Kanye West made a surprise appearance at Travis Scott’s Circus Maximus concert in Rome on Monday night.
The show marked West’s first live performance since his spate of antisemitic remarks, which began in October 2022 when the rapper tweeted, ““I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death con 3 [sic] On JEWISH PEOPLE. The funny thing is I actually can’t be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew also. You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.”
During his performance of his new album “Utopia,” Scott welcomed West to the stage to rap “Praise God” and “Can’t Tell Me Nothing.”
“There is no ‘Utopia’ without Kanye West. There is no Travis Scott without Kanye West,” Scott said. “There is no Rome without Kanye West. Make some noise for Ye.”
West has been condemned by many figures and Jewish organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League, and his social media accounts have been suspended multiple times due to his antisemitic comments. He was also dropped by several major partnerships, including Adidas, Balenciaga and Gap.
In October of last year, West responded to losing these brand deals. “Ari Emanuel. I lost 2 billion dollars in one day. And I’m still alive. This is love speech. I still love you. God still loves you. The money is not who I am. The people is who I am,” he wrote on Instagram, referring to Endeavor CEO Emanuel urging companies to stop doing business with West.
West’s last live performance was in February 2022 in Miami during a launch event for “Donda 2.” Several artists joined him at the show, including DaBaby, who faced backlash in 2021 after making homophobic remarks, and Marilyn Manson, who has a series of sexual misconduct lawsuits against him.