targeted Palestinian children, resulting in genocide and atrocity crimes in the Gaza Strip and war crimes in the West Bank.”
Albarn has been consistently vocal about Palestinian rights in recent years, and last year said “we cannot deny the Palestinians their existence”.
Speaking to Channel 4 News, he explained that he had been “in one way or another, engaged with Palestine for a long time”, saying: “I think it’s about not denying the legitimacy of Palestine, not denying the historical presence of Palestinians and recognising the genocide that is taking place there.”
“It’s impossible to watch. It just feels so horrendously helpless and we cannot deny the Palestinians their existence, which is what’s going on at the moment. It’s just wrong. Palestinians belong there and you can’t just kick them out. It’s not acceptable.”
Here’s the video of him asking for it
😭♥️♥️♥️ https://t.co/Lg6q9Hv0kg pic.twitter.com/AkewQ09OqX— T*y 🇵🇸 Rubbed Damon Albarn’s Belly 9.17.26 (@MortaliTay) September 18, 2026
He also appeared at the Together For Palestine show in London last September, organised by Brian Eno. He played a medley of Palestinian traditional songs with the London Arab Orchestra and the Juzour Dance Collective, while Gorillaz later played ‘Damascus’, which went on to be included on their recent album ‘The Mountain’.
Before then, the band’s Primavera Sound set was introduced by Palestinian activist Aarab Barghouti, the son of imprisoned politician Marwan Barghouti. “My father is one of 10,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel,” he said from the stage back in June. “But for millions of Palestinians, he represents something that Israel cannot imprison: hope.”
In other Gorillaz news, they recently announced their first-ever shows in India, to take place in January 2027. The country’s musical and spiritual traditions were huge influences on ‘The Mountain’.
