Editorial: Good Lorde, what a dilemma

Lorde: I don't want to go to Tel Aviv

She may have the looks, the celebrity status, the burgeoning bank balance and the musical world at her feet, but you have to feel sorry for Lorde.

And no, I don't mean because this year's sophomore album Melodrama — despite retaining her lyrical potency — has been over-produced and over-sophisticated to the point where that distinct individual charm, which made her such a cool deal in the first place, has been airbrushed to extinction.

The dilemma of the 21-year-old singer from Takapuna is that she is caught in a game of political ping-pong between the Jews and the Arabs (or the Israelis and the Palestinians, if you prefer).

Her management organised a tour which included a gig in Tel Aviv (which may or may not be the capital of Israel). It's what you do if you are planning world domination through rhythm and melody.

A solid campaign on behalf of the oppressed Palestinians convinced her that it was not the right thing to do and this week she cancelled the show, prompting an equally sturdy campaign of condemnation from the pro-Israeli faction.

Both these cabals are agile and well-organised in their propaganda efforts and seized on the opportunity for some profile via a rising musical star enjoying almost worldwide fame.

Lorde will get over it and move on, no doubt, but this week has raised the interesting question of just where can you put on a concert without smudging your ethical credentials.

Can you put on a show in China with its human rights abuses? What about a gig in America where white policemen regularly shoot unarmed black people? And New Zealand where a Maori minority form the bulk of the prison population?

It is certainly hard to find a place that is untainted if you look closely enough for the specks of moral transgression.

And what should guide the musician? Their art? Their fans? Their conscience? Lorde knows ...