Musicians react to end of 14 year Tory rule: ‘Thank f**k’

The world of music have been reacting to the Labour Party winning a landslide victory in yesterday’s (July 4) UK General Election, ending 14 years of Conservative rule.

At the time of writing, Labour has won 412 seats – giving them a massive majority victory over the Tories’ 121 seats.

While many musicians are celebrating the end of the Tories’ time in 10 Downing Street online today, plenty are also calling on Starmer to do more regarding the war in Gaza and his recent comments around the trans community.

Billy Bragg – who told Rolling Stone UK of the importance of protecting the trans community at Glastonbury last week – tweeted: “Great 2 C Tories get punished, but while result mirrors 1997, excitement isn’t there. Feels like my team has topped the group on own goals alone, scored by Cameron, May, Johnson, Truss & Sunak. Not convinced by Starmer’s tactics so far, but live in hope.”

Lily Allen, meanwhile, simply wrote: “Thank fuck.”

Sleaford Mods, meanwhile, demanded that Starmer’s government new government to “DECIMATE THE CONSERVATIVE MONSTER,” while Irish rappers Kneecap and Leeds band Yard Act celebrated the win of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn as an Independent candidate in Islington North, London.

See more reactions to the news from the music and entertainment community below.

The UK music industry, meanwhile, has told Starmer that he has a “resounding mandate for change” and urged him to support grassroots music.

In a statement, UK Music CEO Tom Kiehl said: “UK Music sends its congratulations to Sir Keir Starmer and his team on their election victory, which gives his new Government a resounding mandate for change.

“The incoming Labour Government has been elected on a platform to implement a plan for the creative sector as part of its industrial strategy. The potential of the UK music industry to contribute to growth must be at the heart of this plan.  The music industry is facing a number of challenges, but also opportunities. A strong relationship between UK Music and the new Government will be essential to navigating what the rest of this decade brings.”

A similar statement also came from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). “Congratulations to the new Labour Government – we look forward to working together to promote our world-leading music industry,” said CEO Jo Twist.

“In line with priorities set out during the campaign, we share ambitions to enable human creativity to flourish, underpinned by a strong intellectual property framework and commitments to support creative education. These statements align closely  with the five priorities we set out earlier this year and It is only through constructive engagement with industry that the Government will deliver on these pledges to the benefit of our collective creative industries.”