Rick Scott’s pushing back hard against Ye’s Tampa shows, pointing to his antisemitic history.
Ye is heading to Tampa this month, and U.S. Senator Rick Scott wants the city to shut it down before the rapper even sets foot in Raymond James Stadium.
Scott’s making noise about the antisemitic rhetoric that’s followed Ye for years, calling out the contradiction between what happened in Los Angeles and what’s about to go down in Florida.
Back in April, Ye rolled through SoFi Stadium in LA for two sold-out nights and walked away with $33 million in revenue, with his Friday show alone pulling in over $18 million in ticket sales.
The backlash was minimal. People showed up, paid the premium prices of over $300 per ticket, and the machine kept moving.
But now that the same artist is scheduled for Florida, Scott is drawing a line in the sand, arguing that taxpayer-funded venues shouldn’t platform someone pushing what he calls “dangerous, hateful rhetoric.”
Scott, who is MAGA-aligned like Kanye, issued a direct statement.
He pointed to Ye’s history of praising Nazis, calling himself one, and funding a 2025 Super Bowl ad that directed viewers to merchandise featuring swastikas.
“What we spend public money on reflects our values,” Scott wrote, according to Florida Politics, emphasizing that Florida has one of the largest Jewish populations in the country and that the community deserves better.
The timing is interesting because Ye’s facing resistance everywhere else, too.
The UK blocked him from entering the country in April over concerns about antisemitism, which led to the cancellation of the Wireless Festival. But in the Netherlands, a judge recently ruled that his concerts could proceed despite protests from Jewish organizations.
The Central Jewish Council’s response was telling: “The feeling we are getting is that it is okay if you are antisemitic.”
The Tampa Sports Authority Board of Directors will decide whether to let the show happen, but Scott’s making it clear that some lines shouldn’t be crossed, even if the money’s good.
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