VMAs: Kanye's moment
It's always something at the VMAs, isn't it? Tonight, it was Kanye West, crashing Taylor Swift's acceptance speech to protest her award for Best Female Video. He thought Beyonce should have won:
So is rudeness having a moment? (See: Joe Wilson, joint session of Congress.) Or will decorum take the day? Twitter and Facebook were abuzz with anger within moments of West's outburst, including some funny and profane tweets from the likes of Katy Perry and Pink. The crowd inside Radio City Music Hall howled in protest every time West's name was mentioned. And in a gracious move, Beyonce, who ended up winning Video of the Year for "Single Ladies," after all, used her acceptance-speech platform to invite Swift "to come out and have her moment." Swift emerged quickly (almost too quickly, as if this were all orchestrated well beforehand) and got enormous applause, but she looked shaken. The VMAs are not for the faint of heart. But they are sometimes, surprisingly, about manners.
Edited to add: As Sarah Rodman notes over on our sister blog, Sound Effects, West issued an all-caps apology on his blog last night, and acknowledged that he got a dressing-down from Swift's mother. Tonight, West is a guest on the first episode of the "Jay Leno Show." Does Jay get the gift of another Hugh Grant moment? (And is this all some elaborate hoax orchestrated by Hennessy and NBC? Nah.)
I am not surprised of that idiot no talent Kayne West's stupid outburst.
It is not the first time he has made a fool of himself. And his apology
means nothing. Beyonce showed class by inviting Taylor back on stage.
What a classless L-O-S-E-R!! ...."Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'M let you finish"..... his mother, the ENGLISH PROFESSOR, must be SO proud....
Can we say "Poor impulse control?" Kanye is a loose cannon!
Shame on West who just want the spotlight on himself. Thank you Beyonce for being a classy lady. Taylor, you rock!
why cant you keep politics out of this?
The Joe Wilson comment was totally Un-called for.
Stupid liberal rag.
You stay classy Kanye.
Kanye West does not care about white people.
Kanye is such a lamer. He should be banned from all future VMA's for that little performance tonight.
What a total nerd.
Kanye West hates white people.
What a butt head.
Yo Kanye tone it down my brother. Your giving us brothers a bad name. Everytime you open yo mouth blacks lose respect from the rest of the population. Chill out Kanye Beyonce got her props.
Give a break, who listens to this crap?
Taylor Swift never should have crossed over to the pop music scene. She is a talented country singer and songwriter--a true musician. The industry has watered down music in a disgusting way and dressed it up in a sequined leotard. And as I'm sure Taylor knows, shaking your butt in front of a camera might win you a VMA, but it does not make you a good musician.
I wish MTV security had tackled and tazed him when he improperly went on stage...
he is an idiot , and his music is dull, and rips off other riffs and lyrics constantly. Last year he labeled himself as the new Led Zeppelin or Beatles. Now he proves he is rude, selfish and thinks the universe revolves around him. Sorry dude, but you are a flash in the pan. A disgrace to music.
The new "Michael Richards"
it was all orchestrated. That's part of the "Kanye" persona and you better believe it was planned in advance. In addition to the apology, the Beyonce/Taylor Swift "moment," etc. These things are like professional wrestling: you need to have "bad" characters (Kanye) to have good characters and this is just another cog in the storyline.
Typical bad behavior from a self-obsessed minor celebrity -- no one cares who Kanye thinks should have won. Cheers to Beyonce for later sharing her spotlight moment with Taylor Swift, but boo to Kanye for robbing her of it in the first place. What an a$$. I hope they ban him from future shows ... not that I think his "star" is going to hang around all that much longer anyway.
who is this jerkwad Canye?
Wow, it takes a really big "man" to humiliate one young woman and embarrass another, doesn't it? I don't care how much fame and money West has, he's just a punk bad guy wanna-be. Ms. Swift and Ms. Knowles didn't deserve what he did; they are BOTH winners but West is a complete loser and I don't mean just for music awards.
Between Joe Wilson, Serena Williams and Kanye West, it was National Outburst Week.
The VMA's are like pro wrestling - everything is scripted.
