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Kanye West Finally Addresses Bonnaroo Incident
After receiving the wrath of concertgoers for appearing on stage two hours late, the hip-hop maven takes to the Web and sounds off.
By William Goodman 06.25.08 4:45 PM
As previously reported, Kanye West left more than a few Bonnaroo concertgoers with a sour scowl after he failed to hit the festival's main stage on time, pushing his set -- already moved from 8:45 P.M. June 14 -- back and forcing fans to wait. And just before the sun began to rise, West finally appeared onstage at 4:45 A.M., some two hours past his already rescheduled 2:45 A.M. set time.
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In Bonnaroo's aftermath, much distress about the defunct show swept the Web, with rumors stating West's sun-up appearance was due to numerous reasons, from logistical complications of his Glow in the Dark light show to the absence of the rapper's hairdresser, to Pearl Jam's elongated set -- we filmed loads of morning-after fan reactions at Bonnaroo. Either way, West can only handle so many harsh stabs, and now the hip-hop wunderkind has taken to the Web, attempting to clear the air in a heated rant.
"For over a month we went back and forth on whether or not we could even fit my stage at the festival," West writes to his blog kanyeuniversecity.com. "One day they would say yes. We'd send them our specs [and] then they'd say OK. Then they would send specs back that didn't fit the stage.
"They tried to give me a time slot where it was still light outside," he continues. "I have a fucking light show dumb ass. It's not called Glow in the Dark for no reason squid brains!" [To read the complete diatribe, visit here]
West goes on to claim his crew was not allowed to set up until after Pearl Jam's departure, and that by the time he got on stage it was drenched in liquid and refuse, and his video screen was busted. "Call me what you want, but never say I didn't give my all," he writes.
True, Kanye West's rant/apology appears genuine in some aspects -- and would have been much appreciated at Bonnaroo, to the fans who waited to party with him until the crack of dawn -- but if Bonnaroo officials can host many of the earth's biggest bands with out hang up -- including Pearl Jam, Metallica, Flaming Lips, and Radiohead -- West's needs shouldn't be too grand to accommodate, right? So, dear music fans, who do you think is to blame?
Does anyone remember the Rolling Stones cover with 50 Cent vs. Kayne West? Who would you root for? I suggest, 50, cuz Kayne mite show up 2 hours late.
"It's time to wake up, Mr. West!" (Jane from Bonnaroo performance)
No fucking shit, 2 hours late, asshole
"It's not called Glow in the Dark for no reason squid brains!" I think I heard that once during an argument in a junior high school cafeteria.
What a moron. Kanye charges 25 for his fanclub? Big deal, Pearl Jam charges 20 US, 25 Int. I'm not a Kanye fan but your just acting ignorant
HAHAHAHA omfg what a dick. i'm sorry, i can "appreciate" he puts "a lot" of "work" into his performances, but its a straight up lie when he says he cares about his fans. i was at bonnaroo, and a fucking shit load of people had been standing for like 10 fucking hours before he came on. jack johnson started at 8, and then we rocked out at pearl jam (btw anyone who says my morning jacket was better can eat shit) and he made us wait for 4 fucking hours. he was physically torturing us, with no thought in his mind of "hmm.... this is taking a while, maybe i should go out there and say something." i have a theory. jack johnson kicks the shit out of kanye, and with them both playing at the same time, and kanye being on the Which Stage instead of the What Stage, his ego was hurt. he put up a whole shit conniption about his light show and how, and i quote "FOR OVER A MONTH WE WENT BACK AND FORTH ON WETHER OR NOT WE COULD EVEN FIT MY STAGE AT THE FESTIVAL." notice its all in caps... bonnaroo was like... fine, we'll push you back till after pearl jam. eddier vedder was being the fucking man as he is and poked kanye as his set was ending by saying that he had to leave the stage because "its gonna get all glow in the dark out here" kanye got pissed and didn't wanna go out on stage. so we waited for 4 hours without reason or acknowledgment. he doesn't give a rats ass about anyone but himself, his money and his bad, bad light show. his light show blew. and besides, how can you really "care" about your fans when you charge the 25$ to join your fan club. its called a fan club because its a club consisting of fans. how are you gonna charge them to join. i don't think i could love anybody enough to just give them 25 bucks. i really hope they get a sweater or something when they sign up