Kanye West has faced backlash from fans after he “barely” performed during his set at Rolling Loud 2024.
The controversial rapper – who also goes by Ye – took to the stage with Ty Dolla $ign on Thursday (March 14) as the headliners for the opening night for 2024’s Rolling Loud Festival in Los Angeles.
However, while the show was expected to be his first full-scale festival performance since the series of antisemitic remarks he made at the end of 2022, instead the rappers merely stood on stage for an hour while pre-recorded music of theirs played over the loudspeakers.
The pair were clad in dark hooded outfits, with West wearing his often-seen hockey mask, and paced around the stage for an hour while their ‘Vultures 1’ album played. Afterwards, a DJ played hits from West’s earlier discography while the stage filled with dry ice.
While the wording in the official announcement was vague – simply reading as “Vultures headlining new Thursday night” – there was a general understanding among fans that the set was going to feature live vocals.
According to sources speaking to Variety, the festival organisers themselves thought the headline slot would be a more conventional performance too, and even erected a special stage with a circular lighting rig specifically for the set.
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They also clarified to a fan on X/Twitter that the set would see West and Dolla $ign “Perform”, before later adding: “Oops idk bro it’s on him” (via Mirror).
Unsurprisingly, the Thursday show divided the opinions of those in attendance, with many taking to social media to criticise the rappers for the set.
“I was there and didn’t even know ye came out,” one fan wrote on X, while another added: “I’m really disappointed in ye, he shoulda demanded a mic. For his fans. We got him a number 1 and he couldn’t even rap? Come on.”
“Artists perform, you don’t do that to your fans it’s disgusting immoral out of touch and quite sad,” a third wrote on the platform, while many others criticised the headline slot as being a “scam”.
Find more fan reactions below, as well as the full setlist.
i was there and didn’t even know ye came out 💔
— brian (@whereisuzi) March 14, 2024
I’m really disappointed in ye, he shoulda demanded a mic. For his fans. We got him a number 1 and he couldn’t even rap? Come one
Also rolling loud needs some shame for not forcing him to rap after everything they said on social.
— CanadianYZY (@CanadianYEEZY) March 15, 2024
Artists perform, you don’t do that to your fans it’s disgusting immoral out of touch and quite sad
— Hazebuds (@hazebuds) March 15, 2024
This is not a “set” this is not a “performance” this is a joke!
— Jay (@Jays_mind216) March 15, 2024
I’d want my money back
— gunny 🚫🔫🟧🖤 (@ItsGunBaby) March 16, 2024
no bc why is he just standing there 😭😭
— jae :)) (@AsamoahJaelyn) March 15, 2024
bro scammed a whole festival
— Matmouta (@matmoutaa) March 15, 2024
scamye west and ty scamma sign*
— holograins (@holograins) March 15, 2024
( before paying an extra $60 for parking )
The ticket itself was $140 and there were no other sets besides his. So yes, I expected a performance.
— Tez💜 (@JoeSweatpants) March 15, 2024
West’s setlist at Rolling Loud 2024 was:
‘Vultures 1’:
‘STARS’
‘KEYS TO MY LIFE’
‘PAID’
‘TALKING’ (with North West)
‘EVERYBODY’
‘BACK TO ME’ (with Freddie Gibbs)
‘HOODRAT’
‘DO IT’ (with YG)
‘PAPERWORK’ (with Quavo)
‘BURN’
‘FUK SUMN’ (with Quavo) (added Quavo verse)
‘CARNIVAL’ (with Rich the Kid)
‘VULTURES’ (with Bump J) (no Lil Durk verse)
‘BEG FORGIVENESS’
‘GOOD (DON’T DIE)’
‘PROBLEMATIC’
‘KING’
DJ Set with Nobody on Stage:
‘Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1’ (Kanye West song)
‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’ (Kanye West song)
‘Runaway’ (Kanye West song)
‘All of the Lights’ (Kanye West song)
’N****s in Paris’ (JAY Z & Kanye West song)
‘Paranoid’ (Ty Dolla $ign song)
‘Fade’ (Kanye West song)
‘Otis’ (JAY Z & Kanye West song)
‘Heartless’ (Kanye West song)
‘Or Nah (Ty Dolla $ign song)
‘Blasé’ (Ty Dolla $ign song)
‘Real Friends’ (Kanye West song)
‘All Mine’ (Kanye West song)
‘Black Skinhead’ (Kanye West song)
Following the standalone performance on Thursday, the two rappers defended their decision to structure the headline slot as a listening event. “It’s still better than other people’s shows that have a mic,” Ty Dolla $ign told Big Boy TV the next morning, while West claimed that “people just came for the experience”.
Kanye West and Ty Dolla Sign speak on performing their listening experiences without a microphone.
“It’s still better than other people shows that have a mic.”
pic.twitter.com/hi2N3dNMoc— XXL Magazine (@XXL) March 15, 2024
Following its long-awaited release, ‘Vultures 1’ was given a two-star review by NME, and criticised for its “degrading lyrics and messy mixes”.
“West shows glimmers of greatness but also makes it hard to enjoy those moments for too long,” it read.
“‘Vultures 1’ is mired with a women problem – specifically, that West, Ty and a lot of their collaborators are rarely able to speak on the females in their lives without reducing them to mere sexual objects,” it added. “Such misogyny is hardly new in hip-hop – or either artists’ catalogues or the broader musical landscape in general – but that doesn’t make it any less detestable.”
More recently, it was announced that West had delayed the release of the follow-up album, ‘Vultures 2’, and would not be putting the LP on any streaming platforms.