"I'm gonna let you finish" Why thanks Kayne, I didn't know you controlled the stage. Poor Kayne lost his Mom, because she was as stupid as he is...and he paid for it. BRAVO! You killed your Mom! Live with that.
Obviously, Taylor hates black people too, just like G. Bush! I can only imagine the uproar there would be if a white artist took the mike away from a black artist and made comments similar to West. Funny (not) how reverse racism is not viewed as being just as ugly it's white counterpart. But then again, the chances of the Globe leading the way on that front is just about as probable as their honest reporting on the Health Care debate.
Anytime you buy one of his songs or go to one of his concerts you helo Kanye. If he is going to be an entertainer he really should have big red floppy shoes, a red ball on his nose and arrive in a little tiny car, he is a no talent clown.
Remember the old MTV videos were they put up the little bubbles like cartoon characters talking? They should have done that with Kanye. My suggestions
"This is what happens when you smoke crack"
" I may look like a grown man, but I'm inellectually and emotionally five years old"
" I'm so glad I'm from the MTV generation were looks are more important than talent"
People really shouldn't talk about him
I wonder if outbursts like this help him escape the crushing, desperate loneliness that comes with being a falsehood through and through.
He would have never played on one of my teams.
Kanye leaves the impression of a bitter, low class individual who draws attention to himself in any way possible, maybe because his talent doesn't draw attention for him, bad manners !!
Hey Devon,
good choice on using 'yo' the second time around, since your 1st 'your' should have been 'you're.'
Thank God for Kayne! In a world of music that is controlled by corporate America it is nice to see one rebel among all the Disney employees in the crowd. Too bad I think the whole thing was staged but, wouldn't it be wonderful if it wasn't?
Joe WIllson gets $200,000 in donations and Kayne West's albums will fly off the shelf today. Ridiculous acts of rudeness and arrogance are rewarded. MTV is great at sending the wrong message to all of those impressionable teenagers who still think it is the center of all trends (I guess this is nothing new...). MTV should be ashamed and embarrassed and should ban Kayne West and force him into obscurity. But that will never happen unless his albums stop selling....
why cant you keep politics out of this?
The Joe Wilson comment was totally Un-called for.
Stupid liberal rag.
Looks like you aren't Elvis afterall, Kanye Pest. When losers become stars bad things happen.
The Video Music Awards was last night? What network showed them. I know M-TV used to back when they showed videos. Wow, that's cool.
Got the attention he wanted, though. Didn't he?
Can someone say double standard? If a white performer ever interrupted Beyonce or another African-American performer during his or her acceptance speech, he would have been labeled a racist and the NAACP would have demanded an apology and called for the protesting of his music. Where are these groups now?
Again, double standards apply when it comes to African-Americans.
This isn't the first time he's done somethingl ike this. He's an attention whore. Notice he never gets up and bothers big black african american artist? Why? because they would kick his teeth in, thats why. But a skinny teenaged girl- sure, what a big man.
He is an embarrassment and should have to be left out of other live events. He's proven he can't, or won't, be respectful of the other performers.
LIke Beyonce eneeds he to stick up for her. He just embarressed himself and her.
PS- his Girlfriend looks like a dude.
OK, so after viewing the video a couple of times, it's very obvious that this was scripted.
Kudos, MTV. You know how to work viral marketing. Clap. Clap.
I will continue to have nothing to do with either you or Kanye West.
omg i cant believe kayne west did that. it was first award, and kills her moment. kayne giving black people a bad name opening his mouth, i hope this comes back to hunted him...
Boycott Kanye - seriously - this guy is a complete and total JERK
He should be banished from these awards.
If this were a white guy doing the same thing people would be screaming he is a racest. OHHH my
Does anybody even watch the VMAs anymore? I didn't know they still had music videos - maybe they should be You Tube awards. How do you amp up ratings for a has-been show?
Kanye has to be the most RACIST jerk in the business!! If a white performer did what he did to beyonce he would already have jesse jackson and al sharpton at his front door!
al sharpton thank the lord this wasnt a white guy you would be all over the television crying racism
Country of entitlement...we heard you the first time, and just don't care. The Kanye West moment was similiar to the "Lie" chant, in the sense that they are both current, both incredibly rude and uncalled for, and will hurt both careers. Sorry if you don't like anyone complaining at all about right winged politics, but there is a reason they republicans almost got completely swept.
Boycott Kanye West
GOD, I HATE COUNTRY MUSIC! I don't like this West guy at all, but I love HIP-HOP and R&B.
Someone needs to tell Kanye that while he was cementing his 8th grade educated-donkey reputation, he missed 2 phone calls. The first was from the police station. They said that they STILL can not find his missing talent. The second was from Kool Moe D. He said that he wants his image back.
HEY WEST! You are not bigger than the industry. Can't wait to see you on a reality show in 2-years after you flush out.
It's a bad behavior month for people with W starting their names; West, Wilson and Williams. What ever happened to manners and civility? At least the US Open has already fined Ms. Williams for her outburst and after the investigation, she may loose all the money she would have made from the Open. Wilson should be sanctioned by the House. What he did was in violation of the House rules and whether President Obama accepted his apology makes no difference. If Wilson has made a similar outburst during a speech by one of his colleagues on the House floor, he would have been sanctioned. Mr. West should have his invitation to the VMA suspended for a few years.
Kanye is a perfect LOSER...he has achieved the pinnacle of being a LOSER....I wonder how he would react if the tables were turned and say Toby Keith came up on stage and took the mic from him during a speech? Kanye would be a total gentleman right? Bull! This guy is a wanna be Jay Z....he has no talent worthy of spending your $$ on...he is a cartoon charachter, a cry baby who needs to work on his talent...he is a sad little boy.
Kayne should probably go back and finish the 5th grade. It reminds me when Prince got inducted into the Music Hall of Fame and the inductee (ludicris of something) was telling people to give a standing ovation. You don't tell people to stand up, that's not the point.
You can take the clown from the ghetto, but you cant take the ghetto from the clown... It is only a matter of time before his clock is set to "Hammer Time" and his creditors own everything.
Kanye is a perfect LOSER...he has achieved the pinnacle of being a LOSER....I wonder how he would react if the tables were turned and say Toby Keith came up on stage and took the mic from him during a speech? Kanye would be a total gentleman right? Bull! This guy is a wanna be Jay Z....he has no talent worthy of spending your $$ on...he is a cartoon charachter, a cry baby who needs to work on his talent...he is a sad little boy.
No, this is where if it was a white person that did what Kanye did, we would be hearing from Sharpton and Jackson well into the New Year!!!
He is a no talent peice of garbage riding who knows who's coat tails!
as I read this, the first thing was, "oh my, if this had been a white man/woman doing this, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and all the other losers who don't work, would have been all over this. But, did anyone even attempt to get him off the stage, NO. As others have posted definitely two standards. He should be banned and not allowed at any more award shows. Another prime example of an idiot who just because he thinks he is famous he can behave like this.
Kudos to Taylor Swift and Beyonce.
I'm with Kanye on this one. How does Taylor Swift win Best Female Video and then Beyonce win Video of the Year? VMA's are a joke.
Kanye is a genuine Axis II sociopath. He can't help himself-he has narcissistic personality disorder and will always act this way.
I want to see some SNL skits where she battles for mic or hits him with the award when he turns around. To bad it wasn't Reba McEntire, Parton,Twain or even Miley Cyrus would give him a " Oh no you didn't just take my spotlight". Kanye knows how to pick his battles though, 100 pound girls. he'll be "sampling" her talent by the end of the year, maybe they'll do a Christmas album together.
Kanye is an IDIOT.....he had a "Prof Louis Gates" moment and showed his true self... He don't care for WHITE folks...
On the upside, I do want to mention that both Ms. Swift and Ms. Knowels were incrediably classy. So, their behavior should recieve as much notice. They were both gracious and diginified. Ms. Swift could have slapped Mr. West, but instead she let him make a fool of himself without sinking to his level. Ms. Knowels behaved with utter graciousness to Ms. Swift when she had the opportunity. I like her music, but I like her much better now. Both women should be commended for their grace and talent.
