Are Kanye And Drake Still In Hot Water Over Their Charity Concert?
Kanye West and Drake delighted fans in Los Angeles when the duo took the stage in their December benefit concert. Titled "Free Larry Hoover," the concert seemingly ended a long-time feud between the rappers, as both performed hit songs from their respective catalogs at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. "I'm making this video to address the ongoing back-and-forth between myself and Drake," West said in a Twitter video posted by music executive J Prince prior to announcing the benefit concert. "Both me and Drake have taken shots at each other, and it's time to put it to rest." The duo teamed up and live-streamed the momentous show on Amazon for fans around the world to enjoy. "We're extremely proud to be working with Kanye and Drake on this historic concert in support of a cause they are both so passionate about, and to collaborate across Amazon for this epic entertainment event," said Amazon Studio head Jennifer Salke, per People.
The concert took over the internet as fans from both camps made peace in the hip-hop world, and West attempted to make peace in his marriage by changing lyrics to "Runaway," a song he released in 2010. "I need you to run right back to me, baby, more specifically, Kimberly," West sang at the event, addressing his pending divorce with Kim Kardashian.
While West and Drake's performances were the obvious highlight of the night, did the show live up to its charitable aims?
Did all of the proceeds from Kanye and Drake's concert go to charity?
The Larry Hoover benefit concert featuring Drake and Kanye West was put on by the rappers in an effort to reconcile in front of the world and to raise money for a good cause. Ticket sale profits from the concert went to multiple organizations, including Ex-Cons for Community and Social Change, Hustle 2.0, and Uptown People's Law Center, according to Pitchfork. The rappers teamed up in an effort to "[raise] awareness of the need for prison and sentencing reform." The show itself was named after Larry Hoover, the co-founder of the Gangster Disciples who is serving six life sentences in a Colorado prison.
While ticket sales from the 70 thousand-plus seat venue went in Larry Hoover's honor to prison reform organizations, fans were initially upset to learn that merchandise profits were not. On December 10, GQ reporter Eileen Cartter tweeted, "A rep confirmed none of the proceeds from the Ye x Drake x Demna x Amazon Fashion merch for last night's Larry Hoover benefit concert will go to criminal justice orgs," along with a GQ report on the subject.
However, by December 14, Pitchfork reported that the GQ article was "erroneous," and GQ retracted their initial report, writing that while Amazon had initially stated that merch sales would not be "earmarked for charity," West's team later clarified that "a portion of the merch proceeds will be donated."