Kanye West finally responds to Wireless backlash by explaining his intentions for headline show

Kanye West has broken his silence on the controversy surrounding his headline slot at this year's Wireless Festival.

The musician, 48, shared a brief statement on Tuesday (7 March) in regards to the discourse which has erupted since it was announced he was topping the bill.

There's been calls to ban him from entering the UK - which the Home Office are currently 'considering', according to health secretary Wes Streeting.

Wireless organisers addressed the backlash surrounding West's pending appearance on Monday, after a number of sponsors withdrew their support.

Melvin Benn, Managing Director at Festival Republic, urged people to 'offer some forgiveness and hope to' West despite his past comments.

The 'Runaway' rapper - who has not performed in the UK since he headlined Glastonbury in 2015 - previously voiced his admiration for Adolf Hitler, and has made a series of antisemitic remarks.

West said he wants to 'bring unity, peace and love' to Wireless (Scott Dudelson/Getty Images)

Last year he released a song called 'Heil Hitler', a few months after advertising a swastika T-shirt for sale on his website. He has been banned from X because of antisemitism on multiple occasions.

Now, West has offered to meet with the British Jewish community ahead of Wireless - and says he is aware that actions speak louder than words.

The father-of-four said he has been 'following the conversation' surrounding his scheduled performances at the three-day festival, which takes place at Finsbury Park in July.

"I’ve been following the conversation around Wireless and want to address it directly," West said in a statement.

“My only goal is to come to London and present a show of change, bringing unity, peace, and love through my music.

“I would be grateful for the opportunity to meet with members of the Jewish community in the UK in person, to listen. I know words aren’t enough - I’ll have to show change through my actions.

"If you’re open, I’m here."

Sponsors have been pulling out of the festival after it was announced the rapper would be headlining all three days (Joseph Okpako/WireImage)

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer previously described the decision to book West as the headliner as 'deeply concerning', while Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has faced calls from politicians and the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) to ban the star from coming to the UK, saying his presence would not be 'conducive to the public good'.

Presale tickets for Wireless Festival are released at 12pm on Tuesday, and the general sale opens at 12pm on Wednesday.

In January, West took out a full-page advert in the Wall Street Journal to apologise for his controversial comments, which was titled 'To Those I’ve Hurt'.

"I am not a Nazi or an antisemite,” it said. "I love Jewish people.”

In his letter, he said his bipolar disorder led him to fall into 'a four-month-long, manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behaviour that destroyed my life'.

But Health Secretary Wes Streeting has said he thinks the use of bipolar disorder by Kanye West to justify his actions is appalling.

He said: "I would ask people to consider, does using bipolar disorder as an excuse to write and release a song called Heil Hitler and plaster it across T-shirts, does bipolar disorder really justify that?

"Or is it an excuse to justify rotten behaviour?”