What Kanye did was beyond disrespectful and rude. While I believe Kanye is a brilliant musican and also believe that Beyonce's video should've won given the enormous viral interest in that video (spawning thousands of wanna-be videos from children to adults), what he did was so wrong. You don't spoil someone's rightful moment of accepting an award to spew your own personal outrage. I'm all for freedom of speech, but not at the detriment of someone else's moment. MTV should take a stand at his blatant disrespect of a fellow artist and ban him from next year's awards ceremony. If he happens to win an award, they can mail it to him. Can you imagine how HE'D react if someone did that to him while he was accepting an award? Note to Kanye...you're a talented musician, but the world doesn't revolve around you....get a grip, get some anger management counseling and relax!
Kanye West hates white people.
Its not a black-white thing its an idiot thing. Joe Wilson / Kanye West, Serena / Cheney - you can't fix stupid and you certainly can't fix stupid, arrogrant and mean.
Kanye is obviously a man in pain, like many of the folks posting here. I will pray for all of you.
MTV is still on the air?
I don't pay too much attention to this stuff, but when my son mentioned to me, after the show, what this fool had done, my first reaction was such an idiot! What a FOOL! I am baffled as to why he continues to be in the public eye. Will someone do us all a HUGE favor ship this low life to the south pole or some place similar - please?
UNFreakinbelieveable! The complete ignorant arrogance is seriously mind-blowing. Can't imagine what he would have done if his precious Obama didn't win... seriously people - wake up and listen and see what is happening before your eyes. Rude and obnoxious - obviously. RACIST most definitely. Who's calling him out on that this morning? Certainly not ABC,CBS or NBC.
Taylor - rise above this BS. Be you - CLASS ACT. Congratulations!
Kanye looking to sneak in on that Jay-Z love train? KW too light for urban youth. Little bad boy bring him back to hood. Reinventing himself for the label.
Imoebee
Stupid is, as stupid does
I won't watch Jay Leno tonight because of Kanye. Why give him another platform to shoot his bigotted mouth off.
I won't watch Jay Leno tonight because of Kanye. Why give him another platform to shoot his bigotted mouth off.
I can't tell you how much Kanye ruined the Mtv Music Awards for me. I look forward to these important awards every year - and this act just ruined the important work done by these performers.
I know it wasn't his fault though, had to have been a voicebox malfunction. Perhaps his blood sugar was low. Or better yet, the stage lights were obviously too bright (based on Kanye's sunglasses), so that must have been the problem.
Who gives a rat's ass about this thug? Waste of oxygen, and waste of newsprint. Sure with I had that 30 seconds back.......
Shame he has to be a jerk. He is the only artist in the hip/hop genre I can listen to.
Racist!~~~~~~~
Wow I thought people stopped watching the VMAs after they graduated High school...
can someone explain to me how Beyonce wins best video but loses best female video? if its the best video of the year overall, shouldn't it also be the best female video?
True to his nature, he had to pick on a women. He should of had his a_s kicked off the stage!!
The Michael Richards comment was totally Un-called for.
Stupid liberal rag.
The muisc industry is giving these jerks to long of a leash...If it was any NORMAL American our butts would of been in jail or fined and we surely wouldnt of been able to see the rest of the show...Wake up Celeb's...your days are numbered and we (your fans) are getting sick of watching you get away with what we could never get away with...
The race ticket only gets you so far. Manners, compassion, and common decency are required to get you further. Looks like that boy has a very long journey ahead of him. Congratulations to Taylor and Beyonce.
Thank you Kanye. I appreciate changing this event from the typical 'tongue & cheek; it had become.' Thank you for standing up for the 'grounded' people of our communities.
So much for seeing the Jay Leno show tonight. Having a bigot as a guest ( Kanye West ), I can't see giving him any air time to promote his bigotry. Now, what Beyonce was classy
Too bad Taylor didn't give him a Swift kick in behind right off the stage - now that's would've been my interpretation of affirmative action.
I"m so sick of all the rudeness which seems to get more exposure than those who act respectfully. From now on the public should protest those who are so rude and disrespectful and penalize them where it counts - in their pocketbooks. Wilson should have never raised $1M after his outburst aimed at the President, and Kayne's music sales should plumet now. Stand up people and help America get back on the right track. Make your voices count towards what's right.
