Amsterdam’s electronic, queer-inclusive Milkshake Festival recently announced that rapper Azealia Banks would be joining the lineup for its 2025 festivities. Now, two days later, the event has cut her from the lineup altogether.
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In an announcement posted on Tuesday (Feb. 4), the organization revealed that Banks would be “serving C-NT” at its July 2025 festival. But in the comments of that announcement, a number of fans implored Milkshake to reconsider the choice. One commenter wrote in Dutch that Banks was “an artist who has repeatedly spoken negatively about the LGBTI+ community, and especially about our transgender friends.” Another added in Dutch that as “a festival that claims to stand for a safe and inclusive community,” Milkshake should instead “give the stage to artists where everyone feels safe and welcome.”
In an initial statement posted to its Instagram on Wednesday (Feb. 5), Milkshake told fans “we hear you,” and said that it would “try to create a platform for artists who haven’t always had equal access to popular spaces” at the annual festival. “We strive to pay homage to the roots of club culture, a community that has always been at the forefront in fighting for equality,” the statement read. “We have reached out to the management of Azealia Banks to get a clear statement. Please allow us some time to manage this situation.”
Commenters continued to call for Banks to be removed as a performer — and on Thursday (Feb. 6), Milkshake confirmed that the “212” rapper would no longer be performing at the festival. “It is clear to us that we made a mistake and that we have overlooked essential information. We sincerely apologize for this,” the statement read. “The safety of our visitors, our team, the artists, and crew will always be our main priority. Furthermore, we will assess our initial social media response for learnings and improvements.”
Billboard has reached out to Banks’ reps for comment.
While the festival was praised by some commenters for its decision, others continued to criticize the organization for enlisting Banks in the first place and for their various responses. One commenter summed up their feelings on the matter in Dutch: “Maybe it’s time to take a hard look at the exploitation of the queer and trans community and make Milkshake a fairer festival as a whole,” they wrote.
Banks — who has become well-known in recent years for her inflammatory rants on social media — does indeed have a track record of making homophobic and transphobic comments online. Back in 2015, Banks compared the LGBTQ+ community to “the gay white KKK’s” and was filmed hurling homophobic slurs at a flight attendant. In 2020 and 2021, she made a series of transphobic comments about trans women, specifically when it came to gender-affirming healthcare and surgeries.
On Tuesday (Feb. 4), though, Banks appeared to backpedal some of those comments when she called out Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling for her transphobic comments. “I love you down sis, but [trans women] are not a threat to your femininity,” she wrote on her X account. “You are really too rich and legendary to keep spewing the same stuff over and over and over.”
Read both of Milkshake Festival’s full statements regarding Azealia Banks below: