St. Petersburg’s Gazprom Arena says it won’t host Ye concert, one week after promoting the event
Organisers say they learned of the cancellation from media reports
St. Petersburg’s Gazprom Arena has said it will not host two concerts by rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, that promoter Say Agency had previously announced for 10 and 11 October. Say Agency insists the concerts have not been cancelled, saying it learned of the venue’s statement only from media reports.
“Gazprom Arena has not signed any lease agreements for the event to be held at the stadium. No such agreement exists. Accordingly, the concert cannot take place at our venue,” the arena said in a statement.
The denial contradicts the venue’s own earlier announcement: on 17 August, Gazprom Arena itself promoted the rapper’s upcoming shows in a post that remains visible on its Telegram channel. However, shortly after the arena’s new statement, all mention of the Ye concert disappeared from its website.
Tickets, meanwhile, are still on sale on Say Agency’s website. The site states that tickets bought between 14 and 23 August are non-refundable by customer request and can only be reimbursed if the concert is cancelled, replaced, or postponed.
Say Agency maintains the concert has not been called off and says it is trying to reach Gazprom Arena to resolve the dispute. The agency said it had begun promoting the show on the basis of an official letter coordinated with the venue, and that it first learned of Gazprom Arena’s statement through the press. Asked for comment on the cancellation announcement by the outlet Ostorozhno, Novosti, Say Agency’s director, Anna Subcheva, reacted with apparent shock before hanging up the phone.
According to sources cited by the outlet Fontanka, the concert had received all of the necessary approvals, and the venue was pressured to cancel it following a call from Moscow. The outlet Rotonda had previously reported that the show had not been approved by senior officials, noting that Ye’s fee was set at more than 1.5 billion rubles (€15.2 million). St. Petersburg’s culture committee declined to comment on Gazprom Arena’s statement when contacted by Ostorozhno, Novosti.
On Tuesday, Gazprom Arena reiterated that the show cannot take place “without a signed lease agreement.” “The organiser began an advertising campaign and ticket sales without having the necessary documents to hold the concert,” the venue’s press service said.
