The chaotic saga of Kanye West's planned Russian concerts

From the announcement of his concerts last week to a venue backing out days later, US rap star Kanye West's two planned shows in Russia have captivated the country, with officials divided about whether they should go ahead.

West, who goes by the stage name "Ye", has been barred from several European countries over past antisemitic comments.

The biggest Western musician to headline in Russia since Moscow launched its Ukraine offensive in 2022, some Russian officials have welcomed West's planned shows, hoping to dispel the notion that Russia is isolated over the war.

Others have expressed concerns about the rapper's past comments glorifying Nazi Germany -- a sensitive issue in Russia -- and the original planned venue has since distanced itself from the concerts.

It remains unclear whether the concerts will take place.

Venue pulls out

Tickets for the two concerts, scheduled for October 10 and 11 in Saint Petersburg, appeared on the website of Moscow-based events organiser Say Agency earlier this month.

The agency advertised the events as taking place in Saint Petersburg's Gazprom Arena, with the stadium itself sharing adverts for the upcoming concert on its Telegram account.

But a week later, Gazprom Arena denied it would host the shows, saying it had "not signed any contracts to lease the stadium for the event".

Kanye West

The apparent cancellation appeared to take the organisers by surprise, and prompted anger and confusion among social media users, some of whom had already bought tickets.

Ticket prices ranged from around $100 to almost $2,000, the cheapest of which sold out within hours.

"Give the people their money back, you clowns," one user wrote on Telegram under Gazprom Arena's post.

Say Agency denied the concerts had been cancelled and announced it was working on a solution.

"Please be patient and wait for an official announcement," it said.

Over 100,000 tickets had already been sold, according to state media.

'Cancelled by a phone call'

The decision to pull the shows allegedly came from high up, Saint Petersburg's Fontanka media outlet reported.

"The concert had not been approved by all the necessary authorities," it cited two sources as saying.

"Ultimately, it was cancelled by a phone call from Moscow," it added.

The RBK news outlet reported that debates about whether Ye should perform were taking place in the Kremlin, with some officials supportive.

Other Russian officials expressed concern.

West has voiced admiration for Nazi leader Adolf Hitler on multiple occasions, and in 2022 declared his "love" for the Nazis in an interview with far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
West apologised for past instances of antisemitism in 2023. In January, he took out a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal attributing his past behaviour to his bipolar disorder.

Russian lawmaker Vitaly Milonov, the architect of Russia's LGBTQ "propaganda" laws, accused the artist of doing "vile, obscene things" but spoke out against banning him.
Ekaterina Mizulina, the head of Russia's internet safety watchdog, called West an "admirer of Adolf Hitler" and appeared to criticise his planned appearance in Saint Petersburg -- a city that endured a devastating, two-and-a-half-year siege by the Nazis in World War II.

Will the concerts go ahead?

The RBK news outlet reported this week that debates about whether he should perform were taking place within the presidential administration.

Some Russian media outlets suggested that younger officials, including the management of Gazprom Media, wanted the concert to go ahead -- while older officials were more sceptical.

"There's no ban on it," RBK quoted a source familiar with the discussions as saying.
Several other venues have meanwhile offered to host the events.

Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium -- Russia's largest by seat capacity -- said it would "consider" hosting the concerts if asked, its CEO was quoted as saying by the Mash news outlet.
Vladimir Vladimirov, head of a medieval-themed museum near the southern town of Anapa, has also offered to host the concert.

"We have a wonderful arena here that seats 1,500 people. Everyone will fit," he told the state RIA news agency.

Concerts by Western stars in Russia have become rare since Moscow began its Ukraine offensive, although a handful have performed there, including Jason Derulo and Flo Rida.
West, whose concerts have been cancelled in several European countries, has not yet commented.

The Grammy-award winning rapper may have already received a down payment worth millions of dollars for the planned Russian dates, Fontanka reported.

Agence France-Presse