06-05-2025
Kehlani's NYC concert SummerStage is canceled amid 'safety concerns' from Mayor Eric Adams' office
Mayor Eric Adams has canceled a scheduled performance by Kehlani in Central Park as she continues to face backlash over anti-Israel sentiments.
The singer had been set to headline a June 26 concert billed as 'Pride with Kehlani' at the iconic Manhattan park as part of SummerStage, an annual slate of free concerts at parks across the city.
But organizers on Monday revealed the concert would no longer go ahead, citing concerns from the Mayor's office.
Kehlani had also been slated to perform at Cornell University on May 7, but the Ivy League school rescinded the invitation last month, saying the planned appearance had 'injected division and discord' into its annual Slope Day celebration.
SummerStage said in the Monday statement that Adams' office was concerned about the 'controversy surrounding Cornell University's decision to cancel Kehlani's concert at the University, as well as security demands in Central Park and throughout the City for other Pride events during that same period.'
'We strongly and emphatically believe in artistic expression of all kinds,' the organization wrote in the announcement posted on Instagram.
'However, the safety and security of our guests and artists is of the utmost importance and in light of these concerns, the concert has been cancelled.'
Kehlani responded on Instagram Stories by sharing the announcement, along with the phrase 'lol.'
The post included a selfie in which the musician wrote: 'I just found that one out on Instagram by the way.
'I'm so deeply grounded in my purpose, my mission, my art, my contribution. Back to this album. See you this weekend LA!'
Adams spokesperson Kayla Mamelak Altus said the administration was 'grateful' for the City Parks Foundation, the nonprofit that organizes SummerStage, for responding to its concerns.
'We look forward to an exciting lineup of other performances this summer,' she wrote in an email.
Last month, Kehlani pushed back at claims she had expressed antisemitic and anti-Israel sentiments.
'For the millionth time, that I am not antisemitic nor anti-Jew,' she said in a video, also posted on Instagram.
'I am anti-genocide. I am anti-the actions of the Israeli government. I am anti-an extermination of an entire people. I am anti-the bombing of innocent children, men, women — that's what I'm anti.'
The California native has been vocal in supporting Palestinians during the ongoing war in Gaza.
Her music video 'Next 2 U' opens with the phrase 'long live the intifada' and features dancers waving Palestinian flags.
Intifada, an Arabic word for 'uprising' or 'resistance,' is seen by some as a call for violence against Jews.
After her performance at Cornell was canceled, University President Michael Kotlikoff sent an email explaining the decision to rescind her invitation, arguing she had 'espoused antisemitic, anti-sentiments in performances, videos and on social media.'
PEN America, a group that advocates for artists' freedom of expression, called the cancellation 'cowardly.'
It noted the decision came as US Rep. Ritchie Torres, a Democrat representing the Bronx, slammed Kehlani's appearance, saying the city has 'no business subsidizing or sanitizing antisemitism at taxpayer expense' in a post on X.
'It is deeply unsettling to see elected officials using their offices to dictate the bounds of acceptable expression and muscling private entities to fall into line,' PEN America said in a statement.
