Kanye West to Headline Wireless Festival in London After Decade-Long UK Absence

Kanye West, the American rapper now known as Ye, has been confirmed as the headliner for all three nights of the Wireless festival in London. This marks his first performance in the United Kingdom in over ten years, with his last appearance being at Glastonbury in 2015. The festival is scheduled to take place from July 10 to 12 at Finsbury Park, where Ye is expected to perform songs spanning his entire career, including material from his debut album "The College Dropout" through later releases like "Graduation" and "The Life of Pablo." The announcement follows the recent release of his twelfth studio album, "Bully," and comes after years of controversy surrounding antisemitic remarks made by the artist. In 2025, he was prevented from entering Australia due to a song that praised Adolf Hitler, and he has previously identified as a Nazi while retracting apologies for his comments. These actions led to the termination of his partnership with Adidas in 2022. However, Ye has since issued public apologies, including in a meeting with Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto and through a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal titled "To Those I've Hurt," where he attributed some of his behavior to a bipolar type-1 diagnosis. Festival organizers have described his return as an extraordinary moment for Wireless, though no other acts have been announced for the 2026 lineup. Ye has been gradually resuming his presence on major stages, having headlined Rolling Loud in California in 2024 and performed in countries such as China, South Korea, and Mexico over the past two years. The Wireless festival typically attracts around 50,000 attendees daily, focusing on rap, R&B, and hip-hop. Last year's event featured Drake as the headliner, but some fans expressed disappointment over the length of his final performance and the lack of UK artists in the 2025 lineup.