Chumbawamba asks New Zealand’s populist party to stop using hit song Tubthumping at rallies

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British band Chumbawamba has requested New Zealand’s deputy prime minister Winston Peters to stop using their hit song Tubthumping at his rallies as a result of the band members don’t share his populist concepts.

Peters, whose New Zealand First party is a part of a coalition government, has used the song at public occasions and its lyrics “I get knocked down, but I get up again” in his speeches.

The band requested its recording firm, Sony Music Publishing, to challenge the political party a stop and desist discover.

The song was not too long ago performed forward of Peters’s state of the nation speech by which he talked about plans to take away gender and sexuality classes from the college curriculum and in contrast co-governing between the Māori and the Crown to race-based theories of Nazi Germany.

Co-governance is a phrase used to describe varied preparations the place Māori and the Crown share decision-making energy, in accordance to the Human Rights Commission of New Zealand.

Chumbawamba’s lead guitarist Boff Whalley mentioned the band didn’t give Peters permission to use the song, and that they don’t share his concepts on race. He mentioned he wished Peters to stop using the song “to shore up his misguided political views”.

“Chumbawamba wrote the song ‘Tubthumping’ as a song of hope and positivity, so it seems entirely odd that the ‘I get knocked down …’ refrain is being used by New Zealand’s deputy prime minister Winston Peters as he barks his divisive, small-minded, bigoted policies during his recent speeches,” Whalley mentioned in a press release to the BBC.

“Chumbawamba doesn’t share any of Peters’ concepts on race relations and would love to remind him that the song was written for and about strange folks and their resilience. We have requested our document firm Sony to challenge a stop and desist discover,” Whalley added.

In a social media post on X, Peters responded: “The story about the use of the Chumbawamba song has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show how my comments about these sorts of media organisations are correct.”

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Peters additionally mentioned the party has not acquired a stop and desist letter.

On Wednesday, New Zealand media outlet Stuff reported that APra Amcos – New Zealand’s music licensing physique – would ahead a stop and desist discover to New Zealand First from Sony Music Publishing.

Chumbawamba has performed related issues up to now. In 2011 they requested UK politician Nigel Farage to stop using Tubthumping at a UKIP convention and in 1998 they poured a bucket of ice water over then UK deputy prime minister John Prescott at the Brit awards in assist of hanging dockers on Merseyside.

New Zealand’s centre-right National Party reached an settlement with ACT New Zealand and New Zealand First to type the federal government after the 14 October normal elections final yr.