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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Comment
Dan Hancox

Wireless festival’s backing for Kanye West is all about money. Don’t pretend it’s about the art

Kanye West at the Grammy awards in Los Angeles in February 2025.
Kanye West at the Grammy awards in Los Angeles in February 2025. Photograph: Javier Rojas/PI/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock

In May 2025, Kanye West, also known as Ye, released his single Heil Hitler. It was the logical conclusion to several years of racist, sexist and homophobic outbursts, and the song ended with a lengthy sample from one of the Nazi dictator’s speeches. This was only a couple of months after he stepped out in his new swastika T-shirt, which he also made available from his website for $20. Merch is so important in brand-building these days.

An epic list of companies had already broken links with West after similar disgraces in 2022. After last year’s Nazi outrage, he was sued by his own talent agency, while the Australian government revoked his visa and blocked him from entering the country. By 2025, Russell Brand and Andrew Tate were among his last remaining allies.

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