Kanye West's sold-out Russia concerts cancelled, organizers confirm

A pair of St. Petersburg concerts scheduled to be headlined by U.S. rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, have officially been canceled, event organizers confirmed on Sept. 30.

Ye had been scheduled to play two shows in St. Petersburg on Oct. 10 and 11, which would have made him the biggest Western artist to perform in Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

"Ye's concerts in St. Petersburg will not be able to take place on the scheduled dates," the Russia-based event organizer Say Agency said in a statement the evening of Sept. 30.  

Say Agency did not provide a reason for the cancellation, and said that further information would be presented in an upcoming "official statement." Ticket holders would be reimbursed, the agency said.

Ye has not commented on the canceled shows.

Prior to the announcement, there had been conflicting reports on whether or not the St. Petersburg concerts would go ahead.

Gazprom Arena, where Ye was scheduled to perform, said in a statement on Aug. 24 that the venue "did not sign any stadium rental agreements for the event."

"There is no such agreement," the arena said, despite promoting the concert on social media. "Accordingly, the concert cannot take place at our venue."

The event organizer contradicted these claims the next day, assuring ticket-holders that the concert would proceed as scheduled.

Local media in St. Petersburg claimed that high-ranking government officials had not approved the concert plans. When Ye's concert dates were announced, conservative Russian politicians expressed outrage at the rapper’s past comments glorifying Nazism, the Moscow Times reported.

Now, Russian law enforcement agencies have allegedly launched a preliminary investigation into the event organizers for fraud, the pro-Kremlin news outlet Kommersant reported.

Ye, who has won over 20 Grammy awards, is one of the world's most famous rappers.

The artist has been embroiled in controversy since 2022, when he tweeted a series of antisemitic statements. He then released a song called "Heil Hitler" in 2025, which was banned on most platforms and resulted in his Australian visa being revoked.

The rapper took out a full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal earlier this year, in which he apologized for his past behavior and antisemitic remarks.

"I am not a Nazi or an antisemite," he said.

Several dates on Ye's European tour were canceled this summer, and he was barred from entering the United Kingdom despite being scheduled to headline a festival in the country.

Rumors that Ye might perform in Russia began circulating in 2024, when the rapper visited Moscow to celebrate the birthday of a fashion designer.

After the full-scale invasion in 2022, most Western artists stopped performing in Russia, as major labels withdrew from the country or suspended operations. A handful of performers have still chosen to perform in Russia, including rapper DaBaby and singer Akon. Jason Derulo performed in Moscow in 2025, and returned in June 2026 at the end of his European tour.