In response to recent reports that he had cancelled gigs in Poland owing to his position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Roger Waters released a statement on Facebook.
The former Pink Floyd vocalist is a controversial character who doesn’t hold back when expressing his views, particularly when it comes to politics. The singer also paid attention to the urgent issue of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Waters accused US President Joe Biden of starting the conflict by accusing Western nations of arming Ukraine.
The artist criticized the Ukrainian government for supporting radical nationalists in an open letter he addressed earlier this month to Olena Zelenska, the first lady of Ukraine. Roger Waters had a significant reaction on social media as a result of his remarks. According to some recent reports, a representative of the Tauron Arena in Kraków said that the singer’s two planned performances in Poland for April 2023 would no longer happen because of the singer’s divisive position on the Ukrainian conflict.
Following the current news, Roger Waters rushed to Facebook to refute claims that he had postponed gigs in Poland. The performer emphasized that neither he nor his management had postponed any shows. He will thus perform in Kraków in the next months as planned. Waters said that Kraków councilor ukasz Wantuch intended to deem him personally unfit to perform in Poland and proclaim him personal non grata.
In the meanwhile, Wantuch wrote a piece urging readers not to purchase tickets for Waters’ planned performances in Poland. The artist expressed his sadness if his performances were postponed since he wanted to share his words with the Polish people. Polish citizens would lose the opportunity to watch Waters’ current This Is Not A Drill tour, which would make Waters feel bad for them as well. Instead of any form of suppression of his beliefs, he would rather that individuals stand up for their own convictions.
Regarding his shows in Poland, Roger Waters made the following statement:
HEY! ŁUKASZ WANTUCH, “LEAVE THEM KIDS ALONE!”
Correction Roger Waters didn’t cancel Krakow Gigs.
To Nadeem Badshah at…
Posted by Roger Waters on Saturday, September 24, 2022
Although Roger Waters’ website is not presently mentioning the previously scheduled April 21–22 performances in Kraków, it is impossible to foresee how things will turn out. The artist is currently on tour in North America. In March 2023, after playing multiple times in Mexico, he will go to Europe for further shows on his This Is Not A Drill tour.