Kanye West, the 48-year-old rapper and music producer from the United States, is expected to hold a concert in Tirana on July 11, as part of his 2026 tour. His arrival in Tirana was announced by Edi Rama on social media, in a post describing the event as a historic concert for the capital city.
Beyond the excitement and the international fame of the American rapper, the announcement of his concert in Tirana has sparked debate due to the repeated antisemitic statements, Holocaust denial, and glorification of Adolf Hitler that Kanye West has repeatedly made.
Some dates of his European tour have been canceled precisely because of the nature of these statements, prompting strong reactions from governments in countries such as Poland and the United Kingdom.
Some human rights activists in Albania told BIRN that, given that several European countries have canceled the singer’s concerts for the reasons mentioned above, his performance this summer in Tirana raises serious questions.
“The problem here is not simply a concert or an artist; the problem is the message sent when a country legitimizes or promotes figures who have normalized hate speech, antisemitism, or the glorification of totalitarian figures that caused irreparable harm to humanity and to collective memory,” said Isa Myzyraj.
According to Isa Myzyraj, this move shows that Albania is often willing to set aside any principle for the sake of political spectacle and to attract the attention of a younger audience weary of traditional politics.
“But when this ‘game’ crosses into promoting figures who have relativized antisemitism or glorified Adolf Hitler, then we are dealing with a red line that should never have been crossed,” Isa Myzyraj added.
Even Gentian Serjani, a lawyer and activist in Tirana, told BIRN that this appeared to be more of a political approach by our leaders.
He added that Edi Rama’s positions toward international leaders have been inconsistent, marked by sharp shifts in his stance — such as his earlier statements against Donald Trump and his later, completely different approach toward him, including praise.
“In the end, this is the political approach our prime minister has chosen to follow. Still, it remains to be seen how representatives of the State of Israel in our country will react,” Serjani said, adding that the financing of Kanye West’s concert as a form of promotion for the country had prevailed over the singer’s antisemitic statements.
Activist Isa Myzyraj also added that, in fact, it is difficult to understand Albania’s decision to promote such a controversial figure as Kanye West at a time when many countries and concert organizers have distanced themselves from him because of his antisemitic rhetoric.
“Moreover, this creates a strong political contradiction for Prime Minister Edi Rama himself, who only a few months ago delivered a speech at the Knesset, presenting himself as a strong supporter of Israel and of the fight against antisemitism,” Isa Myzyraj said.
According to the activists, the propaganda of several senior officials claiming that Albania will earn millions of euros from this event also raises a serious dilemma.
“On a broader level, the question arises as to how far we are willing to go as a country in order to make some money,” Isa Myzyraj added, emphasizing that if one looks into the details, even more questions emerge, including about the money the state budget is expected to profit from.
“There are many questions, but the answer always seems to be the same: Kanye West is coming to Albania, and that’s it!” Isa Myzyraj concluded.
