U.K. government ministers are reviewing Ye’s permission to enter the country, a U.K. government source told NBC News on Monday.
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The move comes amid fierce backlash over the decision to have the hip-hop artist formerly known as Kanye West headline a music festival in London this summer.
Ye was announced last week as the headliner of the Wireless Festival at Finsbury Park in London between July 10-12. The announcement drew swift condemnation from some over Ye’s history of antisemitic remarks and behavior.
A representative for Ye did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The festival’s announcement drew scrutiny from U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and London Mayor Sadiq Khan, as well as a number of festival sponsors.
“It is deeply concerning that Kanye West has been booked to perform at Wireless despite his previous antisemitic remarks and celebration of Nazism,” Starmer said in a statement Saturday. “Antisemitism in any form is abhorrent and must be confronted clearly and firmly wherever it appears.”
Starmer added: “Everyone has a responsibility to ensure Britain is a place where Jewish people feel safe and secure.”
In a statement to Variety, a spokesperson for Khan said the decision to tap Ye was “taken by festival organisers and not one that City Hall is involved in.”
“We are clear that the past comments and actions of this artist are offensive and wrong, and are simply not reflective of London’s values,” the spokesperson said.
At least four corporate backers of the festival, including presenting sponsor Pepsi, have distanced themselves from the event over the past 24 hours. The show’s “partners” web page has also been removed.
“Pepsi has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Wireless Festival,” the U.S. beverage giant said. Drinkmakers Diageo and AB InBev have also withdrawn. NBC News has also learned PayPal’s branding will not appear in any future Wireless Festival promotional materials, though the company continues to serve as payments partner of Live Nation UK Festivals, the group putting on the event.
Ye released a song called “Heil Hitler” last year and previously featured a T-shirt with a swastika symbol on it for purchase on his website.
Ye publicly apologized for his history of “reckless” antisemitic comments earlier this year, attributing his behavior to an undiagnosed brain injury and mental health issues.
In a full-page advertisement in The Wall Street Journal titled “To Those I’ve Hurt,” he said in part: “I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people.”
In the advertisement, he said: “I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am committed to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change.”
