Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has addressed Kanye West’s UK comeback after horrific comments, branding it ‘deeply concerning’.
Kanye, or Ye as he now goes by, is set to perform all three nights of the Finsbury Park festival in July, following in last year’s headliner Drake’s footsteps.
The lineup has been condemned by many as the rapper has spent the past several years shunned from mainstream culture over his antisemitic, racist, and homophobic comments.
Just last May, Kanye released a song titled Heil Hitler, as well as wearing and selling a t-shirt with a swastika on it after declaring himself a Nazi.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has already condemned the ‘deeply irresponsible’ decision from festival organisers.
Now, Sir Keir has added that it is ‘deeply concerning Kanye West has been booked to perform at Wireless despite his previous antisemitic remarks and celebration of Nazism’.
He continued to The Sun on Sunday: ‘Antisemitism in any form is abhorrent and must be confronted firmly wherever it appears. Everyone has a responsibility to ensure Britain is a place where Jewish people feel safe.’
There are now calls to ban Ye from playing in the UK, with the festival appearance likely earning him well over an estimated £1million per night.
Last month, Chappell Roan was ‘banned’ from playing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, by the mayor after a security guard, who was not her own, yelled at a little girl.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London told Metro that Ye’s past comments and actions are ‘offensive and wrong, and are simply not reflective of London’s values.’
They added: ‘This was a decision taken by the festival organisers and not one that City Hall is involved in.’
Wireless Festival, which is sponsored by Pepsi and run by Festival Republic, have not responded to the growing backlash.
Ye did apologise for his behaviour earlier this year, taking out a full-page advert in the Wall Street Journal to explain he had ‘lost touch with reality’.
He declared he is ‘not a Nazi or an antisemite’ and that he ‘loves Jewish people’, leaving him ‘deeply mortified’ by his past behaviour.
However, many feel one apology is not enough to erase almost 10 years of horrific comments, including claiming ‘slavery was a choice’.
Ye had to defend the WSJ letter and told Vanity Fair it was not about ‘reviving my commerciality’ ahead of his album release.
‘This is because these remorseful feelings were so heavy on my heart and weighing on my spirit,’ he continued. ‘I owe a huge apology once again for everything that I said that hurt the Jewish and Black communities in particular. All of it went too far.
‘I look at the wreckage of my episode and realise that this isn’t who I am. As a public figure, so many people follow and listen to my every word. It’s important that they realise and understand what side of history that I want to stand on. And that is one of love and positivity.’
While many are vocally against the rapper, including the Jewish Leadership Council and the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism, he seems to have been welcomed back by equal measure.
Ye’s album Bully immediately charted – kept off the top spots by Raye and Olivia Dean – and his shows in Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium were sold out.
Lauryn Hill, Travis Scott, and CeeLo Green felt happy enough to join him on stage while singer Chlöe Bailey was spotted in the crowd.
Metro has reached out to Wireless for comment.
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