ADVERTISEMENTIt’s one of France’s biggest and most popular music festivals, held every year at the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud, west of Paris, in August.
Rock en Seine attracts more than 150,000 spectators each year, and while this year’s edition features massive headliners like Chappell Roan, Fontaines D.C., Queens of the Stone Age and Doechii, one headliner is already proving controversial.
Rap trio Kneecap has been kept on the line-up of this year’s edition, taking place from 20 – 24 August, and it has cost the festival.
Indeed, Rock en Seine has suddenly seen its budget cut by €40,000 – a decision taken by the Saint-Cloud town council over the presence of the Northern Irish band.
Scheduled for Sunday 24 August, the Kneecap are known for their vocal support for the Palestinian cause and has been targeted by the British justice system over what the band refered to as a “trumped up terrorism charge”.
One of the band’s members, Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, is accused of displaying a flag in support of proscribed organisation Hezbollah at a London gig last year. He was released on unconditional bail after last month’s hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London.
Their controversial Glastonbury set, alongside Bob Vylan’s, has escalated matters in the UK.
Mayor of Saint-Cloud Éric Berdoati voted to withdraw the subsidy, saying: “We subsidise cultural initiatives, not political ones. When it’s no longer in line with our objectives, we don’t fund it.”
Regardless, Rock en Seine has decided to not be intimidated by any political pressure and has maintained the Kneecap concert.
“When we programmed them last autumn, they weren’t the talk of the town, except for good reasons,” says festival director Mathieu Ducos, who insists on maintaining good relations with the town of Saint-Cloud.
“I hope that the history we’ve managed to build and weave together doesn’t end with this dispute and the vision we have of this group,” Ducos adds.
The €40,000 from Saint-Cloud should not dent the budget too much, as Rock en Seine’s budget this year has been announced at around €17 million – 3% of which comes from subsidies.
The cut, a first for the festival since its inception in 2003, comes after Valérie Pécresse, President of the Île-de-France region, said on X in May that Kneecap “should be withdrawn from current French music festivals” because of the legal proceedings under way in the UK.
Conversely, French politician Xavier Brunschvicg (Parti Radcal de Gauche) said that Kneecap’s actions and speeches were mainly because the Northern Irish group was “taking a stand against what is happening in Gaza”.
In his view, Éric Berdoati was “giving in to a social demand from his most conservative constituency.”
Several artists have supported Kneecap, including Brian Eno, Fontaines D.C. and Pulp. They signed an open letter criticizing a “clear, concerted attempt to censor and ultimately deplatform” Kneecap and opposing “political repression of artistic freedom.”
The letter reads: “As artists, we feel the need to register our opposition to any political repression of artistic freedom.”
“In a democracy, no political figures or political parties should have the right to dictate who does and does not play at music festivals or gigs that will be enjoyed by thousands of people.”
Rock en Seine takes place at Domaine National de Saint-Cloud from 20 – 24 August 2025.
