Boy George performs ‘We Will Dance Again’ in public for first time at Vancouver shul

British pop star Boy George sang “We Will Dance Again” for the first time in public this week, appearing in front of some 800 congregants who gathered for a special performance ahead of the Jewish New Year at a synagogue in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Boy George arrived in Vancouver to close the Pacific National Exhibition PNE summer concert series. His show was nearly canceled, but the Canadian Jewish community, lead by CIJA (Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs) and the Jewish Federation of British Columbia, organized a letter writing campaign to encourage the PNE to stand by him. He stayed two extra days to perform at Temple Sholom.

The community came together to honor the musician for his support for Israel and for Jewish people around the world since the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led terror atrocities on southern Israel and subsequent war in Gaza.

Due to security concerns, the event’s organizers prohibited audience members from taping, recording or taking photos during the performance. Amy Frankel, president of the reform Temple Sholom, told concertgoers, “We don’t want the community out there to know that Boy George is here and show up afterwards waiting for him.”

Vancouver police, private security personnel and the temple’s own security team assisted with providing protection during the event.

The 65-year-old British pop sensation performed his song “We Will Dance Again,” the slogan used by survivors of the Nova music festival massacre on October 7. Hamas-led terrorists killed 378 people and kidnapped dozens from the rave in southern Israel.

During the performance, the audience cheered after the lyrics, “I stand with the Jews.” Boy George also performed his classic Culture Club hit “Karma Chameleon.”

Video of the appearance has not yet been released to the media.

The event was organized in collaboration with the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs, and volunteers from Temple Sholom. All the proceeds for the event’s tickets went to the Jewish Federation’s Combating Antisemitism Fund.

On X, the artist shared his gratitude for the “absolutely magical” night.

Rabbi Dan Moskovitz, senior rabbi at Temple Sholom, joined Boy George for a conversation on stage, discussing everything from the inspiration for his pro-Israel advocacy and American rapper Macklemore’s latest anti-Israel rant, to Moskovitz’s longtime admiration for Boy George’s music and what the Culture Club represents to him — a club where “everyone’s welcome.” (Moskovitz later blogged about the event.)

Boy George spoke about the origins of the song: “I’ve recorded the song organically with this lovely man over here. Kevin Frost. Obviously, originally I put it up on you know as an AI version… I went to New York and I got an award from this magazine called Tablet, and they gave me this beautiful matzo. You know, it was like a beautiful thing, and I just felt like, why am I getting this award? I haven’t done anything.

“And then one Friday night, I was sitting in my house, and I started to write this song, and as I wrote it, I thought, you know what? I need to put it out… As much as people kind of feel like they’re against AI, I mean, all pop music for the last 30 years is artificial intelligence. Every band uses computers on stage, even rock bands,” he said.

The musician recalled his emotional visit to the Nova exhibition in London, as well as meeting Nova survivors, including a young woman, May Hayat, whose friends were killed in the attack, and the parents of British-Israeli musician Jake Marlowe, who was murdered on October 7.

“I said to May, ‘I’m going to write a song.’ She looked a bit like us mad. How am I going to write a song about this? You know, and I have to say, when I wrote it, it just kind of came, you know. And when we recorded it, we did it in secret.”

He added that he was been shocked by musicians come out against Israel onstage. “I did a gig the other night. I wanted to sing my song, but it didn’t feel like it was appropriate. You know, it was just not the right thing to do. And you know, I’m criticizing Macklemore and this one and that one for doing that, but you know how I feel.”

Boy George also shared his feelings about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “I don’t hate him. What the fuck is he supposed to do? What is he supposed to do? Because he knows more than I do, and he knows more than all the people that are screaming and shouting ‘Free Palestine.’ All these people, and by the way, I’m not anti-Palestine. I’m not anti-anyone.”

“I don’t know what it’s like to run a country, particularly Israel, and I’ve been there many times, and I got the letters from Roger Waters telling me not to go. Fuck off, I’m going. It’s like I love Israel, you know, and I’m going to be going in a couple of months’ time,” he said, announcing that he will perform in Israel in November.

#Shalom pic.twitter.com/0BfHIrThzO

— Boy George (@BoyGeorge) July 26, 2026

The event ended with Boy George receiving an inscribed shofar and reciting the Shehecheyanu, a Jewish blessing that expresses appreciation for new and special experiences.

The official debut of “We Will Dance Again” is set to come out soon on Warner, although a self-released version is available online.