Kid Cudi has thrown M.I.A. off one of the opening slots on his ongoing North American tour. “After the last couple shows, I’ve been flooded with messages from fans that were upset by her rants,” he wrote in an Instagram story viewed by Pitchfork. “This, to me, is very disappointing and I won’t have someone on my tour making offensive remarks that upsets my fanbase.”
M.I.A. made several incendiary comments during her set at Saturday’s (May 2) show in Dallas, including calling herself a Republican and remarking “Can’t do ‘Illygal,’ though some of you could be in the audience.” Upon being met with boos from the crowd, she added “Alright, I am illegal. Half of my team are not here because they didn’t get the visa, okay? I want you to know that. Alright, so don’t listen to what the bots say on the internet, okay. Once you’re this, you’re always…we should be above politics.”
In an X post, M.I.A. quickly responded being dropped from the tour. “I WROTE BORDERS AND ILLYGAL AND PAPER PLANES BEFORE YOU THOUGHT IMMIGRANT RIGHTS WERE COOL,” the post reads, in part. “I’VE HAD THSES BATTLES BY MYSELF WITHOUT THE HELP OF MILLIONS OF FANS BACKING ME. I DON’T NEED THIS VIRTUE SIGNAL ERA TO ALL OF A SUDDEN ERASE AN ENTIRE LIFE I’VE LED. JESUS WAS AN IMMIGRANT AND A REBEL.”
The Rebel Ragers tour is otherwise set to continue as planned, with the next stop slated for tomorrow night, May 5, in Birmingham, Alabama. It hasn’t been announced whether another artist will replace M.I.A. in her co-opener spot alongside Big Boi. M.I.A. just shared her new album, the gospel-influenced M.I.7, last month.
