Imagine Dragon‘s Dan Reynolds has defended the band’s decision to play shows in Israel and Azerbaijan.
Reynolds was responding to System of a Down‘s Serj Tankian harsh criticism of Imagine Dragons decision to play shows in Israel and Azerbaijan.
“I don’t believe in depriving our fans who want to see us play because of the acts of their leaders and their governments,” the singer told Rolling Stone. “I think that’s a really slippery slope. I think the second you start to do that, there’s corrupt leaders and warmongers all over the world, and where do you draw the line?”
In response to System of a Down‘s Serj Tankian‘s harsh criticism of Imagine Dragons’ decision to play in Azerbaijan, Reynolds said, “I think I just said it. It’s a slippery slope, and I’m never going to deprive our fans of playing for them.”
“Look, I’m not a judge for people to tell bands where to play, or where not to play. I get that they’re doing it for money, that they’re artists, that they’re entertaining, all of that,” Tankian said last month.
“But when there’s a government that’s about to commit ethnic cleansing, when Azerbaijan was starving the 120,000 Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh, and not allowing any food or medicine in. you know, as an artist, if I found that out, there is no f***ing way I could have gone and played that show,” he continued. “But some artists do. And I don’t know what to say about those artists. I don’t respect them as human beings. F** their art, they’re not good human beings, as far as I’m concerned.”
Imagine Dragons recently released their sixth studio album, LOOM, and embarked on their “biggest North American headline tour to date.”
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