{"id":41965,"date":"2026-04-05T14:40:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T14:40:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=41965"},"modified":"2026-04-05T14:40:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T14:40:08","slug":"pepsi-withdraws-sponsorship-of-wireless-festival-after-kanye-west-booking-ents-arts-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=41965","title":{"rendered":"Pepsi withdraws sponsorship of Wireless Festival after Kanye West booking | Ents & Arts News"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Pepsi has withdrawn its sponsorship of Wireless Festival which Kanye West is due to headline, after Sir Keir Starmer joined criticism of the event.<\/p>\n

The US rapper has previously been condemned over his antisemitic remarks.<\/p>\n

The 48-year-old musician – who has not performed in the UK since he headlined Glastonbury in 2015 – is set to top the bill for all three nights of the festival in London’s Finsbury Park in July.<\/p>\n

On Sunday, a Pepsi spokesperson said: “Pepsi has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Wireless Festival.”<\/p>\n

Sky News has approached festival organisers for a response.<\/p>\n

In the time since he last performed on UK soil, West<\/a><\/strong> has drawn criticism for antisemitic X posts, a Super Bowl advert directing people to a swastika T-shirt and a song referencing Hitler.<\/p>\n

Sir Keir said it was “deeply concerning” that West has been booked<\/strong><\/a> “despite his previous antisemitic remarks and celebration of Nazism”.<\/p>\n

“Antisemitism in any form is abhorrent and must be confronted clearly and firmly wherever it appears. Everyone has a responsibility to ensure Britain is a place where Jewish people feel safe and secure,” the prime minister said.<\/p>\n

West, also known as Ye, has been barred from X over antisemitism on multiple occasions.<\/p>\n

In January, West took out a full-page advert in the Wall Street Journal to apologise, titled: “To Those I’ve Hurt.”<\/p>\n

“I am not a Nazi or an antisemite,” it said. “I love Jewish people.”<\/p>\n

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\n Sir Keir Starmer has criticised West. Pic: PA\/AP
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West attributed his previous outbursts to his bipolar-1 disorder<\/a><\/strong>, writing: “In early 2025, I fell into a four-month-long manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behaviour that destroyed my life.<\/p>\n

“I lost touch with reality. Things got worse the longer I ignored the problem. I said and did things I deeply regret.”<\/p>\n

The rapper also apologised to the black community, saying he had let it down.<\/p>\n

West previously lost his deal with Adidas following a post on his social media in 2022, in which he shared an image of a swastika inside a Star of David.<\/p>\n

Adidas, which had worked with the rapper on his Yeezy trainers, subsequently donated more than $150m (\u00a3117m) to anti-hate groups.<\/p>\n

Read more from Sky News:
UK military reveals locations through exercise app<\/a>
Bryan Cranston on his new role<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Shortly afterwards, he drew criticism over a TV advert<\/a><\/strong> that directed people to a website selling a swastika t-shirt and released a song titled Heil Hitler.<\/p>\n

Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, last week called for the government to ban West from entering the UK.<\/p>\n

He said Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood should “ban him from coming to this country – we’ve got to take antisemitism more seriously”.<\/p>\n

Sky News understands the Home Office is yet to receive an application for West to enter the UK.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n


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