Kanye West breaks down onstage.
Only a week after his mother’s death, Kanye West returned to the concert stage Saturday night in Paris, only to dramatically break down in tears, audience members tell PEOPLE.
Nearing the end of the more than 60-minute performance, with the riff of “Hey Mama” beginning, West attempted to introduce the tribute to a sold-out crowd at Le Zénith in Paris, saying “this song is for my mother….” and could get no further.
“He just cracked,” one attendee tells PEOPLE, “He was at the end of his concert and had just started to dedicate the song and then he just lost it completely.”
“He said the word, ‘Mother’ and just couldn’t go any further,” Le Parisien journalist Meddy Magloire said. “A back-up singer, the DJ and a guitar player came over to console him. It looked like he might collapse. He just couldn’t continue. He just stood there in a spotlight, crying while the band continued playing.”
After a few moments of stunned silence, Magloire says, the audience of 5,000 reacted by offering calls of encouragement, which grew into applause.
The band restarted the song, but West left the stage, returning after 10-15 minutes to conclude the concert with a rousing performance of “Stronger.”
“He was very nervous, seemed to have gathered himself up, and had a lot of energy,” Magloire says. “He kept shouting out to the audience, ‘I need you… I need you right now.’ and the public was screaming back. It was magic.”
November 18th, 2007 at 12:37 pm
I don’t like Kanye West as an artist. He is very arrogant. But what happened to him is very hurtful. I do feel sorry for him. Just the thought of losing my mom brings me to tears. I CANNOT imagine what he is going trought right now as a human being with feelings. I hope he recovers from all of this. Good luck Kanye.
November 18th, 2007 at 3:48 pm
Same here. I hate the guy and think he has no class, but he is showing his human side. My heart goes out to him and everyone else affected by the death of his mother. So tragic.
November 18th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
HE iS a worthless pig, RIP mrs. west.
November 18th, 2007 at 10:26 pm
Wow! Everyone hates Kanye that much, huh? Well I like him as an artist and I don’t neccessarily agree with all of his veiws but I still respect what he has to say and belive some truth to be at the heart of it. I hope that he is able to recover from such a great loss and wish him the best. I encourage him to continue to speak for what he believes in even if it makes him look cocky, arrogant or whatever else. No one should ever give up their views or beliefs to satisfy others.
November 19th, 2007 at 7:03 am
I’ve grown to really like him. After his appearance on the Emmy’s he showed he had a sense of humor about himself. Losing a parent is not any easy thing, but losing a loved one so tragically is even harder. I hope he is able to grieve in peace.
November 19th, 2007 at 7:28 am
denise,
your a bitch
November 19th, 2007 at 8:20 am
It was outstanding performance i guess. However he is using his brain rather than muscle – Graduation sounds good than Curtis.