KazNU Comments on Zemfira's Concert Being Cancelled

Russian singer Zemfira recently announced the cancellation of her concert in Almaty, Orda.kz reports.

The concert was scheduled to take place on the football field of Khan Tengri Stadium, which is owned by Al-Farabi Kazakh National University (KazNU).

KazNU clarified that the university administration had not been informed about who would be performing at the stadium.

The University received a notification on June 2, 2025 (outgoing No. 7.01) from the General Director of FC Khan-Tengri T.K. Moldagaliyev about holding a musical event. The notification did not state that the musical event was a concert of the singer Zemfira,
the university explained in an official statement.

The university responded on June 16, reminding them that third-party events require written approval from the university, as outlined in the lease agreement.

No such approval had been given.

KazNU also noted that large-scale evening and nighttime concerts are prohibited at the stadium due to nearby residential buildings.

The University is responsible for compliance with the law when holding mass events on its territory, including ensuring law and order and security. It is not possible to hold the said musical event on the territory of the University stadium,
the statement added.

In a post on social media, Zemfira addressed the cancellation:

I have bad news – the concert in Almaty will not take place. Everything went wrong from the very beginning. Four months of approvals, the relocation of the venue, and in the end, an official refusal to hold the concert from the rector in charge of the Khan-Tengri stadium, of course, for a far-fetched reason. Two weeks before the concert. For me, the ‘poster’ is sacred, so I do not understand... I am very sorry. 

The cancellation adds Zemfira to a growing list of international artists whose performances in Kazakhstan have been called off due to administrative or regulatory reasons.

Original Author: Alina Pak