English artist Nabihah Iqbal performed the opening night at South By Southwest wearing a ‘Free Palestine’ shirt, in solidarity with the people of Palestine.

The electro indie musician, who is of Pakistani descent, bemoaned the lack of Muslim and Arabic diversity on the lineup, writing that she wanted “to be visible, to draw attention to the genocide that's going on in Palestine.”

Nabihah shared her thoughts on social media about the U.S Army sponsorship of SXSW and her feelings on playing the festival. “A few days ago I found out that one of the main sponsors of this year's festival is the US Army and that a number of acts have decided to pull out and boycott SXSW in solidarity with Palestine. Full respect for all of those artists,” she wrote on Instagram.

“People have been asking me to boycott too and after thinking about it, I've decided that l'd rather use the stage as a space for protest. How many other artists are there on the official SXSW line-up that are also brown, Muslim, and have Arabic names? The answer (unsurprisingly) is hardly any. I want to be here, to be visible, to draw attention to the genocide that's going on in Palestine. I invite everyone who is planning to attend my official (and unofficial) performances to join me in the protest. Wear the Palestine colours, the keffiyeh scarf, bring a flag or a banner... let's take up space and make some noise.

 

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“I've been on tour constantly since Oct, playing all around the world, and I feel humbled by the fact that at EVERY SINGLE GIG, people have turned up wearing something in support of Palestine l I am so thankful for having such a switched-on and intelligent fanbase and I appreciate every single one of you Thank you to Custom T-Shirt Station in Barton Creek Mall for fulfilling my last-minute FREE PALESTINE tee order! Obviously I will be wearing it tonight at the SXSW Opening Party and on Friday for my showcase too.”

Watch Nabihah Iqbal cover The Cure below:

@sxswmusix Nabihah Iqbal cover The Cure ‘A Forest’ @Nabihah Iqbal ❤️ 🇵🇸 #sxsw ♬ original sound - SXSWmusix