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Boy George’s new song “We Will Dance Again” challenges the anti-Israel narrative dominating cultural discourse. The British pop icon has risked his career to stand for Israel and Jewish people — but the backlash has been swift and severe.

I have never been a Boy George fan. The androgynous look and musical style of the British musician held little appeal for me.

He rose to prominence in the early 1980s with songs like “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” and “Karma Chameleon” as the frontman of Culture Club.

But his brand-new pro-Israel song dealing with the demonic October 7 attacks — “We Will Dance Again” — is something I can fully get behind.

It refutes the usual leftist mantras and proclaims the right of Israelis to exist and even to dance in peace.

The lyrics are:

[Verse]
“You say genocide, I say war
When you’re attacked, that’s what the army’s for
Does it get ugly? You bet it does
When I know you wanna kill
Every last one of us
Every last one of us
Every last one of us
You never mention October 7
Young girls raped against trees
Murdered brutally
For the crime of dancing
You condemn the Jews, with selective memory
Musicians holding flags, mouthing like sheep
Propaganda fuelled by the Internet feels so weak”

[Chorus]
“But trust me, we will dance again
We will dance again
We will dance again
And there will be no war
But if you’re ever confused
I stand with the Jews
I don’t feel brave, I just need to behave like a human
But trust me, we will dance again
We will dance again
We will dance again
And there will be no war
But if you’re ever confused
I stand with the Jews
I don’t feel brave, I just need to behave like a human”

Boy George: Truth on Israel from an Unlikely Source

As my title indicates, it is always great when truth emerges from a plethora of lies. Chris Kenny of News24 (formerly Sky News) did a segment on Boy George and the song. He too was impressed with his bravery and commitment to truth. Kenny began by saying,

“Let me show you an inspiring example of principle over fashion, of humanity over hatred, and it comes from what some might see as an unlikely source.”

Reflections on Boy George

Because I had not been interested in Boy George previously and had never known very much about him, I was intrigued after learning about this song.

I wondered if he might be Jewish. I had to look him up to get some background info. No, he was raised in a Catholic home, and he says this: “I’m Catholic in my complications and Buddhist in my aspirations.”

He posted this just recently concerning the backlash he is getting because of the song:

“In Buddhism we understand that every action comes with a consequence. Due to my decision to stand up for my Jewish friends I am losing a few people from my life.

“Today I parted company with Tony Pontius who has run my record label BGP for a number of years. I wanted to release ‘We Will Dance Again’ but he was unequivocal and said ‘I want nothing to do with this song’ and I responded ‘ok, we are done’.

“When someone is gutless it really does not hurt to say goodbye. My faith in humanity will not diminish and the truth will always win. I will release it!”

Well done! It is rare to find celebrities and musical artists stand for what is right and go against the flow, so he has earned my respect on this matter.

Indeed, given the hate and hostility against Israel and the Jews by the political left and the pro-Palestine and pro-Hamas mob, it takes real courage to take a stand for the beleaguered nation of Israel. All the usual antisemites and Jew-haters have come out en masse to condemn him and the song.

As to the lyrics, it should be noted that the song was AI-generated. As he said, “The song was created using AI. I call it ‘AI for good’. Truthfully, I would struggle to write this with a human!” But a few things can be stated, besides the obvious political realities expressed in the song.

Spiritual Reflections on Israel

These lines, for example, can be thought of in terms of biblical truth:

“We will dance again
And there will be no war”

The idea of turning sorrow into gladness is often found in Scripture. Consider just two passages:

 “You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
    you have loosed my sackcloth
    and clothed me with gladness,
that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent.
    O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!”
(Psalm 30:11–12)

“And the ransomed of the Lord shall return
    and come to Zion with singing;
everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
    they shall obtain gladness and joy,
    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
(Isaiah 35:10)

And the idea of no more war is found in places like Isaiah 2:3–4:

“‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
    and that we may walk in his paths.’
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
    and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations,
    and shall decide disputes for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
    and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
    neither shall they learn war anymore.”

See also Micah 4:2–3. Christians interpret these as messianic prophecies concerning the end times when Christ returns, subdues his enemies, and establishes his everlasting kingdom. So in this life we must fight for peace. We must, perhaps ironically, use war and force to prevent greater war, injustice and evil.

But in the next life war will be no more. Nor will there be tears and sorrow. As we read in Revelation 21:1–4:

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’”

If you are a Christian, I hope you pray regularly for Israel and the Jews as I do. We are instructed to “pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (Psalm 122:6). And we need to have the same heart that the Apostle Paul had as expressed in Romans 9:1–5:

“I am speaking the truth in Christ — I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit — that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh. They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.”

And Romans 10:1–4:

“Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

Please keep praying for our Jewish friends. And please keep praying for Boy George!

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Republished with thanks to CultureWatch. Originally titled “Truth From Unexpected Quarters”.

Image via Wikimedia Commons.