Photo by Rich Fury/Getty Images for Coachella
Audio By Carbonatix
There are many great performances that hip-hop fans can expect this weekend when Rolling Loud takes over the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. But the news that has everyone buzzing is the rumor that Kanye West will bring his Donda Experience to South Florida.
In a now-deleted Instagram post on Monday night, Consequence, a rapper close to West, suggested that West may perform his highly anticipated tenth studio album, Donda, at the festival on Sunday.
Kanye West will perform his new album “Donda” this weekend at Rolling Loud. pic.twitter.com/ilvj1XZ2Nx
— Rap Alert (@rapalert4) July 20, 2021
Rolling Loud organizers also took to Twitter on Monday to add fuel to the fire of the rumors.
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You busy next weekend? @kanyewest
— Rolling Loud (@RollingLoud) July 19, 2021
As of Tuesday evening, set times for the festival had yet to be released.
The triangle sketches Consequence uploaded to Instagram are thought by some fans to be a set design for his appearance at the festival. One fan compared the drawing to electronic duo Daft Punk’s set design for the Alive 2006/2007 concert tour.
Who's gonna do it better, Daft Punk during Alive 2006/2007 or Kanye at Rolling Loud this sunday pic.twitter.com/1LbLL0NQoS
— nintendult 🎀 (@nintendult) July 20, 2021
Fans are speculating that “via KW” means “via Kanye West.”
Although it’s unclear whether he will actually take the Hard Rock Stadium stage, this could mark Yeezy’s first festival performance since his Sunday Service at Coachella in 2019. (West also put on a Sunday Service performance during Super Bowl LIV in Miami.)
Donda, West’s first LP since his gospel-inspired 2019 album Jesus Is Born, is dedicated to his mother, Donda West, who died in 2007. He continued working with the Sunday Service Choir with an EP last December, the five-song Emmanuel. Fans are unsure whether Donda will see Kanye continue working with Sunday Service or mark his return to hip-hop.
The album is also rumored to have a star-studded feature list, including Ty Dolla $ign, Pusha T, Post Malone, Travis Scott, Playboi Carti, Future, Baby Keem, Lil Baby, and Tyler, The Creator.
West will host a listening party for the album in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Thursday night, just a few days before his rumored Rolling Loud performance.
Regardless of whether he shows, West knows how to keep fans on their toes. The move has drummed up mass attention online, with some calling his appearance the perfect addition to an already stacked lineup.
