This week, we learned something about Kanye West. The defiant rapper who has made a name for himself staging interruptions at award shows and telethons can't take the heat.
When West taped an appearance on "Today" Tuesday, he was infuriated with the program producers who played clips of President George W. Bush and Taylor Swift as he discussed them.
In response, an annoyed West announced Thursday that he was canceling his "Today" performance scheduled for Nov. 26, the day after Thanksgiving, and week of the release of his anticipated album, "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy."
"I'm not performing on the Today Show for obvious reasons," West wrote on his Twitter page. "I'm so happy the world got to see just a small piece of 'the set up'".
Kanye later expressed his disdain for his treatment on the show and said he forgave them. "All positive energy ... all smiles," he wrote. "Much love to Matt and the whole Today Show. I accept ya'll future apology in advance LOL!"
While reacting to Bush's statement that West's post-Hurricane Katrina "George Bush doesn't care about black people" comment was the lowest moment of his presidency, "Today" ran interview footage of Bush, prompting West to complain.
"I didn't need you guys to play the tape in order to prompt my emotion to what I'm going to say," West said.
And the tense energy ensued when "Today" ran footage of West and Swift's MTV encounter during West's reflection on that moment.
"Yo, how am I supposed to talk if you're going to run the thing in the middle while I'm talking?" West said. "Please don't let that happen again. It's, like, ridiculous."
Before Thursday's broadcast, Lauer explained that the practice of running related footage was customary. "During an interview, when somebody references a place or an event, we run the tape. There was nothing inappropriate about it. We do it all the time," Lauer said.
Spokespeople for NBC had not responded at press time to Yahoo! Music's inquiries to confirm the cancellation of West's Nov. 26 performance. However, on Friday, West's record label confirmed the schedule change with the Associated Press.
West has already suffered losses from his actions this week. According to the New York Post, the damage-control media trainer West hired specifically to prepare West for the "Today" interview resigned after the debacle.
But perhaps the biggest impact will be on West's pocketbook. Pulling out of the "Today" Black Friday episode creates an incredible missed opportunity for West. Performing live on a network TV morning show during the week of the album's release would have exposed West to consumers outside his typical MTV demographic -- consumers who are eager to shop and spend money on the biggest retail sales day of the year.
Last month, Taylor Swift set a record for selling more than a million copies of her latest album, "Speak Now." Performing on "Today" on Nov. 26 could have helped West pass Swift's mark and even won him more public sympathy.
We have a feeling West and the "Today" team will make amends by Nov. 26. Neither West nor NBC would want to miss out on capturing such an engaged audience. The marketing is already done. We are setting our recorders now.
But let's thank Kanye West for keeping it interesting. His "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" album will be out soon so we're sure there is plenty more sensationalistic news to come. See you later week!
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