Kanye West put on a spectacle for his fans in Sacramento, California Saturday night (November 19), reportedly performing three songs, bringing out Kid Cudi, going on another extended rant that took shots at people and organizations across a broad spectrum and then cutting the show short after about 30 minutes.
The erratic performance came only days after Kanye’s last politically fueled tirade, where he proclaimed his support for president-elect Donald Trump.
Bringing Kid Cudi out for an emotional moment of reconciliation, the two hugged it out on the floating stage as throngs of people watched from below. Cudi and Kanye’s relationship went through some turmoil in September, ahead of Cudi checking into rehab for depression.
Kanye then went on a lengthy rant, veering from topic to topic and occasionally pausing to address the crowd’s increasing boos.
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Here are some key points, divided by topic. Watch the full rant below.
On Obama
“Obama couldn’t make America great. Because he couldn’t be him to be who he was. Black men have been slaves. Obama wasn’t allowed to do this [yells] and still win. He had to be perfect. But being perfect don’t always change shit, bruh.
On Beyonce
“Beyoncé, I was hurt, because I heard that you said you wouldn’t perform unless you won video of the year over me and over ‘Hotline Bling.’ Now, don’t go trying to diss Beyoncé, she is great. Taylor Swift is great. We are all great people. We are all equal. But sometimes we be playing the politics too much and forgetting who we are just to win. Fuck winning. Fuck looking cool. Fuck being cool. Fuck all that, bro. I’ve been sent here to give y’all my truth even at the risk of my own life. Even at the risk of my own success, my own career. I’ve been sent here to give y’all my truth.”
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On Jay Z
“Jay Z, call me, bruh. You still ain’t call me. Jay Z, call me. Hey, bro, Jay Z, I know you’ve got killers. Please don’t send them at my head. Just call me. Talk to me like a man.”
On Equality
“I’m not trying to be the man, I’m just a man. The same as everybody here. I ain’t above or below none of y’all. We all equal. This is the vibes, bruh. This is the future. This is the way of thinking to make America great again.”
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On Feelings
“You don’t like that. Guess what? Y’all need the vibes. I was hurt. Feelings matter, bro. The way muthafuckas put money up so high. Popularity. Radio spins. Feelings matter, bruh. It’s a new world, Hillary Clinton. It’s a new world. Feelings matter. Because guess what? Everybody in middle America felt a way, and they showed you how they felt […] It’s a new world Barack. It’s a new world Jay Z. Hey, don’t send killers at my head, bro, this ain’t the Malcolm X movie. We’re growing from that moment. Let ‘Ye be ‘Ye.”
On Drake & DJ Khaled Getting Radio Play
“Is it just me or did you hear that song so many times—you say you wanna play “For Free.” Aye, aye. You know what it is, though? Because aye, I love Drake. I love Khaled. But they set that song up, bro. … Khaled, I know you got hitters from Miami. Please do not send them at my head. I just want to have a conversation about how we playing radio’s game. Khaled, you a real nigga. Khaled, you a real nigga. You got the keys.”
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On Fake Truth
“I ain’t here to massage you with the fake truth, telling you that Hillary going to win over and over and over. Then you wake up and you still can’t believe it. You know why? Because you was lied to by Google. You was lied to by Mark Zuckerberg.”
On Mark Zuckerberg
“Mark Zuckerberg, you wanna call me now? Do I got the vision, Mark Zuckerberg? Was you wrong? When I said I was $53 million in debt and you didn’t call me, was you wrong? You ate dinner, you asked my friend Ebony Schiller to have dinner with me. I told you about Donda. You said you would help and you didn’t. Then you went to look for aliens. Me and Kid Cudi are aliens right here, bro.”
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On Change
“There’s a Richard Pryor interview that you can watch about people coming into power and not changing anything, just becoming a part of the power. That’s happening with musicians because they’re scared. I’m not scared. I’m here to change things. I am here to change things. Things won’t change until people admit they own falsehoods. I got the vision, bruh. That is what I’ve been blessed with. My vision. I’m not always going to say things the perfect way. I’m going to say it how I feel. Right now, press, get ready to write your passive aggressive, LeBron James, racist comments. Season four racist comments. Get ready to have a field day, press. Get ready. Get ready. Because the show’s over.”
Post-concert reaction
Fans (including members of the Sacramento Kings) were left in shock.
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Watch the 17-minute video of Kanye’s rant in Sacramento below.
Miss the old Kanye? Check out DX’s latest Breakdown about the topic here.
