Boy George cut ties with Tony Pontius, the longtime manager of his independent record label BGP, after Pontius refused to have anything to do with a new pro-Israel song George created with the help of artificial intelligence.
George announced the split on X on July 31, according to a report by Billboard. In his post, he wrote, "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."
George said he wanted the track, titled "We Will Dance Again," released widely. He said Pontius was unequivocal: "'I want nothing to do with this song,' and I responded, 'ok, we are done.'"
A spokesperson for BGP had not returned Billboard's request for comment at press time.
The song shares its title with a 2024 documentary about the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack at the Nova Music festival in Israel. The lyrics include the lines, "You say genocide, I say war/ When you're attacked, that's what the army's for." The song also contains lines about the violence committed that day, with George singing, "You never mention Oct. 7/ Young girls raped against trees/ Murdered brutally/ For the crime of dancing."
The track has been released on X, Instagram, and Threads, and is available on Bandcamp. As of the Billboard report's publication, it had not appeared on major streaming services. George said in a video that he plans to rerecord the song.
The fallout from the song extended beyond his label. George, who is 65 and was born George Alan O'Dowd, announced last week that he would no longer appear as King Herod in the upcoming London revival of Jesus Christ Superstar at the London Palladium. The announcement came just days after releasing the song.
His longtime manager, Paul "PK" Kemsley, announced the exit and cited George's convictions without naming the song directly. "George has never been afraid to stand by his personal convictions, and I have always respected him for that," Kemsley said. "Equally, I believe it is my responsibility to make decisions that are in the best interests of my artist while also showing re[spect]."
George has not publicly stated his specific reason for leaving the production.
