In this series of talks, KU Leuven and AB zoom in on urgent social questions and explore what change can look like in the music and nightlife scenes.
On Sunday 1 February, we gather in AB Club for a conversation that feels increasingly unavoidable: what does it cost to take a stand in the music industry?
Recent months have shown how quickly political and ethical positions can collide with the realities of the live business. Since it became known that major festival investors also have interests in Israel and on the West Bank, many artists are facing a difficult dilemma: can we still play these stages, and at what price?
Protest against the establishment is deeply ingrained in the DNA of musicians, but how freely can you oppose something when you depend on the same money flows you criticise?
During performances at Glastonbury and Paradiso, the duo Bob Vylan shouted “Death, death to the IDF” and “Free, free Palestine” - statements that reportedly cost them performances, bookings and their agent. Their story doesn’t stand alone: more artists are refusing festival deals or calling for boycotts due to ties with investment fund KKR.
With a panel that spans music and artistic practice, activism and research, we explore the tension between artistic freedom, economic dependence and moral boundaries. Where is the line between engagement and survival? What does solidarity even still mean in an industry that is all about capital?
Moderator Jasper Van Loy (journalist at De Morgen & Humo) guides the conversation with: Saddie Choua, Willem Ardui, Tamer Nafar and Lieven De Cauter.
FYI: That evening, Palestinian rapper Tamer Nafar will also perform at our club. Catch him first at the talk, then vibe at his show.
About the panel
Saddie Choua
Saddie Choua is a visual artist and filmmaker. She lives and works between Brussels, Ostend and Lychnaftia. She is a lecturer at RITCS Brussels and Sint Lucas Antwerp, and part of the artist collective ROBIN. At the end of August 2025, Saddie interrupted her summer residency at Rhizome gallery in Kortrijk (organised by art center BE-PART) to sail with the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza.
Willem Ardui
Over the past few years, Willem Ardui has built a reputation as one of the most idiosyncratic voices in Flemish pop and hip hop. While he is known with blackwave. for his danceable grooves, his solo work deliberately seeks out silence, friction, and nuance. Beyond the stage, he is actively involved with Antwerp for Palestine, and with blackwave. they use their platform to draw attention to the ongoing genocide, including collaborating with Oxfam on a radio campaign and on-stage statements at Pukkelpop.
Tamer Nafar
Regarded as the godfather of Arabic hip-hop, Tamer Nafar is a rapper, actor, screenwriter, author and social activist. As a Palestinian citizen of Israel, fluent in Arabic and Hebrew and self-taught in English, he has established himself as one of the most outspoken Palestinian voices in Israel, using art and writing to communicate the realities faced by Palestinians in the region.
Lieven De Cauter
Lieven De Cauter is a Belgian philosopher, writer and activist. He published some 20 books, including The Capsular Civilization (2004) and Ending the Anthropocene (2021). He has taught in several institutions, mainly at KU Leuven’s Department of Architecture and the art school RITCS. He is now retired and lives in Brussels.
Moderator: Jasper Van Loy
Jasper Van Loy (born 1994) has worked for Knack, Knack Focus and Studio Brussel. Today, he writes about music for De Morgen and Humo and runs his own Substack platform The Notes in My Ears.
