Kanye West, who performs as Ye, has sold out large parts of two October concerts in Saint Petersburg, months after several European countries cancelled his shows.
DR reports that the American rapper will play two stadium concerts in Russia on October 10 and 11. Tickets were gone within a few hours. According to DR, that makes him the biggest Western artist to perform in Russia since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The concerts are set for Krestovsky Stadium, which DR says holds 70,000 spectators. The Moscow Times refers to the same venue as Gazprom Arena and puts its capacity at around 80,000.
Meduza reports that the shows were announced by the Russian promoter Say Agency. Prices ran from 9,000 rubles for the cheapest seats to 160,000 rubles for VIP boxes, roughly 105 to 1,880 US dollars.
Reuters, citing the Russian state news agency TASS, reports that the cheapest category sold out about an hour after sales opened on August 17. Meduza verified on the ticketing site that those seats had disappeared. The New York Times reports that nearly all of the most expensive tickets went within hours, with cheaper seats gone by the evening.
The New York Times also reports that a Saint Petersburg hotelier described a surge in bookings, calls and messages after the concerts were announced.
Cancellations across Europe
DR notes that the Russian dates follow a year in which West had greater difficulty being booked, with cancellations in France, Poland, Italy and the Czech Republic. The Guardian reported in May 2026 that Italian authorities cancelled his July 18 concert at RCF Arena in Reggio Emilia, citing public order and safety.
Brussels Signal reported in April 2026 that authorities at Śląski Stadium in Chorzów cancelled a planned June concert for formal and legal reasons. Per Euronews, the British government refused him a visa in 2026, ending his planned Wireless Festival appearance.
DR writes that his social media profiles have previously been suspended, and that several fashion brands ended their collaborations with him. His apology for Nazi statements came in January, in an advertisement page in The Wall Street Journal, where he blamed a brain injury and bipolar disorder.
Before the invasion of Ukraine, concerts by Western artists in Russia were not unusual. DR cites the BBC in noting that a handful of lesser known acts, including Tyga, Akon and the pro-Trump rapper Lil Pump, have played there since 2022.
Sota News noted on August 17 that the Russian dates were not listed on Ye’s official website, although local organizers had announced them and opened ticket sales.
