Another pair of key sponsors of London’s Wireless Festival have withdrawn their support over the booking of Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) to headline this summer’s event. Following food and beverage giant PepsiCo’s announcement that it was withdrawing its sponsorship of the event after serving as the festival’s main sponsor for a decade, Diageo, owner of such flagship alcohol brands as Johnnie Walker, Captain Morgan, Guinness, Crown Royal, Smirnoff and Ketel One, has also dropped out.
Diageo confirmed the news to The Independent on Sunday evening (April 5), saying in a statement, “We have informed the organizers of our concerns and as it stands, Diageo will not sponsor the 2026 Wireless festival.”
In addition, Far Out magazine reported on Monday (April 6) that Rockstar Energy is the third sponsor to pull out of the event, citing an unnamed source saying that the energy drinks company was dropping out due to the West booking; Billboard has reached out to Rockstar Energy for confirmation on the report.
The Live Nation-affiliated London Festival, previously branded as “Pepsi MAX Presents Wireless,” is slated to take place in London’s Finsbury Park from July 10-12, with West headlining all three nights; West previously headlined the event in 2014. Ye has faced criticism in recent years over repeated antisemitic actions and statements, including releasing a song entitled “Heil Hitler,” professing a love for Nazis and reviled Third Reich leader Adolf Hitler, selling T-shirts featuring swastikas and the white nationalist phrase “White Lives Matter” among many other antisemitic incidents.
Earlier this year, West took out a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal apologizing to the Jewish and Black communities for his actions, in advance of the recent release of his Bully album. The Wireless booking also ran afoul of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who told The Guardian last week that he felt it was, “deeply concerning that Kanye West has been booked to perform at Wireless despite his previous antisemitic remarks and celebration of Nazism. Antisemitism in any form is abhorrent and must be confronted clearly and firmly wherever it appears. Everyone has a responsibility to ensure Britain is a place where Jewish people feel safe and secure.”
In addition, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said in a statement to Complex, “We are clear that the past comments and actions of this artist are offensive and wrong, and are simply not reflective of London’s values. This was a decision taken by the festival organizers and not one that City Hall is involved in.”
The blowback to Ye’s booking also drew condemnation from the U.K.’s Jewish Leadership Council, which said, “It is deeply irresponsible for Wireless festival to be headlining Kanye West. The UK Jewish community is facing record levels of antisemitism, including a terrorist attack in Manchester, the attack on ambulances in Golders Green and foiled plots which would have killed many more.”
The nation’s Campaign Against Antisemitism also weighed in, saying in a statement, “The Prime Minister is right to be deeply concerned that Wireless wants to headline someone whose anti-Jewish bigotry has gone as far as recording a track titled ‘Heil Hitler’ less than a year ago. He is not a bystander, though. The Government can ban anyone from entering the U.K. who is not a citizen and whose presence would ‘not be conducive to the public good’. Surely this is a clear case. Pepsi has done the right thing by dropping its sponsorship of the festival, but if management are adamant that they want to headline Kanye West, it is only the Government that can stop them.”
At press time it was not clear if the U.K. government would attempt to bar West from entering the country. To date, Wireless Festival organizers have yet publicly to comment on the blowback to the West booking.
West performed two sold-out concerts at L.A.’s SoFi Stadium over the weekend in support of Bully.
