Kanye West closed the Billboard Music Awards this weekend with a medley of hits but audiences at home didn't get to hear much at all due to the ceremonies overexcited censors. Or at least the rapper commented Tuesday that his set, which included "All Day" and "Black Skinhead," was handled with undue caution.
"Kanye West was grossly over-censored at the Billboard Music Awards. Non-profane lyrics such as 'with my leather black jeans on' were muted for over 30 second intervals. As a result, his voice and performance were seriously misrepresented," read a statement from his publicist. "It is ridiculous that in 2015, unwarranted censorship is something that artists still have to fight against. Although West was clearly set up to face elements beyond his control during the live broadcast, he would like to apologize to the television audience who were unable to enjoy the performance the way he envisioned."
One possible theory: Those in charge of censoring bad language just wanted to earn a paycheck. The rest of the performers lined up for the Billboard Music Awards were relatively family-friendly, as Wiz Khalifa was onboard to sing his current sentimental smash "See You Again" and Nicki Minaj joined David Guetta onstage, helping to temper her own occasionally foul language. A Simple Minds appearance to celebrate the 30th anniversary of The Breakfast Club didn't worry anyone either.
The huge patches of silence during the television broadcast made West's Billboard appearance almost impossible to enjoy for viewers at home. Of course, it seemed as if some in attendance at the actual event weren't happy to see him. Some portion of the audience actually booed him, although it may have been because Kylie and Kendall Jenner introduced him.