I don't follow country music so I can't say that I know who Taylor Swift is, but
I can say that Kanye West is an ass to embarrass this young lady.
Beyonce has a publicist if she had a comment I'm sure she would not have picked Kanye to deliver it. On another note this fool cant even sing I saw him sing live and he sucked without all the blending and adding that goes into a record this man is just a joke.
Did I mention I was a black woman!
kayne IS rock and roll
Kanye West after Hurricane Katrina hits the gulf; "George Bush hates black people." The guy is an idiot.
Go Kanye freedom of speech...
What has that rude, ugly, no talent, racist bum West have to do with Congessman Wilson' comment ("See: Joe Wilson, joint session of Congress".)? You should have asked a common sense questions such as; would this punk have done the same thing if a black woman had won the award?
LOVE IT... God save us all from the cookie cutter madness.......
In a few years, Kanye will be reduced to appearances on those reality shows featuring celebrity has-been's... Celebrity Rehab, etc...
All orchestrated dramatic moments. Have people forgoten the stunt
they pulled last year with Bruno and M&M ??
Why does everyone fall for it every time, wake up folks!
INDEED wrote: "If this were a white guy doing the same thing people would be screaming he is a racest."
Plus, people would even spell it right!
The Wilson thing was much worse than this, just due to the fact that he is a congressman, not a bad musician. We should expect more in that case, right?
Then again, any idiot can be elected in a conservative state.
Yeah Kanye was rude and racist, but the non-reaction is not a liberal media conspiracy nor political correctness. The reason it doesn't warrant a reaction is that whites carry none of the baggage which makes people sensitve to these silly outbursts. Most simply don't care. People that have the baggage and/or feel marginalized are far more sensitive to slights
It's sociologically predictable and does not fit into the worldview of white oppression imagined by the New Right Loons of 2009.
Kanye u r a very inmature ignorant person unbelievable:( AND Taylor u go girl!
Show Kanye just what you think and DON'T BUY ANY MORE OF HIS MUSIC. He continues to be a selfish egomaniac with his philosophy of "it has to be MY WAY". I'm sick of this sycophant. Delete his songs from your playlists, toss your CDs, don't promote his music. Make him as irrelevant as he acts.
Congratulations to Taylor. You are a sweetheart, and may you continue to soar above Kanye's level.
Congratulations to Beyonce. You are a classy lady the way you gave Taylor her moment while so nicely dissing Kanye. Distance yourself from this tasteless and thoughtless idiot.
He would not have up staged an African american singer. He chose to assault and upstage a young white girl. He has chosen the wrong girl. Country music is huge in the US and now he has declared war on it. He only does this to keep his name out there. The best way to handle him is to ignore him and his racist ways and music.
DON'T WATCH HIM ON JAY LENO'S SHOW TONIGHT(MONDAY)!!!!!!!
where is Obama now to comment on how STUPID that stunt was? Silent huh? not surprised.
I totally agree with Kurt and PowerCord. This clearly was all a staged gimmick to grab headlines. It's all rather lame...
Show Kanye just what you think and DON'T BUY ANY MORE OF HIS MUSIC. He continues to be a selfish egomaniac with his philosophy of "it has to be MY WAY". I'm sick of this sycophant. Delete his songs from your playlists, toss your CDs, don't promote his music. Make him as irrelevant as he acts.
Congratulations to Taylor. You are a sweetheart, and may you continue to soar above Kanye's level.
Congratulations to Beyonce. You are a classy lady the way you gave Taylor her moment while so nicely dissing Kanye. Distance yourself from this tasteless and thoughtless idiot.
That’s what happens when you give a highly uneducated fool a microphone. I don’t care what color he is, it doesn’t matter.
He has no class nor any class.
