Róisín Murphy pulled from Istanbul festival over "transphobic" statements

A Turkish festival dropped Róisín Murphy from its line-up last week amidst criticism against controversial "anti-trans" comments she recently made on Twitter.

Back In Town Festival, which went ahead in Istanbul over the weekend, said it “wouldn’t be comfortable” hosting the Irish singer and producer after she was accused of transphobia.

Last week (October 21), Murphy shared a graph on Twitter which claimed that the number of 18 to 22-year-olds who identify as transgender and non-binary has declined in recent years.

“It was never real. Terribly sad though. Absolute havoc wreaked on children, families and society,” she said alongside the post, later doubling down on comments by claiming: ”The real “denial of existence” is the denial of data and knowledge.”

Fellow artists including The Blessed Madonna, CMAT, and Sega Bodega – who was also billed to perform at Back In Town Festival – responded to Murphy’s comments on social media, criticising her views.

Read this next: A list of ways you can support trans people in the United Kingdom

In a video shared shortly after Murphy’s post, The Blessed Madonna said: “I just have to say - however long it takes - go fuck yourself Róisín. You were never a queer icon – you’re another dusty TERF that knows how to count queer money and serve a look.”

Ahead of the inaugural edition of Back In Town – which went ahead on Sunday, October 26 – the Istanbul festival reportedly dropped Murphy from the bill, explaining in a statement (via Stereogum): “We added Róisín Murphy to our line-up as a headliner, believing that she represents the energy we missed and touched many of you in a sincere place."

"However, the statements she shared in recent days completely eliminated these feelings," they said.

Read this next: Róisín Murphy responds to controversy surrounding anti-trans Facebook comments

“Because we would never be comfortable including her in such a festival set-up, we would like to state that we cannot include her in our programme, keeping the values we try to introduce to you above all things – and knowing that this stance cannot have any financial equivalent,” the statement continued.

Murphy has since responded to backlash in a statement on Twitter, saying that she has “zero hate toward trans people”. She wrote: “I know in my heart that one day, I will be remembered as a brave person, both morally and artistically uncompromising.”

In 2023, Murphy also received criticism following comments she made on her private Facebook account on the use of puberty blockers in treating young trans people. She shortly apologised for causing an "eruption” of “potentially dangerous social media fire".

In a 2020 interview with Gay Times, Murphy claimed that having a queer fanbase is "the biggest compliment," explaining: “The fact I have a hardcore gay fanbase makes absolute sense in terms of the music and scene that I’ve come out of."

Find a list of ways you can support trans people in the UK here.

Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Associate Digital Editor, follow her on Twitter