Palestinian DJ ‘heartbroken’ after visa not approved ahead of major music festivals

Palestinian DJ Sama’ Abdulhadi says she is heartbroken her Australian visa was not approved in time for performances at two major music festivals this weekend, despite submitting all required documentation and fully cooperating throughout the process.

Abdulhadi, who has performed at the world’s largest techno festival, Tomorrowland, was slated to play in front of about 18,000 revellers at Pitch festival in Victoria and approximately 100,000 attendees of South Australia’s WOMADelaide over the weekend.

Abdulhadi said she was unable to perform in Australia on her Instagram Story after waiting for days in Japan, hoping the situation would be resolved.

“I am heartbroken to share that I will no longer be able to perform in Australia this weekend. Despite submitting all required documents and fully cooperating with the process, my visa was not granted in time,” she said.

“This has been an incredibly frustrating and disappointing experience. The visa process has been made unnecessarily complicated and prolonged, despite my full transparency and my previous successful entry into Australia in December 2022, where I performed without any issue and complied with all conditions.

“As a Palestinian artist who tours internationally, these barriers are not just logistical. They are emotional.”

Pitch and WOMADelaide issued statements on their social media announcing the loss of Abdulhadi’s highly anticipated sets. She was one of many international acts booked to play at both music festivals, but no other artists experienced visa issues.

“We’re deeply saddened to share that Sama’ Abdulhadi will no longer be performing at Pitch … this weekend,” Pitch said via an Instagram story.

“Despite our team doing everything in our power and working closely with Sama and her team to support her application, her visa to enter Australia has not been approved by the Department of Home Affairs in time for her scheduled performance, despite submitting all required documentation and supporting material.”

WOMADelaide said Abdulhadi’s departure from the set list followed a raft of cancellations this weekend, resulting from travel disruptions over the Middle East war, including Alfio Antico & Go Dugong, Asmaa Hamzaoui & Bnat Timbouktou, Bhutan Balladeers and Stan’s Café Theatre Company.

“Further to the programming updates yesterday, unfortunately Sama’ Abdulhadi has been unable to travel to Australia in time for her scheduled tour, including her much-anticipated DJ set on Saturday night at WOMADelaide 2026,” the statement posted to Instagram said.

Pitch has also suffered losses to its set lists due to war-related travel disruptions, including DJs Charlotte De Witte and Sedef Adasi.

The Department of Home Affairs has been contacted for comment, but cannot comment on individual cases.

The news follows reports of a lobbying effort in January to have Abdulhadi removed from WOMADelaide’s line-up.

“Sama Abdulhadi is internationally recognised as a pioneering female electronic music artist and cultural innovator, and she performs at festivals and music events around the world. Her inclusion reflects WOMADelaide’s commitment to showcasing artists of exceptional talent from a diverse range of countries and genres,” organisers said in an email to those lobbying for Abdulhadi to be dropped, reported by InSADaily.

Abdulhadi was born in Jordan after her father was displaced from Palestine when he was 15 in 1969 before returning aged 41 in 1994, she said in a Trippin interview. She applied for residency in Paris, France, when she began DJing, which she said has enabled her career.

“Travelling and freedom of movement for Palestinians is impossible,” she said in the interview. “I first started moving around for music when I was in Cairo, and I was only being invited by Arab and Palestinian festivals to play.”

“Then, I applied for a residency in Paris, and I got accepted, but when I came here to get my residency card, they gave me three years instead of three months, and so I just stayed. This is the only reason I can tour because I’m coming from France, not Palestine.”

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