Welsh musician Gwenno appeared on stage at Glastonbury with a huge sign reading "Nid yw Cymru ar werth", which in English means "Wales is not for sale".
The sign is a display of solidarity with the campaign against second homes in Wales. The Mercury Prize-nominated singer performed her track N.Y.C.A.W, which is the only Welsh-language song on her latest album Tresor, during her appearance at the Somerset festival on Sunday.
The song title stands for 'Nid yw Cymru ar Werth' and the words appeared on a screen behind the singer throughout her performance on the Park stage. Gwenno, who is fluent in both Welsh and Cornish, explains on her website that the single is "a satirical prod at our current neoliberalist thinking".
Her comment adds: "'N.Y.C.A.W.' (a well-known Cymdeithas yr Iaith slogan in Wales against the rise of second homes) is a gentle reminder that community will always trump capitalism, and that all that matters in the end is love."
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The 42-year-old singer, who also performed at Glastonbury in 2016, reportedly introduced the song by saying "In Wales, we have a saying 'Nid yw Cymru ar Werth' which means 'Wales is not for sale'", though she did not specifically mention second homes.
The screen behind her also showed the slogan with various different locations during the performance, such as "London is not for sale", "Belfast is not for sale" and "Glasgow is not for sale". There have been years of complaints in Wales that increased empty and second homes are pricing young people out of their home towns and areas.
In November last year pressure group Cymdeithas yr Iaith (Welsh Language Society) plastered holiday rentals in Rhosneigr on Anglesey with stickers declaring "Nid yw Cymru ar Werth". The Welsh Government announced a series of measures last year to address the impact of second homes and short-term holiday accommodation on Welsh communities. Most councils in Wales have now introduced higher council tax rates for owners of empty or second homes.
During her set, Cardiff-born Gwenno also sang Cornish-language hits Tir ha Mor and Eus Keus? She has released three critically acclaimed albums: Y Dydd Olaf in 2014, which features Welsh and Cornish songs and won the Welsh Music Prize; Le Kov in 2018, which is entirely in Cornish; and 2022 Mercury-nominated album Tresov, which is almost entirely in Cornish except for single N.Y.C.A.W.
