Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. Photo: BANG Showbiz via Reuters Connect

An arena in Russia where Ye, the rapper also known as Kanye West, was scheduled to perform two concerts in October announced this week that the events will not be taking place at its venue.

Gazprom Arena in St. Petersburg said in an Instagram post that it has not signed any agreement to rent out the venue for Ye’s performances on Oct. 10 and 11, as part of the artist’s world tour.

“No such agreement exists. Consequently, the concert cannot take place at our venue,” it stated.

Gazprom Arena said it received complaints about West’s concerts and clarified that the venue “was not and is not the organizer of this event.” The concerts were organized by the Moscow-based Say Agency and Ye was scheduled to perform on stage with his musical director André Troutman.

Just last week, Gazprom Arena shared a post on Instagram about the concerts and called Ye “the most influential musical artist of our time,” the “planet’s biggest artist,” and a “hip hop legend” whose music “has redefined global music over the last 20 years and inspired countless other artists who are household names today.” The post has not been deleted.

Ye and Troutman have not publicly commented on the statement released by Gazaprom Arena. The concerts would have made Ye the first major artist from North America to perform in Russia since the country’s invasion of Ukraine and subsequent war in 2022.

Say Agency said it was shocked by the venue’s announcement.

“We learned about [it] at the same time as you did, through the media,” the agency wrote on its Telegram channel, as reported by the BBC. The agency explained that it announced the concerts earlier in August based on “an official letter that was approved by” Gazprom Arena.

“As of now, the Ye concert has not been canceled,” it added. “We are trying to contact the venue to find out the reason for the post and resolve the issue. We will keep you updated.”

Several of Ye’s concerts that are part of his current world tour have been canceled because of criticism over his past antisemitic comments and actions. They include the rapper making antisemitic remarks on social media, publicly admitting admiration for Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and calling himself a Nazi, and selling apparel that featured a Nazi swastika. He also released a song titled “Heil Hitler.”