Last summer the Slovak music festival Rubicon was cancelled on short notice after organizers faced backlash for booking Kanye West as its headliner. In January, the artist now going by Ye issued a contentious apology disavowing his previous alignment with right-wing ideologies and embrace of Nazi rhetoric. He chalked up his abusive and erratic behavior to his bipolar disorder and a previously undiagnosed brain injury, adding that he was now committed to "accountability, treatment, and meaningful change." Two months later, he dropped his new album BULLY, which is out now.
Somehow, Ye is still scheduled to headline all three nights at this July's Wireless Festival in London. But the fate of the event is a bit up the air now that companies have withdrawn their sponsorships of the fest following comments by Keir Starmer: "It is deeply concerning that Kanye West has been booked to perform at Wireless despite his previous antisemitic remarks and celebration of Nazism," the UK Prime Minister said. "Antisemitism in any form is abhorrent and must be confronted clearly and firmly wherever it appears. Everyone has a responsibility to ensure Britain is a place where Jewish people feel safe and secure."
Following Starmer's remarks, a spokesperson for Pepsi said simply: "Pepsi has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Wireless festival." The company had been a main sponsor for over a decade.
Diageo, the parent brand of liquors including Johnnie Walker and Captain Morgan, followed PepsiCo’s lead on Sunday (Mar. 5) and also dropped off. “We have informed the organisers of our concerns, and as it stands, Diageo will not sponsor the 2026 Wireless festival,” the company stated. According to Variety, Rockstar Energy has also withdrawn from the Live Nation event, and PayPal while not pulling out entirely "will no longer allow its branding to be used."
Although Wireless still appears to be going on as planned, there's still a chance Ye might not be allowed in the UK. The country's immigration rules state that a person can be denied entry if their character or conduct — both in the UK and abroad — are considered threatening to UK society. Some notable UK politicians, such as Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey, have asked the government to ban Ye from entering. Ye's permission is being "reviewed by ministers," Sky News reports.
It doesn't seem like Ye is having too many issues booking shows in the US. Last Wednesday and Friday he headlined SoFi Stadium outside of Los Angeles, live-debuting a bunch of BULLY tracks as well as some older hits. Across both nights Travis Scott, Lauryn Hill, Don Toliver, CeeLo Green, and his daughter North West all made onstage appearances.
UPDATE: On Monday (April 6) Melvin Benn, the managing director of Wireless Festival promoter Festival Republic, released a statement in support of Ye:
“Having had a person in my life for the last 15 years who suffers from mental illness, I have witnessed many episodes of despicable behavior that I have had to forgive and move on from. If I wasn’t before, I have become a person of forgiveness and hope in all aspects of my life, including work. What Ye has said in the past about Jews and Hitler is as abhorrent to me as it is to the Jewish community, the Prime Minister and others that have commented and — taking him at his word — to Ye now also.
“Ye’s music is played on commercial radio stations in this country. It is available via livestreams and downloads in this country without comment or vitriol from anyone and he has a legal right to come into the country and to perform in this country. He is intended to come in and perform. We are not giving him a platform to extol opinion of whatever nature, only to perform the songs that are currently played on the radio stations in our country and the streaming platforms in our country and listened to and enjoyed by millions.
“Forgiveness and giving people a second chance are becoming a lost virtue in this ever-increasing, divisive world and I would ask people to reflect on their instant comments of disgust at the likelihood of him performing (as was mine) and offer some forgiveness and hope to him as I have decided to do.”
