- October 31, 2025
- 9:53 pm
- World News
Lisbon at the end of October lives with its usual night breath: warm wind from the Tagus, the bar street Pinko, clubs that don’t close until dawn. And suddenly — an event that turned an ordinary rave into a loud story on the international scene.
It was “an act of protest in support of Palestine”
During the Boiler Room Lisbon performance, Ukrainian DJ E.LINA was doused with a red liquid resembling blood. This happened live.
The audience flinched, the sound froze for a second — but she continued to play. Not for five minutes. Not to “finish the track.” Almost an hour.
No screams, no hysteria, no scenes. Only music, steady breathing, and the cold composure of a person accustomed to seeing real pain, not theatrical imitations of it.
E.LINA spoke about the incident on her Instagram page. In the post, she shared her emotions and noted that the attack was a personal shock for her.
“It was an act of protest in support of Palestine. But for me — an artist from Ukraine, where blood is still being shed… it was deeply shocking. I cannot remain silent in this situation.”
The dousing incident occurred on the night from Friday to Saturday, October 24-25, 2025 at the Boiler Room venue in Lisbon.
Specifically: E.LINA reported on Instagram on the morning of October 25 that during her set at the event, she was doused with “blood.”
View this post on Instagram
Who is E.LINA
E.LINA is a Ukrainian DJ and electronic scene artist, originally from Kharkiv. Her musical journey began with hip-hop: as a teenager, she engaged in freestyle dancing, participated in battles, made beats, and rapped. Later, she switched to electronic music and working with vinyl.
After moving to Berlin, she became part of the local underground scene. Her sets predominantly feature minimal techno, techno, and house, as well as elements of trance. E.LINA mainly performs with vinyl.
Her sets have been released on several international platforms and stages, including:
- HÖR Berlin (several episodes)
- Boiler Room (including Lisbon)
- System 108 / Berlin showcases
- the underground scene of Berlin (clubs and local community events)
- European club scenes in the independent/underground format
Currently, there is no data on album releases or major releases in public sources, nor on musical awards. She is known specifically as a club vinyl DJ and a representative of the Ukrainian underground, performing in Europe and maintaining a connection with the Ukrainian scene.
E.LINA publicly emphasizes her Ukrainian origin and speaks about how her generation of musicians was formed under conditions of war and forced emigration.
She has performed at HOER Berlin, underground events in Europe, and now — Boiler Room. But unlike many, for her, it’s not just a dream platform, but an opportunity to speak — not with words, but with beats.
She herself described why she stayed on stage:
“I play to tell about my country. About people who live under sirens but continue to live.
Leaving would mean giving space to fear. And I’m not one of those who leave.”
She emphasizes: music is not decoration or background, but a language that can explain what is not taught in academies.
What happened at Boiler Room Lisbon
At the moment of the attack, the crowd initially froze.
The red liquid hit the artist’s face, hands, the clothes of people nearby, the console, the vinyl. Some thought it was a performance. Some — a threat. A few seconds seemed like an eternity.
An American or European artist might have ripped out the cables and left. But the Ukrainian artist, who had survived years of her country’s war, reacted differently.
“It was an act of protest in support of Palestine. But for me — an artist from Ukraine, where blood is still being shed… it was deeply shocking. I cannot remain silent in this situation.”
This moment is not about the club and not only about Europe.
It’s about the fact that war has no pause, even if you’re standing on stage in another country.
Why the incident caused such a reaction
Because in this case, symbolism became violence.
Because a person from a country where real blood is being shed became a target “for the sake of an idea.”
E.LINA made it perfectly clear:
“The war in Ukraine is not over. This act — dousing with fake blood in solidarity with Palestine — seemed extremely disrespectful and inhumane. Art can also be a form of resistance, but it should never be at the cost of compassion. You cannot fight one pain without respecting another. Now all eyes are on Palestine, but Ukraine continues to bleed too. This is not a competition in suffering — it’s a reminder that wars don’t end when attention shifts to something else.”
“No message should be written with someone else’s blood — real or fake.”
This phrase spread across social networks faster than the video itself.
She also emphasized:
“I played to convey my truth — to represent my country, my story, my sound. I play for connection and healing. I hope next time people will choose awareness over aggression. … Respect any pain. No message deserves to be written with someone else’s blood — real or fake.”
Why this happened: a simple explanation of the situation around Boiler Room
Boiler Room is an international music platform known for broadcasting live DJ sets and performances from around the world. The project appeared in London in 2010 and started as small stream parties from a boiler room — hence the name.
Today, Boiler Room is one of the most influential platforms in electronic culture.
What Boiler Room does
- organizes parties and club streams worldwide
- records live sets of DJs and musicians
- broadcasts them online to a global audience
- introduces new artists and local scenes
- provides an outlet for the underground to reach an international level
Boiler Room became known for the format where the audience stands behind the DJ, and cameras capture both the artist and the dance floor atmosphere — without filters and setups.
What it means to perform at Boiler Room
For a DJ, it is:
- high international visibility
- audience growth
- confirmation of professional level
- access to the global club scene community
For many artists, participating in Boiler Room becomes a career growth point.
Where it takes place
The platform holds events worldwide, including:
- London
- Berlin
- New York
- Tokyo
- Lisbon
- Mexico City
- Seoul
- Tbilisi
The format varies — from intimate studio sets to large festival stages.
In recent weeks, “pro-Palestinian activists” have started actions against Boiler Room in different cities worldwide. The reason is the change of platform owners.
Boiler Room was acquired by the company Superstruct Entertainment, which is owned by the investment fund KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts). The event unfolded against the backdrop of a series of protests that have accompanied Boiler Room parties in various cities worldwide in recent weeks — from London to Detroit and San Francisco.
Activists accuse this fund of financial ties with firms involved in “Israeli settlements in occupied territories” and use musical events as a platform for protest expression.
Hence — a wave of politicized actions:
- posters at parties
- attempts to disrupt events
- performances right during sets
- and, as we saw in Lisbon, attacks on artists
The main problem:
DJs and musicians are in no way connected to financial structures and have no relation to geopolitics. But they became the target.
Most of the scene criticizes this approach: political protest should not turn into an attack on people who make music.
What next
The organizers of the evening in Lisbon promised to cooperate with the police to find the perpetrators.
Part of the European scene has already expressed support for the artist.
Interestingly, a new understanding has emerged: culture and music are no longer protected from political pressure.
But there are people who know how to withstand the blow.
That’s why E.LINA’s set in Lisbon is already being called one of the strongest moments of Boiler Room in recent years. Not because of the attack — but because of how she responded to it.
Not with a scream.
Not by leaving.
With music.