The next time he does something so rude at such an event, I really hope someone calls him on it. Maybe a little public humiliation woud teach him a lesson.
pathetic. this is what passes for controversy in rock n' roll today? keef, our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
As horrified as I am by this complete loser's actions, I am equally horrified by 1. the fact that you would call this article (his) moment; and 2. the fact that nowhere on the web can you find, on MTV's site or any other, any video except the one that promotes the kind of person who would purposely humiliate a young girl in front of the world at one of the most memorable moments in her life. Like it or not, our children look up to these people as role models in one way or another, and nowhere can I find the video that shows Beyonce acting like a decent human being and giving Taylor Swift the moment on stage that was stolen from her. By only focusing on the actions of a gigantic arse, we are saying to the young people of the world, go ahead, act however you like and completely disregard the feelings and dignities of everyone else to further and promote your own stupidity at all costs. It's ok, people will pay attention to you then. I think this is a terribly sad commentary on the state of pop culture today and MTV should be as ashamed of it's executive decisions as this jerk should be of his behavior.
What is it with lack of decorum this week? Great, just what we need. The rest of the world thinks US citizens are boors - these three jackasses (Serena, Kanye and Joe Wilson) just added more credibility to that sentiment. I guarantee you that somewhere in the world, Bin Laden is having a good laugh at us!!!
IF I WAS TAYLOR I WOULD OF SAID BEST RAPPER 50 CENT JUST TO GET IN HIS NEVERS
What an incredibly rude thing to do! I'm not a fan of country music, but I certainly can appreciate this young woman's talent. And for crying out loud, she's only 19! How horrible could he be to Taylor? She's a lovely young woman from everything I've seen and deserved her moment in the spotlight. Kanye West, you are such a jerk! (although you were right about George Bush!)
#5: "why cant you keep politics out of this?
The Joe Wilson comment was totally Un-called for.
Stupid liberal rag."
That's pretty funny when you consider that every thread for every article on this website ends up being politicized by right wingers who have gone way off the deep end with their hatred for people who don't agree with them. Just last week, an article about sharks (sharks!) became a big right wing hate-fest.
And, of course, they're all over this thread, too.
I can't believe this many people a) watch the VMAs; b) care about the VMAs or anything that happens at them.
Poor Taylor looked like she wanted to cry. This is typical - I mean he wasn't in the spotlight so he needed to some how direct it from the 17 yr old girl and right back to him. I guess he got what he wanted. But at what expense?
What West did was stupid, immature and embarassing to everyone. But look, everyone who is outraged by the double standard because of the lack of outrage because a black performer interrupted a white performer, yeah, there's a double standard. There's been a double standard for two hundred years. When's the last time a white guy got hung because he tried to vote, or couldn't buy a house becuase he was white, or had to stay in a flea bag hotel because the good hotels served only blacks? Does it go the other way now a little bit? Sure, so what. The guy interrupted a meaningless awards ceremony. Give it a rest.
He just proved what everyone has been thinking about him for years. He is nothing but a no talent Ass. He should be banned from any further awards shows and omitted from winning in any way. He is such a classless act and for people to tolerate his behavior is just as bad as he is. Poor Beyonce must be beside herself for his behavior. She handled it like the class act that she is. I applaud her for calling Taylor up with her.
Kanye RULES! That was hilarious hahahahaha
Kanye is a universal jerk, black people want nothing to do with him either. He can have his opinion, but he has no right to force it on everyone during Taylor Swift's acceptance. I don't get why security didn't get him off the stage the second they saw him going up the steps. He was a guest of the show -- not even a presenter -- and had no call to ambush anyone like that.
I can't wait for the inevitable Kanye west/Taylor Swift collaboration for the hit song, "Please, Excuse This Interruption."
The reason people are comparing this to Joe Wilson isn't because people are being 'political'. Its because in both situations someone had an uncalled for (and unasked for) outburst during someone elses time to speak and made themselves look like a jerk.
And for all the "REVERSE RACISM" people, Joe Wilson a white man took the floor from Barack Obama who is half-black and as far as I know, the NAACP has not gotten involved.
I agree that he gained publicity over his disgusting behavior but certainly not good publicity. I've read several other comments and blogs and a good 97% are not in support of his behavior. What he did last night was career suicide. Even other entertainers think he is a complete jacka$$. I'll be happy to see his popularity and profit decline!