CHP's boycott call begins to impact concert organizations

The boycott call announced by the CHP following the arrest of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, which has found significant resonance in society, has also spread to concert organizations.

Citizens calling for a boycott of concerts organized by pro-government event companies have been posting en masse to the artists, asking them to change the organizing companies they have contracted with or to cancel the concerts.

The boycott call against concerts organized by DBL Entertainment, a company owned by Abdulkadir Özkan—who had quoted a post by pro-government figure Zafer Şahin regarding Espressolab and written, "This is clear and blatant hostility toward capital, it is treason"—has grown.

ANE BRUN: "I WILL TAKE A STEP, I STAND WITH THE STUDENTS"

Musician Ane Brun, who plans to perform in Turkey, responded to posts stating, "301 university students who wanted to defend their democratic rights are currently in prison. The organizer of your concert at DBL Istanbul supports this human rights violation. We are boycotting, stand with us!" by saying, "I was not aware. I support the students. I am taking action."

TREVOR NOAH'S SHOW CANCELLED

The show by world-famous comedian Trevor Noah, which was to be held in Istanbul on April 23, has been cancelled. The ticket sales website, which announced the cancellation of the show, did not provide a reason for the decision. The poster for Trevor Noah's show has been removed from the DBL Entertainment website.

The largest boycott call was made for the concert by Muse, which is also being organized by DBL Entertainment.

CALL TO MUSE

The concert by the world-famous music group Muse, scheduled for June 11 in Istanbul, and the Robbie Williams concert on October 7 are also being organized by DBL Entertainment, owned by Özkan.

In this context, hundreds of messages flooded the comments section of a post made by Muse's official account regarding the tickets for the concert planned for June 11 at Yenikapı, which were set to go on sale on April 3.

Names such as Berna Laçin, Kalben, Zeki Kayhan Coşkun, and İrfan Değirmenci expressed their admiration for Muse in the comments while also requesting that the concert be cancelled due to the organizing company.

Artist Kalben also tagged Muse's account and wrote, "We will never be able to attend your concert in Istanbul because the organizer is on the boycott list of the pro-democracy movement. Please review the news and take a step toward support and solidarity."

Messages sent to Robbie Williams also stated that the organizing company supports the arrest of young people exercising their constitutional rights, and calls were made for the concert to be cancelled.

STEP BACK FROM THE COMPANY OWNER

Following the show cancellation and the statements from the artists, Abdülkadir Özkan, the owner of DBL Entertainment, made a post on his social media account.

Özkan claimed that his post, in which he alleged he was targeting 'provocateurs' and not the protests, had been 'reflected differently.' The statement shared by Özkan under the heading 'Mandatory Explanation' is as follows:

"I made a social media post yesterday to criticize a few malicious provocateurs who have pushed the 'boycott' protests to an undesirable level that most of society would not approve of, as a result of recent developments in our country. This post I made was distorted from its extremely well-intentioned purpose and reflected through a perception operation as if I were criticizing protest, which is the most basic constitutional right. I am deeply saddened by this situation and the misunderstanding that has arisen. I request that the ongoing process be evaluated with this reality in mind, and I wish everyone a peaceful and healthy holiday with their families and loved ones."

On the other hand, Özkan's remarks regarding Ekrem İmamoğlu's father, Hasan İmamoğlu, had also drawn backlash.