Kanye West arrives at Incheon International Airport ahead of first Korean concert in 14 years

K-pop

Kanye West arrives at Incheon International Airport ahead of first Korean concert in 14 years

Published: 23 Aug. 2024, 13:33

Rapper Kanye West at Incheon International Airport on Friday [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Rapper, producer and fashion designer Kanye West arrived in Korea Friday morning to hold a concert at Goyang Stadium, Gyeonggi, later that day.

West arrived at Incheon International Airport in the early morning with his wife Bianca Censori and children North, Saint and Chicago. The rapper was seen waving to his fans and signing autographs, according to local media reports.

Kanye West to perform in Korea for first time in 14 years

The upcoming concert, “Vultures Listening Experience,” is a part of listening event sessions that West has been holding in promotion of his new album “Vultures 2” — a collaborative effort with singer Ty Dolla $ign — released on Aug. 3. The concert will be jointly hosted by Channel Candy’s parent company Nextis and festival brand Le Grand.

West last performed in Korea 14 years ago as a part of the “Summer Week&T” music festival that was held in 2010 at Naksan Beach in Yangyang, Gangwon.

West has won 24 Grammy Awards and released nine full-length solo albums, many of which have topped the Billboard 200 album chart. His recent release, “Vultures," topped the Billboard 200 chart in February.

West has also worked as a fashion designer and creative director for well-known brands, such as Louis Vuitton, Gap, Nike and Adidas. The rapper started his own apparel company, Yeezy, in 2015.

West has been involved in numerous controversies over the years, and is well-known for canceling album releases and performances. The rapper is also controversial in the political sphere, having said things like slavery “sounds like a choice” in 2018 and “I like Hitler” in 2022. The rapper ran in the 2020 U.S. presidential election as a candidate of his own political party, "Birthday Party."

The rapper canceled his performances scheduled in Taiwan for Sunday after the Seoul performance, according to news media outlet Taiwan News.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]