Kanye West has been tapped to headline all three nights of London’s Wireless Festival in July. The eye-raising move has not gone uncontested, however. Both the city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, and the Jewish Leadership Council have condemned fest organizers for their “deeply irresponsible” decision.
In a statement shared by The Guardian, a spokesperson for Mayor Khan strongly denounced the move. “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 statement read. “This was a decision taken by the festival organizers and not one that City Hall is involved in.”
A spokesperson for the Jewish Leadership Council weighed in with a statement of its own.
“It is deeply irresponsible for Wireless Festival to be headlining Kanye West,” read a statement issued to The Guardian. “UK Jewish community is facing record levels of antisemitism, including a terrorist attack in Manchester, the attack on ambulances in Golders Green, and foiled plots which would have killed many more.”
“West has repeatedly used his platform to spread antisemitism and pro-Nazi messaging,” the statement continued. “His most recent apology must be considered in the context that he went on to sell swastika T-shirts and release a song called ‘Heil Hitler’ after apologising previously. Any venue or festival should reconsider before providing their platform to Kanye West to spread his antisemitism.”
You can read about some of the Racist Kanye garbage here, here, and here, if you so choose.
In January 2026, West recanted his racist rhetoric and issued an open apology letter published in The Wall Street Journal. The rapper blamed “medical oversight” for his erratic behavior. He stated that after his infamous 2002 car accident, his mental health began to decline.
“In that fractured state, I gravitated toward the most destructive symbol I could find, the swastika, and even sold t-shirts bearing it,” West penned in his letter. “One of the difficult aspects of having bipolar type-1 are the disconnected moments – many of which I still cannot recall—that lead to poor judgment and reckless behavior that oftentimes feels like an out-of-body experience.
“I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am committed to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change,” he continued. “It does not excuse what I did, though. I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people.”
The Guardian reported that it reached out to Wireless festival organizers, but they offered no comment on the backlash.
The post Kanye West’s Wireless Festival Announcement Instantaneously Rebuked by London Mayor & Jewish Community appeared first on VICE.
