US rapper Kanye West has announced the postponement of a forthcoming concert in Marseille, France, "until further notice". The announcement comes a week after this summer's Wireless Festival in London - which West had been scheduled to headline - was cancelled following the UK government's decision to block him from entering the country. French media reported that Interior Minister Laurent Nunez was looking to ban the 11 June gig.
An unnamed source, said to be close to Nunez, was cited as telling the news agency that the minister was "highly determined" to ban the event. For the last several years, West has caused outrage for a string of antisemitic, racist and pro-Nazi comments. "After much thought and consideration, it is my sole decision to postpone my show in Marseille, France until further notice," West, now known as Ye, said in a post on X.
In a follow-up statement, the rapper said: "I know it takes time to understand the sincerity of my commitment to make amends. "I take full responsibility for what's mine but I don't want to put my fans in the middle of it. "My fans are everything to me.
Looking forward to the next shows." The rapper has been seeking a return to mainstream public view after apologising for his actions in a lengthy statement published in the Wall Street Journal in January. "I am not a Nazi or an antisemite," he wrote. "I love Jewish people." He added that as a result of his bipolar disorder, he had "lost touch with reality".
West was due to play Wireless in London and the Marseille concert as part of a European tour scheduled for this summer. As of Wednesday, West's official website still had him listed to perform in several other European countries throughout May, June and July, including Turkey, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain and Portugal. West, 48, is also scheduled to play in New Delhi, India, in late May.
It was reported last week that Bart van den Brink, the Dutch asylum and migration minister, said there were no plans there to bar the rapper. In France, reported that Nunez was exploring "all possibilities" to prohibit West from performing - but did not provide further details. On the day Wireless was cancelled, the Home Office told the BBC the rapper had made an application on Monday to travel to the UK via an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA).
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