The rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, is set to perform two concerts in St. Petersburg this October, the Russian event promoter Say Agency announced Monday.
The performances will take place on Oct. 10 and 11 at the Gazprom Arena, a venue capable of hosting around 80,000 spectators. Tickets are already on sale, with prices ranging from 9,000 rubles ($106) to 160,000 rubles ($1,880) for VIP boxes.
Say Agency, one of Russia’s top organizers for international music acts, has previously brought artists such as Lil Pump, Flo Rida, Akon and Jason Derulo to the country.
Ye’s St. Petersburg shows follow several major international appearances across the region, including a record-breaking concert in Istanbul, Turkey that drew 118,000 fans, a 70,000-person show in Tbilisi, Georgia and a recent August performance in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Ye previously visited Moscow in 2024 to celebrate the birthday of fashion designer and collaborator Gosha Rubchinskiy. Rumors of a performance at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium circulated at the time.
The rapper has drawn controversy in recent years for his antisemitic remarks. He has previously voiced admiration for Adolf Hitler, and in May 2025, he released a song called “Heil Hitler.”
Ye’s scheduled performances in Russia appear unusual given the Kremlin’s claim that it is fighting against neo-Nazis in Ukraine, while it also positions itself as the foremost protector of “historical truth” regarding the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
In April, he was barred from entering the United Kingdom over his anti-Semitic remarks. His shows have been canceled across Europe since then, including in Italy and Poland.
