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The British government has blocked Kanye West, the rapper now known as Ye, from entering the U.K. That's in response to antisemitic comments that he has made in the past. Now, the move comes after days of controversy over the rapper's scheduled appearance at a festival in London this summer. NPR's Fatima Al-Kassab reports.
FATIMA AL-KASSAB, BYLINE: Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, was announced as the headliner for all three nights of London's Wireless Festival earlier this month in a set billed by the organizers as historic. But the decision to book West quickly prompted outrage because of the rapper's history of making antisemitic remarks, including saying he identified as a Nazi, and just last year selling swastika T-shirts on his website.
West has since apologized for his outburst. He took out a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal earlier this year, apologizing for his comments and actions, including selling the T-shirts, and attributing them to manic episodes caused by his bipolar disorder. Government Minister Wes Streeting criticized what he said was the festival organizers' error of judgment.
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WES STREETING: I'm appalled, actually. You look at the context. He's got enormous fame, enormous reach, and antisemitism - hatred against Jewish people - in this country and elsewhere has been rising. And I'm only too disappointed the festival organizers are too blind to see it.
AL-KASSAB: And as pressure mounted over the weekend, several of the festival's major sponsors pulled out, including Pepsi and the drinks company Diageo. But the organizers insisted West should be given a second chance. Melvin Benn spoke to the BBC earlier today before Kanye was banned and said his performances should go ahead in London, as they have done elsewhere.
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MELVIN BENN: He is able to perform in other countries. He played in Los Angeles two nights last week. No issues there. No furore. And his performances were enjoyed by the thousands of fans that were there.
AL-KASSAB: The New York Times reported that West put out a statement this morning before he was banned, offering to meet members of the Jewish community in the U.K. to listen, and said, I know words aren't enough. I'll have to show change through my actions. If you're open, I'm here. But this afternoon, the British government announced it had taken the decision to block West from traveling to the U.K. It said this was on the grounds his presence in the country would, quote, "not be conducive to the public good."
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the rapper should never have been invited to perform and that his government would not stop fighting the poison of antisemitism. Gideon Falter from the group the Campaign Against Antisemitism told the BBC the government was right to ban West.
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GIDEON FALTER: It's no thanks at all to the festival organizers who invited him. They persisted even as each of their sponsors, one by one, dropped out of this. The festival organizer still dug in and said that actually the Jewish community had got it wrong and needed to be more forgiving.
AL-KASSAB: With the headline act barred from entering the U.K., the entire festival has now been canceled. Twenty-year-old Daniel Pountin (ph) had already bought tickets. He says he understands some people's outrage, but says the government went too far.
DANIEL POUNTIN: What I can't back up is, you know, I want him banned from the country.
AL-KASSAB: The British decision hasn't yet put an end to his European tour. Ye has other dates scheduled in France and Spain, among other countries. Fatima Al-Kassab, NPR News, London.
(SOUNDBITE OF VULFMON AND JACOB JEFFRIES' "BLUE") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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