Kanye West performs in Algarve despite Israeli ambassador's call to cancel over antisemitic statements

Concert at the Algarve Stadium

Kanye West, now performing as Ye, took the stage at Estádio do Algarve in Loulé on Friday night before a nearly full stadium of thousands of predominantly young fans. The show began 45 minutes behind schedule and ran for approximately two hours, during which the rapper performed 39 songs from across his catalog, including "American Boy," "I Can't Wait," "Stronger," and "Gold Digger." West appeared dressed in red with his face obscured, performing atop a rotating globe placed on the pitch, surrounded by light effects and fireworks. He also performed one song alongside his daughter, North West. The concert carried no controversial messages, and many fans leaving the venue described the experience with words like "relief" rather than "controversy" or "shame."

The concert was part of an international tour tied to "Bully," West's 12th studio album, released in March. Tickets ranged from €119 to €500. The production banned professional photographic equipment, allowing only mobile phone cameras, a restriction that photojournalists at the scene said severely limited their work. The promoter described West as "an unavoidable figure in global music, responsible for redefining the boundaries of hip hop, music production, and pop culture itself."

Diplomatic pressure to cancel

On Thursday, Israel's ambassador to Portugal, Oren Rozenblat, released a video message on social media calling for the concert's cancellation, describing West's participation in a Portuguese event as "a shame" for Portugal. Rozenblat cited statements West made in recent years, including antisemitic remarks, conspiracy theories about the Jewish community, and Nazi apologia. The ambassador quoted West as having declared "I like Hitler" and "I am a Nazi," as well as having defended that "slavery was a choice." Rozenblat characterized these statements as hate speech that offended "millions of descendants of victims of slavery."

Concerts on the same tour were cancelled in at least six countries, motivated by hate speech against Jews and women, and by West's praise of Hitler. West apologized this year and attributed his statements to bipolar disorder, a condition he said was diagnosed in him. The Observador noted that the last decade of West's life has been particularly turbulent, from his bipolarity diagnosis to opioid and nitrous oxide addictions, his divorce from Kim Kardashian, and his candidacy for the US presidency.

Fans separate art from artist

Despite the controversy, fans arriving at the stadium and leaving after the show defended the event. One fan told SIC the concert was "incredible" and described West as "an exceptional artist." Another said they distinguish "what he says from the music he makes" and added that it was good the concert was not cancelled. A fan waiting outside the stadium said "the artist and the art should be differentiated," while another argued that "everyone deserves a second chance" and that West's recent attitudes showed he wants to change.

A return after 15 years

Friday's performance was West's third in Portugal. He first appeared in the country in 2006 at the Cool Jazz Fest in Oeiras, and returned in 2011 for the Sudoeste festival in Zambujeira do Mar, a period the Observador described as the peak of his imperial phase, following the release of "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy." That album won the Grammy for Best Rap Album. West's debut album, "The College Dropout," was released in 2004, followed by "Late Registration" (2005), "Graduation" (2007), and the gospel album "Jesus Is King" (2019), released after he changed his stage name to Ye.

The rapper's next tour stop is Kazakhstan, with the tour returning to the United States later this month.