St. Petersburg’s Gazprom Arena Cancels Ye Concerts
Say Agency, the organizer of the October performances, said they would still take place despite Gazprom Arena’s withdrawal.
St. Petersburg's Gazprom Arena has canceled plans to host two concerts featuring rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, citing the venue was not organizing the events and had not signed rental contracts. The news agency Say Agency, one of Russia's leading organizers for international music acts, had insisted that the performances were still scheduled for October 10 and 11.
However, Gazprom Arena abruptly reversed its stance on Monday, announcing the concerts "cannot take place." All promotional materials for the Ye shows were removed from the arena's website. The cancellation reportedly came after a "call from above," possibly indicating intervention from the Kremlin. Despite the withdrawal, Say Agency CEO Anna Subcheva insisted the concerts would still occur, with formal contracts expected by Thursday.
Ye had already received a 1.5 billion ruble ($17.7 million) advance payment. The rapper has a history of controversy, including antisemitic remarks and admiration for Adolf Hitler. Some Russian officials have criticized plans to host the concerts in St. Petersburg due to Ye's past displays of Nazi symbols, which is illegal in Russia.
Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium has offered to host the event in light of Gazprom Arena's withdrawal. The Moscow Times has faced recent challenges, with Russia's Prosecutor General's Office labeling the outlet as an "undesirable organization" and potentially putting journalists at risk of prosecution. The paper has defended its independent journalism and urges readers to support its work financially.
Written by urgent.news from The Moscow Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
