What are the ethics of going to see Kanye West in 2026? That’s a question New Orleanians will now have to think about.
West, now known as Ye, is scheduled to perform Aug. 28 at the Caesars Superdome. The rapper earlier this year released his 12th studio album, “Bully,” and has since been on a major tour featuring a massive, globe-shaped stage that reportedly is very impressive.
But the Ye Live tour follows nearly four years of West taking a hard Nazi turn. West, one of the biggest artists of the last 25 years, has always stirred up controversy — since 2022, though, he’s written and said a number of viciously antisemitic things. He denied the Holocaust in a wild interview on InfoWars; he’s praised Hitler; even wrote a song called “Heil Hitler”; sold swastika T-shirts; and cozied up to Donald Trump and white supremacist Nick Fuentes, among other harsh incidents. West is now banned from performing in the U.K. because of his remarks.
In spring 2025, though, West suddenly made a u-turn and began to apologize for all of it, tweeting “I am done with antisemitism” and “God forgive me for the pain I’ve caused.” West has claimed he has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and several times last year, blamed his antisemitism on those mental health struggles. Then, in January, West took out a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal as an open letter to “Those I’ve Hurt,” further apologizing to the communities he has wronged and connecting his behavior to a 2002 car accident and his struggle with bipolar disorder.
While his current Ye Live tour isn’t necessarily an apology tour, West so far seems to be sticking to what he wrote in January.
West is a Mt. Rushmore performer for a lot of people, and his influence as a rapper and producer is hard to overstate. There also are many artists who have said or done terrible things — Eric Clapton, Chris Brown, a lot of classic rockers — and have remained in the mainstream good graces. But West also has done real harm to the Jewish community since 2022 and aligned himself with some of the worst in America.
What’s that Superdome ticket actually worth?
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.nola.com ’
