Rapper Kanye West holds his first rally in support of his presidential bid in North Charleston, South Carolina, US, July 19, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Randall Hill

The organizer of Ye’s upcoming concert in Portugal insisted that the performance will take place as scheduled, despite the cancellation of several of the American musician’s other performances across Europe because of past antisemitic behavior and comments.

Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, is scheduled to perform at the Algarve Stadium on Aug. 7 as part of his world tour. Torcato Jorge, the CEO and co-founder of Raya Culture, the event’s organizer, told Euronews Culture the upcoming show is “a music event that’s going to happen.”

“It would become an issue if the services identified a national threat to public order, which is not the case,” Jorge added. “There has to be a state internal security report saying that this citizen cannot enter the country … Each country is free to decide whether or not to allow a citizen to enter, but in the European Union there has been no country that has vetoed their entry into national territory.”

Jorge noted that the SIS, Portugal’s security agency and intelligence agency, has not categorized the 48-year-old singer as a national threat or terrorist. Raya Culture also said that, so far, no issues have been brought to their attention regarding Ye’s entry into Portugal, and there is no indication that the Grammy winner will cancel the concert.

“There’s no fear whatsoever that he’ll take the same stance as he did in France,” said the organization, referring to Ye’s decision to cancel his concert at the Vélodrome in Marseille, France. The move came after the mayor of Marseille said Ye was “not welcome” in his city, and after Jewish leaders called for the concert to be canceled.

Jorge also told Euronews Culture he thinks the controversy surrounding Ye’s appearance on stage, in light his offensive remarks and actions, is fueled by “misinformation” and is “a non-issue” for his organization.

Earlier this month, the United Kingdom banned Ye from entering the country because of his past antisemitic comments and promotion of Nazism, for which he apologized in January. He was set to headline the three-day Wireless Festival in London from July 10-12 but after he was denied entry into the UK, the music festival was canceled.

Ye – who last year sold T-shirts that featured a swastika design — also had his concerts in Poland and Switzerland canceled. He was scheduled to perform at the Silesia Stadium in Chorzów, in southern Poland, in June but the venue announced this month that the show would not take place due to “formal and legal reasons.” Poland’s Culture Minister Marta Cienkowska said Ye should not be allowed to perform in a country “scarred by the history of the Holocaust.”

Ye’s concert in Switzerland was scheduled to take place in June at St. Jakob-Park, a sports stadium in Basel that is home to the Swiss soccer team FC Basel. The Swiss soccer team recently announced that the artist pulled out. “FCB received an enquiry and considered it,” the team said in a statement to AFP. “After a thorough review, we decided not to pursue the project further, as we cannot, in accordance with our values, provide a platform for the artist in question within this context.”

Jorge told Euronews Culture he believes Ye’s antisemitic comments were “a mistake” and defended the artist by saying his offensive actions are not a reflection of his legacy in the music industry. “For those who like music, entertainment, and big productions, I think it’s going to be a very interesting experience,” he said of the upcoming concert in Portugal.

Ye has already performed this year in Mexico City and the United States, where he took over SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles with guest performances by Lauryn Hill, Travis Scott, and Ceelo Green. Ye has not performed in Europe since 2014. The artist is also banned from Australia.