All Kanye West wanted to do yesterday was close out this year’s Governors Ball, where he was sharing headlining duties with Beck just a year or so after inviting himself onstage with the “Wow” singer at the Grammys. Truly, all the Life Of Pablo rapper wanted to do was perform for the crowd of mangy-wristbanded kids on Randall’s Island, but it was not to be, as festival organizers erred on the side of caution by canceling Sunday’s shows due to “severe weather and a high likelihood of lightning in the area.” Never mind that West performs best in the stormiest of conditions, as evinced by his significant creative output amidst all of his ramblings.
West wasn’t quite down for the count, as Gothamist reports that the platinum-selling artist dropped by Sunday night’s Hot 97 Summer Jam to drop a few bars before scrambling to put together a concert at Webster Hall. The 2 A.M. show sold out before word of it had even really spread, a fact that West eagerly shared with his followers.
Show at 2am SOLD OUT
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) June 6, 2016
But this was the rare instance in which West underestimated interest in his goings-on, as the venue was soon packed to the gills with fans. One attendee said that over 2,000 people gathered in less than 20 minutes for the pop-up show.
Naturally, pandemonium broke out.
West’s response to the swelling crowds was to ask a staffer to reach out to New York Mayor Bill de Blasio in order to allow the party that had spilled onto the streets to officially happen.
Unfortunately, West’s back-up parade was also rained on, as the Webster Hall show was canceled. Then, just when it seemed the concert was back on, with West himself arriving to survey the scene, the show was officially officially canceled. West made an apologetic speech from the sunroof of his car, as you do, but the real hero seems to be Kim Kardashian, who acquitted herself nicely as an embedded reporter in the midst of the chaos.