Kanye West Breaks Down at Paris Concert
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 18, 2007 09:30 AM EST
By Peter Mikelbank
Kanye West performing in September Photo by: Kevin Parry / WireImage
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, crying onstage for five minutes."
"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.
Here is a video of Kanye on stage when he breaks down.
Wow, this video is so sad. It makes me cry. I can feel his pain. Kanye, I am so sorry.
"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."
This breaks my heart. Kanye is trying to get back out there, back to his life and it's just hard. I can only imagine. He had all these scheduled appearances and has already cancelled several. This is his job, how he makes money. He has to continue. He can't just stop. In the corporate world, most people get three days bereavement and then it's back to work. If they happen to have the vacation time, they can use that to take more time off. I'm not sure if FMLA fits in with losing a family member but that's neither here nor there. He has to work but at times he will break down. I am so proud of Kanye. He is going back out there and he is trying despite the pain and emptiness in his heart, the hollowness as a result of his mom's death.
Kanye, my heart goes out to you and I hope that you have the love and support you need at this time.
Story from People.com
