US rapper Kanye West has postponed his performance at Marseille’s Stade Velodrome in June as he faces a ban from entering France. It comes days after the artist was banned from entering the UK, leading to the cancellation of Wireless Festival where he was announced as the headliner.
On Tuesday, April 7, after criticism from multiple UK politicians the Home Office stopped him from entering the country on the grounds that his visit to the UK would “not be conducive to the public good”. On multiple occasions Kayne West has made public anti-Semitic, racist and offensive comments.
According to global news agency AFP, a source close to the French interior minister Laurent Nuñez claimed that he is planning on banning West from France too ahead of his concert in Marseille scheduled for June 11.
“After much thought and consideration, it is my sole decision to postpone my show in Marseille, France until further notice,” West wrote on X on Wednesday, April 15.
The source told the agency that Nuñez is “highly determined” to make sure the show is cancelled due to West’s antisemitism. For the latest TV and showbiz gossip sign up to our newsletter
West once made a song called Heil Hitler and released a swastika T-shirt for sale on his website. Nuñez has reportedly already started the process to ban the rapper from travelling to France.
The mayor of Marseille, Benoît Payan has shared his opposition to allowing the artist into the city, writing: “I refuse to let Marseille be a showcase for those who promote hatred and unapologetic Nazism. Kanye West is not welcome at the Velodrome, our temple of living together and of all Marseillais.”
After being banned from entering the UK West published a statement. He wrote: “My only goal is to come to London and present a show of change, bringing unity, peach and love through my music.
“I would be grateful for the opportunity to meet with members of the Jewish community in the UK in person, to listen. I know words aren’t enough – I’ll have to show change through my actions. If you’re open. I’m here.”