Story by Ralph Bristout and Jayson Rodriguez
Yeezy Season 3 came and went and with it, we all experienced new music and a look at Kanye West’s latest line of his adidas fashions.
It was a spectacle that not only ‘Ye could pull off, but even dream up.
Madison Square Garden was packed with a mixed crowd of fashionistas, fan boys and curious New Yorkers.
And at about 4:30 p.m. the crowed roared when West entered the arena with his brother-in-law, Lamar Odom, by his side.
Dressed a black Yeezus hat, a red sweatshirt that read “I feel like Pablo,” his album title on the pocket, Kanye took control of the board and pressed play on the first song on his new project, “Ultra Light Beam.”
Chance The Rapper, Kirk Franklin, The-Dream, Kelly Price and a choir were featured on the rousing track, with Chance getting off lines like “My daughter look like Sia, you can’t see her” and ‘Dream singing, “This is a god dream, this is everything… Deliver us love.”
Next was “Father Stretch My Hands,” powered by Metro Boomin, with a sample of this timeless hymn, before the second half of the record switches to a thunderous rumble that comes courtesy of Brooklyn upstart Desiigner, whose buzzing track “Panda” gets interpolated as the song’s hook. Later it would be revealed that Desiigner is the newest signee of G.O.O.D. Music.
While Kanye was holding court, he was surrounded by a group of his peers, including Kid Cudi, Travis Scott, Pusha T, Los Angeles Lakers player Nick Young, Wale, Don C., A$AP Rocky and sitting in the stands were the Kardashian family, Jay Z, 2 Chainz, 50 Cent and Power actor Omari Hardwick, among numerous other big names.
At this point, a large sheet covering the middle of the arena was pulled back to unveil Ye’s line and the all-black modeling cast atop a pair of twin high rises and in between in a refugee-like scene. The clothes continued his trend of casual and military-themed apparel. Naomi Campbell and Veronica Webb were among the professional models who were mingled with the upstarts.
The music featured an array of Kanye one-liners, from “I feel like me and Taylor may still have sex” to “I be Puerto Rican Day Parade floating.”
After an hour, Kanye brought the show to a close with a speech, which drew “Fuck Nike” chants and before the crowd could jeer Michael Jordan, the Chicago native snapped back “Not fuck Michael Jordan, he’s our boy. “I wouldn’t be here with Michael Jordan. Respect Jordan.”
Toward the end, things got looser and Kanye played a game of pass the aux cord when Young Thug played a new record, Vic Mensa played a new record and Virgil Abloh was preparing to DJ.
Yeezy ended things by previewing a video game he’s working on that featured his mother going through heaven’s gates. It was an emotional moment that stunned the audience as a rendition of “Only One” played and a digital version of his mother grew wings. “That’s not easy to do,” Kanye told the crowd. “Y’all niggas acting like it’s easy to do.”
It wasn’t, that’s for sure, and regardless of your take away on the music or the fashion line, Kanye deserved a big round of applause (which he received multiple times) for his audacity to dream so big.