Sawt Falasteen - Turkish fans, artists urge Muse to cancel Istanbul gig

In a post on X on Monday, the band announced plans to play Istanbul on June 11, with tickets going on sale on April 3.

But there was immediate backlash, with fans and artists saying they would boycott the gig over remarks by Abdulkadir Ozkan, boss of DBL Entertainment, the Turkish promoter behind the event.

As pressure grew, Ozkan said on Tuesday DBL Entertainment was "withdrawing from all projects" -- effectively standing down from its role as promoter, in a post on X that did not give further details.

Since March 19, Turkey has been gripped by massive anti-government protests following the arrest of Istanbul's opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, the biggest political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The protests have been met with a sharp crackdown, prompting opposition leader Ozgur Ozel to call for a boycott of firms allegedly close to Erdogan's government.

One targeted the EspressoLab coffee chain which was mobbed by protesters on Saturday, prompting a furious response on X from Ozkan, who denounced their actions as "treason".

His post sparked outrage and a barrage of social media calls to boycott gigs organised by his company, among them a Robbie Williams concert on October 7.

A show in Istanbul by South African comedian Trevor Noah on April 23 was also cancelled, with no reason given for the move.

In his post on Tuesday, Ozkan said his reaction had been "taken out of context" and he did not want to target "young people exercising their democratic right to protest".

Since March 19, police have arrested nearly 2,000 people, among them many students, prompting many young people to begin their own boycott of companies seen as close to Erdogan and his ruling party, the AKP.

- 'Solidarity matters' -

"We would love to go (to see Muse), but the Turkish organiser of this concert supports fascism," wrote Turkish theatre actress Berna Lacin on X.

"The young people who were going to come to your concert were thrown in jail. Cancel it and come with another promoter," she said, addressing the band.

Singer Gaye Su Akyol, popular in Turkey and abroad, also took to X in support of the boycott in a post addressed to Muse, Robbie Williams and Norwegian singer Ane Brun.

"I've respected your works for years and know how much you mean to many. But neither I, nor anyone, will attend your Istanbul concerts because the organiser is on the boycott list of the pro-democracy movement," she wrote. "Solidarity matters."

Brun later announced she was cancelling her gig, saying: "I have decided not to play in Istanbul this October... unfortunately, this is not the right time."

Another Turkish singer, Kalben, also said she would not go to the Muse gig "because the organiser is on the boycott list of the pro-democracy movement".

She urged the band to "make a move in the direction of support and solidarity".

M.AlAhmad--SF-PST