Ella Bailey
Award-winning British rapper Stormzy is facing significant criticism following his recent collaboration with McDonald’s. On Tuesday, February 12th, the 30-year-old grime artist unveiled his new limited-edition meal with McDonald’s, captioning the announcement “The Stormzy Meal. Big Mike x McD’s. Available now”. However, the partnership sparked backlash due to McDonald’s perceived support of Israel.
Pro-Palestine campaigners have boycotted the fast-food chain after its Israeli branches distributed thousands of free meals to Israeli forces and citizens following the October 7th attack by Hamas. Although McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski has denied that the company has taken sides in the conflict, the Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions Movement (BDS) has included the business in the list of “organic boycotts” it supports.
“always be on the side of the oppressed”, declaring “Free Palestine”.
Critics have accused Stormzy of hypocrisy, highlighting his previous public support for Palestine. In 2023, he shared an Instagram post expressing his commitment to “always be on the side of the oppressed”, declaring “Free Palestine”. The subsequent deletion of this post has intensified the backlash, with his newest posts about the McDonald’s collaboration being flooded with negative comments.
“it’s still possible for Stormzy to do the right thing. Cancel the deal and stand with Palestine”.
The criticism extends beyond social media as stickers and posters accusing Stormzy of “selling out” have appeared around London McDonald’s. The poster was designed by artist Darren Cullen who stated on a recent Instagram post that “it’s still possible for Stormzy to do the right thing. Cancel the deal and stand with Palestine”.
“allows them to culture-wash their reputation as caterers of genocide in Gaza”,
In response to the backlash, Stormzy’s team have stated that the archiving of his pro-Palestine Instagram post wasn’t connected to the McDonald’s collaboration but took place last year. The advert for the limited-edition meal even prompted former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn to describe the collaboration as “hugely disappointing”. Corbyn, who was supported by Stormzy during his party leadership, shared an open letter on the Peace & Justice Project website asking for Stormzy to cut ties with the fast-food company. He stated that Stormzy’s affiliation with McDonald’s “allows them to culture-wash their reputation as caterers of genocide in Gaza”, calling the artist to respect the BDS committee’s call for a global boycott of McDonald’s and “stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people in their hour of need”. The letter ended by urging readers to write to Stormzy’s management team to urge him to quit the partnership.
As of now, no official public statement has been issued by Stormzy or his team regarding the controversy.
Ella Bailey
Featured image courtesy of Shahbaz Ali via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
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