Patrick Watson, Godspeed You! Black Emperor & More Montreal Musicians Join Cultural Boycott of Israel

Montreal artists are joining a cultural boycott of Israel.

Musicians For Palestine Montréal is a grassroots group comprised of musicians and music industry workers. The organization joins a rapidly growing global movement dedicated to building solidarity within their communities advocacy for the liberation of Palestine.

Over 80 musicians and cultural workers, including Patrick Watson, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Bibi Club, TOPS, Sean Nicholas Savage and more have added their names to the list.

In addition, 34 music labels, promoters and organizations have joined the boycott, such as Arbutus Records, Constellation Records, Hot Tramp Management and Bravo Musique — the label owned by Billboard Canada 2025 Trailblazer Cœur de pirate.

The boycott is in accordance with the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, stating that artists and organizations joining the initiative will refuse to perform in Israel, accept funding from Israel or associated lobby groups.

“Musicians and cultural workers have a crucial role to play in the struggle for social justice,” shares a spokesperson for Musicians For Palestine Montreal in a statment. “We refuse to allow our music and our labour to artwash apartheid and genocide. When our governments fail us, it’s our duty to come together to collectively refuse complicity.”

On the group’s website, they invite other musicians, artists and organizations in Montreal to join in: “As was demonstrated by the musicians who stood up against apartheid in South Africa, a cultural boycott of Israel is not only an appropriate and historically proven tactic, it’s an ethically necessary one.”

This isn’t the first time Canadian artists have taken a stance on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Earlier this year, Mustafa enlisted a star-studded group of musicians, notably Shawn Mendes and Daniel Caesar, to perform at the third installment of his Artists For Aid benefit concert series for Sudan and Palestine — they raised $5.5 million.

Last September, Elisapie, BadBadNotGood and Jonah Yano were among the Canadian acts who joined No Music For Genocide, an initiative asking artists, labels and rights-holders to pull their music from streaming platforms in Israel. Arbutus Records and Constellation Records were on the list, too.

In 2023, multiple musicians — including homegrown indie bands Talking Violet and Velvet Beach and California rapper Domo Genesis — pulled shows from Toronto's Horseshoe Tavern after the Queen Street venue cancelled a pro-Palestine fundraiser event.

Find the full list of Musicians For Palestine Montréal signatories here.