Upcoming Free Kanye West Concert At Flatiron Plaza Faces Some Opposition
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Crews have been working around the clock to finalize the stage for a free concert headlined by Kanye West on Thursday night.
At least 10,000 people are expected to attend the event at Flatiron Plaza on 23rd Street and Fifth Avenue. The show is being held as part of the NBA All-Star Weekend.
Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and Community Board 5 said the concert has no business being in the area, 1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck reported.
Stage Being Set For Free Kanye West Concert At Flatiron Plaza
Residents and businesses have been dealing with street closures and construction in the days leading up to the event, and many believe the concert should head north to Times Square.
"For me personally, it is kind of a pain because I walk this way to work every day," said Scott, who works in the area. "Times Square, they're a little more used to certain events and blocking things off for those reasons."
The large stage along with hundreds of barricades are putting pedestrians perilously close to traffic, WCBS 880's Marla Diamond reported.
"I think this is crazy," one woman said. "It's just a small space. I don't know, I'm not a big fan."
A resident said while she's not thrilled about it, the concert will bring money to the city, and she'll probably just leave the area for the day.
"I don't have a problem with it as long as people know in advance," the woman said, adding, "I don't like Kanye West. I wish it would've been somebody else."
Upcoming Free Kanye West Concert At Flatiron Plaza Faces Some Opposition
Scott said there's a not a chance he'll go to the show.
"I'll be ducking home," he said. "It's not my thing. ... No Kanye for me."
Not everyone seemed to mind the inconvenience, however.
"It's only a couple of days," said Richard, an art vendor in the area.
The concert comes days after West nearly hijacked Beck's speech as he accepted the Album of the Year award at the Grammy Awards on Sunday night.
The rapper made his way onto the stage and almost took the microphone, like he infamously did to Taylor Swift as she accepted the award for Best Female Video during the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.
"Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'll let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time. One of the best videos of all time!" West said after Swift's "You Belong With Me" beat Beyoncé's "Single Ladies."
This time he backed off and waited until later to speak his mind.
"I just know that the Grammys, if they want real artists to keep coming back, they need to stop playing with us," West said. "We ain't gonna play with them no more. And Beck needs to respect artistry, and he should've given his award to Beyoncé."
West said he decided not to take away Beck's moment because he didn't want to put his wife, daughter and clothing line at risk.
Beck, who also beat Ed Sheeran, Pharrell Williams and Sam Smith for the honor, took the high road and praised West saying, "You can't please everybody. I still love him and think he's a genius. I aspire to do what he does."
