Kanye West’s Italy Concert Could Be In Jeopardy—Latest Country Weighing Rapper’s Presence

BreakingBusinessKanye West’s Italy Concert Could Be In Jeopardy—Latest Country Weighing Rapper’s PresenceByAsia Alexander,Fellow. Asia Alexander is a editorial fellow at Forbes on the Wealth team. Follow AuthorApr 22, 2026, 11:50am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.ToplineItaly is the latest country considering pulling the plug on his upcoming tour stop there, after a senior member of Italy’s Democratic Party urged the government to intervene over the rapper’s antisemitism.TOPSHOT - US rapper and producer Kanye West gestures upon arriving at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on July 11, 2025. One of the promoters of an annual London music festival on April 6, 2026 defended plans for Kanye West to headline it, amid a backlash over the US rapper's previous antisemitic outbursts. Disgraced 48-year-old hip-hop star West — now known as Ye — is due to play three nights at the Wireless Festival in the British capital in July as part of a European comeback tour. (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty ImagesKey FactsWest is scheduled to headline the Hellwatt Festival on July 18 in the northern Italian city of Reggio Emilia.Pina Picierno, vice president of the European Parliament and a senior member of Italy’s Democratic Party, told La Gazzetta di Reggio that Italy moving forward with selling roughly 68,000 tickets, despite France taking steps to cancel Kanye’s planned Marseille concert, is not acceptable and is asking the Ministry of the Interior to reconsider his performance.Reggio Emilia Mayor Marco Massari said he is “distancing himself from Kanye West’s behavior and remarks,” while noting that any decision about West’s entry falls outside the city’s authority and in the hands of the Ministry of the Interior.Hellwatt Festival artistic director Victor Yari Milani described the event as “a space for free artistic expression,” adding that while West’s past...