Ye sold 100,000 tickets to two St. Petersburg stadium shows in two days — now a Russian lawmaker wants them canceled

American rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, is set to perform two shows at St. Petersburg's Gazprom Arena in mid-October. Organizers say more than 100,000 tickets were sold in the first two days alone, and interest in his visit has not let up — State Duma deputies, public figures and social media users are all weighing in.

Duma deputy Vitaly Milonov recently suggested Ye add Russian chanson, a genre rooted in prison folklore, to his setlist, proposing he perform songs by Mikhail Krug or duet with Mikhail Shufutinsky. Rumors then spread on social media that Ye wanted to perform with pro-war singer Shaman; a leaked screenshot suggested Shaman declined, though concert organizers denied any such talks took place. Leningrad frontman Sergei Shnurov has also expressed interest in joining Ye onstage but has not been invited.

Lawmakers remain divided over the visit. A Just Russia deputy Yelena Drapeko welcomed the concerts and thanked Ye for coming despite what she called anti-Russian hysteria, while United Russia's Svetlana Zhurova floated a possible meeting between Ye and President Vladimir Putin. Anna Subcheva, head of the organizing agency, said meeting Putin has long been Ye's dream and that he has admired the Russian leader for years.

Meanwhile, fellow A Just Russia deputy Nikolai Novichkov said he would seek to have the concerts canceled unless Ye publicly declares 'moral support' for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The head of the Veterans of Russia movement called for part of the proceeds to go to Russian troops, while the head of a state-linked internet-safety group and several Orthodox priests have also objected to the visit.

The anticipation has spilled into the housing and transport markets: short-term rental demand in St. Petersburg has risen at least sevenfold, by some estimates as much as 16-fold, while demand for train tickets on the concert dates has jumped 41-fold.