(ConservativeInsider.org) – The controversial rapper and business mogul Kanye West, also known as Ye, allegedly landed in Moscow, Russia on Sunday, June 30.
According to Russian state media, West visited the former Soviet nation to celebrate the birthday of Gosha Rubchinskiy, a Russian fashion designer. Rubchinskiy was named as the new creative director for West’s fashion brand Yeezy in late 2023.
West, who has been known as a trailblazer throughout his career, is the first big American celebrity to visit Russia since their invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Rumors flew that West would be performing at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, but the general director of the Talent Concert International, Eduard Ratnikov, said the rumors were false.
Posts about West were shared wildly on Russian social media, including from Yana Rudkovskaya, a Russian producer, who said it was “super news” that the American rapper was visiting. Videos of fans gathered outside the Four Seasons in Moscow, where West is rumored to be staying in the Presidential Suite, were shared on social media as well.
West has long been interested in Russian President Vladimir Putin. During an interview on the Revolt TV “Drink Champs” podcast, West called himself “Young Putin.” Ameer Sudan, a music producer who has been a longtime associate of West, shared that West has been trying to meet with the Russian President since at least 2018, and was potentially planning to invite the leader to one of his performances, though this has yet to materialize.
The controversial trip is a part of a series of controversial moves for the rapper, who has faced harsh criticism within the last year over remarks that were widely viewed as antisemitic, such as his statements suggesting he believed there were “good things about [Adolf] Hitler” and that he “love[s] Nazis” during an interview with controversial podcaster Alex Jones.
Though West’s wife, Bianca Censori, has regularly traveled with the rapper, she was not seen alongside West during his visit to Russia.
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