Pink Floyd legend cancels Poland gigs after backlash over Ukraine war stance

The views of singer Roger Waters on the war in Ukraine has sparked "indignation" among officials in Poland.

Roger Waters performs at Madison Square Garden on August 30, 2022 in New York City.

Roger Waters performs at Madison Square Garden on August 30, 2022 in New York City. The English musician has blamed "extreme nationalists" in Ukraine for having "set [the] country on the path to this disastrous war". Source: Getty / Theo Wargo

Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters has cancelled concerts planned in Poland amid outrage over his stance on Russia's war against Ukraine, Polish media reported .

An official with the Tauron Arena in Krakow, where Waters was scheduled to perform two concerts in April, said they would no longer take place.

"Roger Waters' manager decided to withdraw ... without giving any reason," Lukasz Pytko from Tauron Arena Krakow said Saturday in comments carried by Polish media outlets.
The website for Waters' 'This Is Not a Drill' concert tour did not list the Krakow concerts previously scheduled for April 21 and 22.

City councillors in Krakow were expected to vote next week on a proposal to name Waters as a persona non grata, expressing "indignation" over the musician's stance on the war in Ukraine.

Waters, who left legendary English rock band Pink Floyd in 1985, wrote an open letter to Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska early this month in which he blamed "extreme nationalists" in Ukraine for having "set your country on the path to this disastrous war."

He also criticised the West for supplying Ukraine with weapons, blaming Washington in particular.

Waters has also criticised NATO, accusing it of provoking Russia.
Correction: An earlier version of this article indicated Pink Floyd had cancelled concerts in Poland. It has been amended to show the planned concerts were by Roger Waters, a former member of the band.

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Published 25 September 2022 11:31am
Updated 30 September 2022 10:36am
Source: AAP


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