The Home Office, the British government’s department that oversees public security and immigration, rejected the controversial rapper’s travel application.
Australia cancels visa of rapper Ye over song praising Hitler
Australian authorities canceled rapper Ye’s visa over the song “Heil Hitler,” saying the song promotes Nazism.
Yeh spoke out after the rapper was banned from traveling to the UK three months before he was scheduled to headline Wireless Festival in London.
The Home Office, the British government’s department that oversees public security and immigration, rejected a travel application from the controversial rapper formerly known as Kanye West, according to BBC News and the Guardian.
According to the BBC, the Home Office said the decision to ban Ye from traveling was “taken on the basis that his presence is not in the public interest”. USA TODAY has reached out to representatives from the Department of the Interior, Wireless Festival, and Ye for comment.
According to a statement on the festival’s official website, as a result of Ye’s refusal to enter, the Wireless Festival has been canceled completely. Ticket refunds will be issued to all concert attendees.
“As with all Wireless Festivals, multiple parties were consulted prior to booking Yeh, and no specific concerns were raised at the time,” a festival representative told Variety on Tuesday, April 7. “Anti-Semitism in all its forms is abhorrent, and we recognize that these issues have a real personal impact.”
Mr. Ye has come under fire in recent years for supporting statements widely seen as anti-Semitic and racist. The Grammy-winning rapper is accused of sexual misconduct in two lawsuits by former employees.
The “Heartless” host, once a titan in the hi-hop world, has since become well-known for his public rants on social media, mocking both Jews and Black people. He released a song titled “Heil Hitler” praising Adolf Hitler and used pro-Nazi language in social media posts and rants.
In late March, it was announced that Yoh would be headlining all three days of Wireless Festival in July. The announcement comes more than a decade after he last performed in the UK, taking the stage at Glastonbury in 2015.
“Yeh’s UK comeback will be a special chapter in wireless history,” festival organizers said at the time, according to BBC News. The rapper, who recently released his album Bully, was expected to give fans a mix of his latest songs and hits from his early career.
Ye releases statement after UK travel ban: “We must show change”
According to Complex, Ye mentioned the travel ban in a statement shared by Wireless Festival representatives.
“My only goal is to come to London and bring unity, peace, love and show change through music,” the rapper said. “I would appreciate the opportunity to meet and hear from members of the British Jewish community face-to-face. I know words are not enough. I have to show change through action. If you are willing to open up, I am here.”
A spokesperson for the anti-Semitism advocacy group Campaign Against Anti-Semitism praised the Home Office’s decision in a statement on Tuesday.
“It is clear that the government has made the right decision here,” the statement said. “A man who boasts of making tens of millions of dollars selling swastika T-shirts and who released a song called ‘Heil Hitler’ a few months ago clearly would not be serving the British public interest.”
“Wireless Festival, desperately seeking profit, defended the invitation to the bitter end. It is a disgrace and its sponsors should continue to distance themselves.”
This story has been updated to add new information.
Contributor: Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY
