Massive Attack hit out at Barclays sponsorship of Co-Op Live ahead of Manchester gig

Massive Attack have hit out at Barclays' sponsorship of Co=Op Live ahead of their show in Manchester tonight.

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Massive Attack have criticised Barclays’ recent sponsorship of Manchester venue Co-Op Live ahead of their gig there tonight.

The band are well known for their strong environmentalist ethos – even getting the arena to go fully plant-based for the first time for their show. They have also expressed strong support for Palestine, notably participating in a cultural boycott of Israel since 1999.

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In a new statement posted to social media, they decried the venue’s partnership with Barclays, pointing out that it seemed to contradict Co-Op Live’s own progressive values as well as their own. They noted that the partnership was not in place when they originally booked the gig in January.

Massive Attack described Barclays as a “profoundly unethical corporate identity” due to its investment in arms companies that supply Israel “in its genocidal onslaught of Gaza and war crimes in the West Bank”, as well as their “large-scale financing of new fossil fuel extraction”.

They also said that they had struck a deal with the venue in order for them to play as planned to avoid disappointing fans.

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“We’re so happy to be back in Manchester and to be playing in this city tonight,” the statement began.

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“We confirmed this show at Co Op Live arena back in January, not least because of the venue’s strong sustainability credentials and ethical sponsorship.

“15 days ago, without any advance warning or notification, the arena ownership announced a new corporate sponsorship with Barclays: a commercial identity synonymous with the large-scale financing of new fossil fuel extraction and billions of dollars of investments in arms companies that supply Israel in its genocidal onslaught of Gaza and war crimes in the West Bank.

“Objectively, Barclays is a profoundly unethical corporate identity. We believe Barclays has no place in any of our cultural or sporting arenas and only learned (with disbelief) of the arena partnership via a local media story.

They continued: “As a band, we do not want to disappoint fans who have spent their hard-earned money on tickets and are looking forward to the show, especially at such short notice.

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“Co-Op Live ownership have agreed to our insistence that all physical and digital Barclays livery and logos be completely removed from both the arena itself and our show page on the arena website, and that no show tickets – for sale or complimentary – will be given to Barclays.

“At a time when the world works to tackle climate emergency and watches on in despair and horror at the scenes of civilian slaughter in Gaza, we’re stunned that the arena ownership took this decision to partner with Barclays – especially in a progressive city like Manchester – and then attempted to retroactively apply that sponsorship to artists who would have been deeply uneasy or refused to align their performances with a venue with Barclays as partner.

See you tonight Manchester. In love and rage, MASSIVE ATTACK.”

Barclays also recently became the Principal Partner of The O2 in London.

The bank’s presence sponsoring musical events has become a point of controversy recently, especially due to its ties to arms companies supplying weapons to Israel. As a result, events it was sponsoring including The Great Escape,  Latitude, Download and Isle Of Wight became the target of boycotts.

In October, it was confirmed that after 125 artists dropped out last year – which Massive Attack publicly supported – Barclays would no longer sponsor the event. The bank also withdrew from other events too, in news that was celebrated by Tom Morello, Enter Shikari and others.

Frontman Robert Del Naja sat down with NME before Massive Attack headlined the recent Act 1.5 “climate action accelerator” event in in Liverpool, after it was anointed by the UN as the world’s first ‘Accelerator City for Climate Action’. The gathering marked the launch of eight year-long experiments focussed on “rapid decarbonisation across live music, film and TV production in the city”.

They were joined by IDLES and Nile Rodgers, who also played shows that utilised groundbreaking approaches, such as using clean renewable energy to power gigs and offering free public transport to many fans as part of the cost of their ticket.

When asked how the arts sector can offer ways of fighting climate change that can benefit everyone, Del Naja said: “For me it’s less of the distinction between music, film and TV. It’s more of the adventure of the imagination. As Mark says, an industrial solution to a civic problem isn’t going to be found within the sectors themselves because they’re all completely locked into their own relationships and supply chains which can’t be broken open. That’s why policy takes so long to implement from government to government.

“Sometimes you need something like this that comes from the outside and says, ‘Fuck it, hold up, why can’t you guys work with you guys?’ There’s a scientist there, an energy industrialist there – why don’t you get together and go to the city and ask ‘why can’t we do it this way’? That’s what this [Act 1.5] is. It’s about breaking free from the mindset, and being able to express imagination. We need to turn the imagination of this sector into action.”

Massive Attack will be taking to the stage as headliners of LIDO Festival tomorrow (June 6). They will be continuing their work with Act 1.5 to decarbonise live music events and thanks to an ongoing partnership with Ecotricity, their LIDO set will be entirely powered by battery, significantly reducing carbon emissions and local air pollution. You can find any remaining tickets here.

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