Mikhalkov called the performance of Kanye West offensive for St. Petersburg
The director said that the performance in the former Leningrad “a man who promotes Nazism”, is a humiliation for the city
The performance of rapper Kanye West in St. Petersburg is offensive for the city, said the director, People's Artist of the RSFSR and artistic director of the theater Workshop "12" Nikita Mikhalkov on the sidelines of the Forum of United Cultures.
In St. Petersburg, the former Leningrad, besieged, the performance of a man who promotes Nazism and earned more than $40 million for the walls of this city, for its embankment, for the Neva, for the Peter and Paul Fortress, is a humiliation. People who survived the blockade will not be able to attend the concert. But it will sound in this city and tens of thousands of people will applaud it - it's serious.
Kanye West’s concerts were announced on October 10 and 11 at Gazprom Arena. The organizer announced them on August 17. The cost of tickets reached 160 thousand rubles. for seats in the VIP-bed. According to the head of Say Agency Subcheva, 81 thousand tickets were sold for the first day.
West's tour was supposed to be part of the world tour in support of the album Bully and the first full-scale concert of the rapper in Russia - in 2024 he came to Moscow only on a private visit.
August 24, the press service of the stadium said that the contract for the concert is not concluded, so the event will not be able to take place on this site. Later, the poster of the speech disappeared from the Gazprom Arena website.
In September, information about West’s concerts in St. Petersburg disappeared from the website of his world tour. Say Agency attributed this to the “reaction to chaos” around the performances of the rapper in Russia. Deputy Chairman of the Committee on culture of St. Petersburg Stanislav Moldovanov also said that the event was not agreed with the city authorities.
On September 22, Say Agency in its telegram chat promised users who bought tickets a refund in case of cancellation of the concert, while the organizers said they were doing everything possible to host the show. Soyuzconcert noted that we can talk about billions of returns and litigation both at the level of spectators and at the level of organizers. One of the buyers of tickets for Kanye West has already presented more than 1 million rubles.
On September 24, West's show poster reappeared on the agency's website. Ticket sales are also available. Returned the poster and the agency Access Opera, which is a partner of the concert tour of the artist. The venue of the concert is not specified on the Say Agency website, but the Gazprom Arena logo is still present. At the same time, there is no information about Kanye West’s concerts on the Gazprom Arena website.
