Kanye West claims he ditched his microphone during the recent Donda Experience Performance due to frustrations he had with a promoter.
He was "told" he had to attach the word "performance" to the Donda 2-centered experience, despite that not being part of the vision, during an Instagram exchange with Sasha A. Berg and Esther Coco Berg on Wednesday.
“It wasn’t about the sound,” Ye explained. “It was the fact that I was told, one thing I was told was that I had to write the word ‘performance’ on the piece. But what I was giving you guys was performance art. I did these listening sessions when I dropped my album where I put a mask on and I give you this listening session and it’s an installation. And they basically forced me to mix Taco Bell and KFC. They basically forced to mix tequila with Cognac. So right when I did the song and I saw myself grabbing this mic and it wasn’t my original idea, I was like, ‘I’m gonna throw this mic. Why am I doing this?’”
Ye then discussed his recent focus on the Stem Player and his decision to tweet out contract excerpts back in 2020, connecting the two to the issue that prompted him to ditch the mic at the event in Miami last month.
“To have the ability to sell out a stadium … and then to be told by a promoter, ‘Still grab that mic, boy.’ I ain’t grabbing the mic if I don’t have to grab the mic,” Ye said.
Ye said fans of his work attend the performance to see "what's coming out of my mind," whatever form it may take.
See the clip below. Toward the end of the clip, Ye advises Sasha and Esther to share the footage of their exchange.