Kanye West Cancels South Korea Concert Amid "Pro-Hitler" Controversy

American rapper Kanye West (stage name Ye). Reuters Yonhap News

The South Korean concert of American hip-hop artist Kanye West (stage name Ye) has been canceled.

On May 19, concert organizer Coupang Play announced, "Due to recent controversies surrounding Kanye West, we have no choice but to cancel the 'YE South Korea Concert,' which was scheduled to be held at the main stadium of Incheon Munhak Stadium on May 31." The company also added that sales of the 'Yeezy' merchandise, which had been prepared to commemorate his visit, would be suspended starting at 1:00 p.m. on the same day.

In a 2022 interview, Kanye West sparked controversy by stating, "I like Hitler," and by releasing an image that combined the Nazi symbol swastika with the Star of David, a symbol of Judaism. In February of this year, he posted messages on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) stating, "I am a Nazi" and "I love Hitler." On May 8, which is Victory in Europe Day commemorating the end of World War II in Europe, he released a single titled "Heil Hitler."

The song "Heil Hitler" contains the phrase "All my friends are Nazis. Heil Hitler" repeated more than 15 times, and the controversy intensified as the track ends with a recording of Hitler's 1935 speech.

Kanye West was scheduled to give the first live performance of his new album "Donda 2," which was released last month, at this South Korean concert. In August of last year, he held a listening party-style performance in South Korea.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.