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Pepsi said on Sunday it would withdraw its sponsorship of the Wireless Festival in London, which is scheduled to take place this summer and is set to be headlined by rapper Ye.
The company announced the decision hours after Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was “deeply concerned” about the artist being booked for what organisers describe as London’s “ultimate summer music festival.”
“Antisemitism in any form is abhorrent and must be confronted firmly wherever it appears,” Starmer told The Sun newspaper.
“Everyone has a responsibility to ensure Britain is a place where Jewish people feel safe.”
The event had previously been promoted as “PEPSI PRESENTS WIRELESS,” but the company said in a statement: “Pepsi has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Wireless Festival.”
It was not immediately clear how the decision would affect the festival, which lists other corporate partners including Budweiser, PayPal and Beatbox.
Ye’s appearance at the festival was part of the efforts by the artist to return to public performances after several years of controversy linked to antisemitic and racist remarks.
Earlier this year, he issued an apology for past statements, including a social media post in which he wrote, “death con 3 ON JEWISH PEOPLE” and an interview in which he wore what appeared to be a black Ku Klux Klan robe.
In an advertisement in The Wall Street Journal, the rapper said he hoped to be forgiven by “those I’ve hurt.”
Ye has recently resumed performing publicly, appearing at shows at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles to promote his new album, Bully. He is also scheduled to perform in Italy and Spain later this summer.
However, the planned London performance has drawn criticism from some British politicians. Ed Davey said last week that Britain’s home secretary should consider banning the artist from entering the country.
