Istanbul, Turkey. US rapper Kanye West, also known as Ye, performed in Istanbul on Saturday night before an audience of 118,000, according to state-run Anadolu Agency. The concert came after a series of cancellations across Europe linked to his past antisemitic remarks.
Performance in Istanbul
Ye performed for two hours at Istanbul’s Ataturk Olympic Stadium in what Anadolu said was his first appearance in Europe since 2014 and his first in Turkey. The audience included fans from Britain, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Russia, Poland and the Middle East, the agency reported.
Past cancellations
West has faced a wave of cancellations in Europe this summer over years of antisemitic statements, including remarks praising Adolf Hitler and material using Nazi imagery. He also faced a global backlash over the release of “Heil Hitler”, a song promoting Nazism.
In April, Britain denied Ye entry on the grounds that his presence would not be conducive to the public good, leading to the cancellation of a planned appearance at the Wireless Festival in London. Later that month, he postponed a show in Marseille after reports that the French government had sought to block it, and a concert in Poland was also cancelled.
Upcoming shows and statement
The 48-year-old rapper is set to perform in the Netherlands on June 6 and 8.
In January, Ye published a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal renouncing his past admiration for Hitler and apologising for his behaviour, which he attributed to an undiagnosed brain injury and untreated bipolar disorder.