Boy George vows to fire members of his band who refuse to perform scandal-hit pro-Israel song with him

By JOSHUA HAINING, NEWS REPORTER Published: 23:27, 9 August 2026 | Updated: 23:44, 9 August 2026 Boy George has vowed to fire band members who refuse to perform his controversial pro-Israel song. The musician, best known as Culture Club's lead singer, hit out at his bandmates for 'questioning' whether they would play 'We Will Dance Again' alongside him. In a video posted on Instagram, the 65-year-old songwriter addressed some of the backlash the new song has faced. He said: 'I'm not lazy, the truth is if I tried to write We Will Dance Again with any musician, they would have gotten in my way. 'They would have said, "you can't say that, that's too controversial. You can't say this, you can't say that". 'Even now that the song is written, there are people in my band who are questioning whether they will perform it with me and those people will be fired.'  Released on July 27, the scandal-hit song, deterring George's band members from taking to the stage, features an AI-generated reggae backing track and pro-Israel vocals. Lyrics include: 'You say Genocide, I say war' and 'When you’re attacked, that’s what the army's for'.  Singer-songwriter Boy George has said he will fire his band members refusing to perform his latest song with him The Culture Club frontman, pictured, performing at The Pearl concert theater at Palms Casino Resort George alongside Italian singer Senhit Zadik Zadik representing San Marino at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 Within the lyrics, George addresses the October 7 attack at the Nova music festival where Hamas killed 378 people and took 44 hostage. Israeli people have since used the words 'we will dance again', which is also the title of an acclaimed documentary about the attack, to spread hope. In the explosive social media post, Boy George, whose name is George Alan O'Dowd, then defended using AI in his music making process.      'I don't need gatekeepers and one of the great things about AI is it removes all the interference, all the human interference,' he said. 'I wrote that song, the lyrics are mine the melody is mine.' George likened using artificial intelligence to Elton John writing the music and lyricist Bernie Taupin writing the lyrics. He continued: 'That's what I do with Culture Club that's what I do with all the people I work with because I don't play an instrument. 'That doesn't make me lazy or make me uncreative. In fact I think AI has made me more creative.'  Boy George claimed the music he is making is a 'totally different thing' to the AI music 'targeting' the charts and ushered fans to check out his music on his website. He then reiterated that other musicians and their personalities make it harder for him to create songs.   'If i tried to write We Will Dance Again with a human being, they would have gotten in my way. So thank god for AI,' he added. But this is not the only controversy George, who is not Jewish, has faced since the song released just days ago.  Earlier this week, the singer's manager and best friend PK Kemsley broke the silence on George's Jesus Christ Superstar exit amid controversy over his support of Israel. George sings alongside his Culture Club bandmates during the 1980s, a decade of major success for the band His long-time associate, 58, announced last week that George would no longer be taking the role of King Herod at the London Palladium. In a statement released on Tuesday, PK pledged allegiance – noting that his 'courage should be respected not attacked' – while his words were topped with a Star Of David and a picture of George in a jacket adorned with a sequinned Star Of David. PK, who is Jewish, wrote: 'As Boy George’s manager and his best friend, I want to be absolutely clear. I am completely behind him. For better for worse. Always...' In his initial statement, PK did not clarify whether the producers asked George to pull out, if actors refused to work with him, or if his withdrawal was to ensure the production did not become the target of hate mobs. Boy George was one of the most popular and flamboyant pop stars during the 1980s.  He shot to fame as the androgynous-dressing Culture Club frontman which released the hit singles 'Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?' and 'Karma Chameleon'. The band also had four UK top ten albums during the 1980s including the successful chart-topping 'Colour By Numbers'.