Ye’s St Petersburg concerts cancelled amid Nazi-related backlash

Ye’s concerts scheduled for October 10 and 11 at Gazprom Arena in St Petersburg have been cancelled, the Russian promoter Say Agency confirmed at the end of September, after uncertainty over the venue agreement and criticism from Russian officials concerning the rapper’s past expressions associated with Nazism.¹²⁶¹⁰

Conflicting accounts from promoter and venue

Say Agency had announced the two performances and sold tickets, initially maintaining that the concerts would proceed while negotiations continued. Gazprom Arena, however, said it had never signed a contract with the promoter and could not host the shows. Documents published by Say Agency did not include a rental agreement signed by both parties, according to Fontanka.⁴⁵⁸¹⁰

The promoter later said the performances could not take place on the planned dates. Access Opera, described by Fontanka as a partner in Ye’s tour, also announced the cancellation and directed ticket holders to Say Agency. Refunds are expected to become available from October 12, with further instructions to be provided to buyers.¹⁵⁶¹⁰

The Guardian reported that the concerts had sold out. Fontanka said tickets had cost as much as 160,000 roubles and that some customers had gone to court seeking repayment before the cancellation was formally announced. Kommersant reported that Russian law-enforcement agencies had begun a preliminary check for possible fraud by the organiser; that investigation has not been independently confirmed in the dossier.¹⁹¹⁰

Political criticism of the planned shows

Maria Zakharova, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, said the planned appearances were unacceptable and linked her objections to Ye’s treatment of Hitler and Nazi imagery. According to the Guardian, Russian politician Nikolay Novichkov sought an inquiry into Ye’s praise of Hitler and urged that the shows be called off unless the rapper publicly voiced “moral support for Russia and the special military operation”.¹²⁵⁷

The BBC reported that Russian pro-war bloggers also questioned why an American performer should appear in Russia while the United States was providing financial and military assistance to Ukraine. The same report said Ye had begun selling swastika T-shirts in 2025. Those details were reported by a single source in the dossier.²

Ye released a song titled “Heil Hitler” in May 2025. He later attributed past behaviour to bipolar disorder, describing “a four-month-long, manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behaviour that destroyed my life”. Reuters and EL PAÍS reported on October 1 that he had apologised for previous statements and linked his conduct to untreated bipolar disorder and an undiagnosed brain injury.²⁴⁵⁷

Other performances and cancellations

Ye held his first major United States concert in more than five years in Los Angeles in April. The BBC reported that he subsequently performed in Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, but was barred from entering the United Kingdom, preventing a planned headline appearance at London’s Wireless Festival. It also reported cancellations in Poland, Italy and France.²⁵

In Italy, Reggio Emilia prefect Salvatore Angieri stopped planned performances after concerns from the local Jewish community. Ye has not publicly addressed the cancellation in St Petersburg, according to the BBC.¹²⁵