The Blessed Madonna Challenges Róisín Murphy Over Censorship Claims

The Blessed Madonna has publicly challenged Róisín Murphy after the singer claimed that censorship has placed a “chokehold” on the arts during a recent address to Parliament. The tension follows a series of controversies surrounding Murphy’s public commentary on the transgender community.

Murphy, who first faced significant backlash in 2023 for social media comments criticizing the use of puberty blockers for transgender youth, recently spoke at a launch event for the Freedom In The Arts report. During her speech, she argued that the creative sector is suffering due to a culture of self-censorship, stating: “The creative soul of this country has always thrived on discomfort, on the freedom to be wrong, to offend, to pivot and to surprise ourselves. Without that freedom, we don’t get better art, we simply put artists into a chokehold and suffocate the life out of our culture.”

She further suggested that artists are increasingly fearful of “cancel culture,” expressing concerns about potential loss of funding or public backlash. Following these remarks, The Blessed Madonna, who identifies as non-binary, responded with a pointed message on Instagram. “What is wrong with you Roisin? Are you going through it? Are you going through some kind of psychological change in your life?” she wrote.

“It’s not the first time in history artists have faced oppression and it won’t be the last.
We should support each other, come together and defend our shared space, our territory, the place where imagination can roam free.
Because if they come for one of us they will eventually… pic.twitter.com/tB6WOXJIxf

— Róisín Murphy (@roisinmurphy) April 29, 2026

The Blessed Madonna continued by addressing the context of Murphy’s speech, noting the irony of claiming to be silenced while speaking from a position of significant influence. “There was a time I would be surprised that you stood in Westminster Palace – a literal seat of power, with a literal microphone, being literally platformed – and framed yourself as someone being silenced by a conspiracy of the T in LGBT,” she added. The post concluded by framing the public reaction to Murphy’s views not as censorship, but as accountability: “A boycott is not simply people who decline to purchase your album and express their rejection of you in your Instagram comments. What you are experiencing is considerably simpler: consequences.”

This latest exchange follows a history of friction regarding Murphy’s views. Despite a previous attempt to backtrack on her 2023 comments, the singer continued to post controversial content late last year, including a chart questioning the validity of trans and non-binary identities among youth. These actions led to her removal from the line-up of Istanbul’s Back In Town Festival. While Murphy has maintained that she holds no hate toward the trans community, her comments have drawn criticism from various artists, including CMAT and Lambrini Girls, even as she continues to perform at major international festivals.