Wireless Festival boss defends decision to book Kanye West amid sponsor withdrawals
Pepsi pulled out as festival sponsor after Kanye West was announced as headliner
The 2026 Wireless Festival organizer defended its company's decision to book Kanye West for the three-day event.
Melvin Benn, the managing director of the London event, shared a statement on social media on Sunday, encouraging people to "forgive" the rapper.
“Forgiveness and giving people a second chance are becoming a lost virtue in this ever-increasing divisive world,” Melvin wrote.
“I would ask people to reflect on their instant comments of disgust at the likelihood of him performing (as was mine) and offer some forgiveness and hope to him as I have decided to do," added the Wireless Festival boss.
Melvin's statement comes after several sponsors were pulled from London's Wireless Festival.
For those unversed, Pepsi was the main sponsor of the UK event, which will be held in Finsbury Park from July 10-12.
"Pepsi has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Wireless Festival," a company's representative told CNN Monday.
It is worth mentioning here that Kanye has faced intense backlash in recent years after making repeated offensive and antisemitic remarks.
Last week, the 48-year-old controversial rapper performed two concerts at LA's SoFi Stadium, marking his first major U.S. performances in five years.
