Kneecap's Cuba Gig: No Power Blackout Link

0:00It's March 24th. This is Europe News Today, AI-powered story shaping Europe. I'm Cory with the story. Videos have surfaced online showing the Irish hip-hop group, kneecap performing in Havana, Cuba, with false claims that their gig caused a major power. Blackout and even led to deaths in a local hospital. These accusations have spread widely, but there's zero evidence linking the band's show to any outage or fatalities. The performance happened as part of a humanitarian aid effort to help Cuba amid ongoing energy shortages. Cuba has faced repeated blackouts lately, worsened by a U.S.-led fuel blockade that's left the island's short on power. Groups like The Nuestra, America Convoy, have stepped in with aid deliveries, including medicines and solar panels. Kneecap joined one such mission in solidarity, arriving last Friday and playing an impromptu set the next day at an open-air event. Also media lit up with backlash, including a post from right-angle news network, claiming the band guzzled massive electricity and killed hospital.

1:03Patients on ventilators, that single-posts racked up 6.8 million views, sparking shares across platforms like Facebook. Digging deeper, the blackout hit Havana on the night of March 21, but its struck after kneecaps gig wrapped up. Officials say it stemmed from a power plant failure, hundreds of kilometers away, triggering a chain reaction. The show used minimal power too, mostly LED lights and amps at an outdoor venue, nothing close to grid-busting levels. While hospital impacts from blackouts are a real concern in Cuba, no reliable reports confirmed deaths that night. Kneecap themselves noted the power cut came shortly after their set, but stressed their message of global solidarity held strong.