Israel president welcomes Boy George, rare supportive pop star

All eyes are on Israel’s president as he is expected this week to name the person tasked with forming the next government. But first, on Monday, he had another important guest — Boy George.

The British singer, a rare Western pop celebrity who not only defies pro-Palestinian calls to boycott Israel but is an outspoken supporter of the country, is visiting for two concerts in Tel Aviv.

Herzog, who holds a mostly ceremonial role, welcomed the former Culture Club singer to his Jerusalem office, saying, “Welcome, dear Boy George. You’re such a great friend.”

Boy George, sporting a black beret with confetti dangling across his brow, responded in Hebrew, “The people of Israel, we will dance again!”

The allusion is to a message of solidarity shared after the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas, the deadliest day in Israel’s history in which militants stormed from Gaza and, in one of the sites of the worst bloodshed, gunned down young people at the Nova music festival.

Boy George will visit the site Tuesday. 

In July, he released a song entitled “We Shall Dance Again” with lyrics offering unabashed support for Israel’s retaliatory military campaign in Gaza, triggering a backlash that included him dropping out of a West End musical.

The 65-year-old singer and LGBTQ trailblazer, whose real name is George O’Dowd, has often spoken of feeling a kinship with the Jewish community around which he grew up in London.

Few major international pop stars have performed in recent years in Israel, with campaigners urging a boycott due to the Gaza war, which has reduced the vast majority of the territory to rubble.

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