Kanye West, or Ye, has just been announced as the 2027 Wireless headliner, days after dropping comeback album Bully - but is he forgiven?
Kanye West is in full comeback mode – but are the public ready to forgive him? In 2014, Kanye West was booed off stage at Wireless Festival for going on a lengthy rant about the fashion industry.
Thirteen years later, he’s returning to headline all three nights of the London music event. Usually, this would be a triumphant tale of an artist facing their failures. However, Kanye is no normal artist. For the past several years, he has been spouting homophobic and anti-Semitic views, dressed up as the KKK, and written a song dedicated to Hitler. He was completely and irredeemably cancelled as fans watched the destructive decline of a man they’d once branded a ‘genius’. One apology later, and it seems all is forgiven as his new album Bully amassed over 33million streams on Spotify in 24 hours. And now, he’s set to play Wireless as his UK comeback for the first time since his scrapped Saint Pablo tour in 2016. His behaviour has been increasingly concerning in recent years https://www.instagram.com/p/DWhUKJxDjWr/ ‘Let me hear y’all say being problematic can ruin a man’s career again,’ wrote buteraijk on X, joining a chorus of people exhausted by the thought of this redemption arc. ‘Men really do get away with anything and everything,’ agreed emmasarchivee, as many pointed out the misogyny at play. Only last week, we saw Chappell Roan ‘banned’ from playing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, after a security guard, who was not her own, yelled at a little girl. Yet, a man who recorded music that he described as having a ‘new sound called anti-Semitic’ is able to waltz back on stage to huge applause. The Power rapper has apologised for his behaviour, explaining he had ‘lost touch with reality’ while suffering from bipolar disorder. He took out a full-page advert printed in The Wall Street Journal in January to shed light on his action, driven by ‘manic episodes’ and ‘hit rock bottom a few months ago’. Ye took out a page in the Wall Street Journal to apologise He declared he is ‘not a Nazi or an antisemite’ and that he ‘loves Jewish people’, leaving him ‘deeply mortified’ by his past behaviour. For some fans, this appears to be enough to jump right back in, as Stuart Semple, a decades-long Kanye listener, told Metro. ‘I stopped listening to what he was saying in the press and I felt weird about listening to his work,’ he said, before admitting he ‘did still listen to some of his best music’. Presumably, this included his biggest hits like Gold Digger and Stronger, from the mid 00s, as well as his acclaimed The Life of Pablo album from 2016. Stuart clearly wasn’t alone in this secret listening, as Ye still managed to land in the top 10 US artists on Spotify last year. That was well before his apology. ‘I did still listen to his best music’ admits one fan Ye has mainly been seen with silent wife Bianca Censori in recent years ‘He’s said some diabolical things,’ the visual artist continued. ‘There’s a lot of his personal beliefs that I just can’t accept. I strongly disagreed with a lot of what he said a few years ago. ‘I was deeply upset because his behaviour clearly undermined his artistry.’ However, he eagerly streamed Bully on release and found it was a ‘brilliant’ record, unlike previous ones released at the height of Ye’s storm. Bully’s success and this headline announcement prove that the mythos of Ye is still strong enough to push through any, and we really do mean any, scandal. Beyond the whole Nazi era, he supported Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, he was vile towards Jay-Z and Beyonce’s children, said Tyga was ‘smart’ for ‘getting in early’ with 17-year-old Kylie Jenner, and mocked domestic violence. He defended Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs amid his sex trafficking trial And said that ‘slavery was a choice’ as he backed the MAGA movement Potentially, it’s easier for fans to separate that side of Ye due to his bipolar disorder and a wide misunderstanding of what that condition means. Bipolar cannot change your beliefs, but during mania, which he said he slipped into, can bring on delusions of grandeur and psychosis. However, many aren’t bringing up his mental health crisis as an explanation for their support, with plenty online simply revelling in the ‘haters being mad’. ‘Incoming bUt hE’s A nAzI tears,’ wrote Dr_Tobi, while otbrryyy wondered: ‘Am I cancelled for liking his music?’ It seems that for some fans, Ye’s actions over the past few years were simply a blip to be ignored or worse, something entertaining to watch play out. UK is a strange place. Bob Vylan is blacklisted pretty much everywhere whilst Kanye West who rocked diamond swastikas and made a song with a video called Heil Hitler….aaaaaand said slavery was a choice gets welcomed to wireless with open arms. All strange— Chim March 30, 2026 Kanye West watching everyone love Bully despite his breakdown last year pic.twitter.com/Mni8WWHrIb— moose 🐦🔥 March 27, 2026 Kanye West at Wireless will either be the greatest or worst thing in history. There’s no inbetween here 😭— Salone Bobo🚀🇸🇱| Career “Helper”👨🏾💻 March 30, 2026 Not everyone who is welcoming his comeback was cheering on his destruction, though, as Stuart reasoned: ‘I can’t just forget what he said and what he did, I know he’s apologised.’ For Stuart, it is ‘about the work’, he explained: ‘Not every artist is always going to make work that I love. This time, he’s made something better than good, something great. ‘That doesn’t undo what wrongs he may have done.’ Streaming an album is one thing, usually costing nothing extra as most people are already subscribed to a streaming service. However, paying up to see him live might be a little harder to swallow. Stuart admitted he was ‘tempted’ to go to Wireless, despite having not been to a festival in years, just to see Ye on stage. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page He was dropped by multiple collaborators We questioned whether the thought that Ye might use this money to fund projects that Stuart is not aligned with would influence his decision to cough up £140. ‘It’s not up to me to speak to what someone spends their money on,’ he replied. ‘But from the outside it looks like his money goes into making buildings, films, art and music. I want him to keep making his work.’ This is the second year in a row Wireless has positioned itself as the redemption festival, with Drake playing three nights last year. The One Dance singer’s beef with Kendrick Lamar saw him called out during the Super Bowl halftime show, with fans taking sides and egos bruised. Last year saw Drake headline Wireless for his post-Kendrick redemption Ye appears to be hoping to do the same However explosive and public, rap feuds are hardly equal to a several-year-long descent into becoming an alt-right fanatic. Wireless’ decision for three nights of Ye is undeniably a risky one, but those album sales suggest it’s less financially worrisome than it appears. The former Glastonbury headliner will undoubtedly bring in punters, even if it’s just for curiosity’s sake. As Stuart noted, whether this ‘masterpiece’ comeback is enough to redeem him in the eyes of those he hurt remains to be seen. Ultimately, his comeback will boil down to how many of his fans cared in the first place. It seems, for many, the need to listen to his past ‘genius’ always outweighed his antisemitism. Got a story? If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
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