Watch Kanye West’s Entire Made in America Festival Performance
Kanye West is accomplishing an impressive feat this Labor Day weekend, headlining two Made in America festivals on different coasts. On August 30, he performed at the Philadelphia fest before heading to Los Angeles for the August 31 event. The Made in America concerts are among the last U.S. dates on the Yeezus tour, but if you missed Kanye’s divisive headlining concerts this summer, you can now watch the full performance from Made in America festival in Philadelphia (via Mr. World Premiere).
Depending on which festivalgoer you asked this summer at Bonnaroo, where the rapper also headlined, West was either a highlight of the fest or maddeningly disappointing. Because West opts not to use the large LCD screens to broadcast his set to the large crowds, preferring instead to rap in silhouette in front of a giant screen, the quality of his performance depends on the location of an audience member, so West often leaves his concertgoer either riveted or infuriated. Perhaps that’s why this video from the Made in America festival is the best way to watch Kanye live: We see in keen detail the magnitude of his bare bones concerts and the energy the rapper brings to each performance.
Among the many highlights in his career-spanning 90-minute Made in America set are the intense “Black Skinhead,” a double dose of “Blood on the Leaves,” and a extra-long rendition of “Runaway,” which Kanye uses as a vessel to pontificate about life, his marriage to Kim Kardashian, and his place in music history. “What’s the main reason why they say that Kanye’s not a good guy,” West sings during “Runaway,” “Because the only thing I do is tell the truth, and if I tell the truth, I’m not a good guy, so what they tell you the rest of the time is all lies.”
Kanye will continue to head west following the Los Angeles Made in America gig for the Yeezus tour’s Australian leg, which was initially postponed so West could work on the follow-up to Yeezus. After that, the rapper has one last concert scheduled October 24 at Las Vegas’ Life Is Beautiful festival.