An audio recording of an irate Kanye West ranting about his justification for interrupting Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech during the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) has turned up online.

Gawker obtained and posted the audio online (which you can hear at the bottom), which allegedly captures West in an angry after-party spiel about his infamous ‘Imma let you finish’ speech, his frustration at not being asked to perform at the awards over pop star Pink, and angrily lamenting his late mother, Donda West, “died for this fame shit.”

The tape was apparently recorded in secret while the superstar rapper was at a dinner with friends at the Corner Bistro in New York’s West Village, just hours after leaving Radio City Music Hall on the night of the 2009 VMAs, and presumably before he publicly apologised to the countrified pop starlet.

On the secret tape, the alleged West explains his infamous interruption (one of the great ceremony gaffes “of all time… OF ALL TIME”) that made him a meme-making viral sensation and further rants about why Swift was undeserving of the Best Female Video award over the wife of his Watch The Throne partner, JAY Z.

“Taylor Swift cannot win over Beyoncé!,” yells the alleged West to his entourage, “I’m pushing the envelope! I wrote my fuckin’ ‘Run This Town’ verse for a fuckin’ month,” he exclaims, in reference to the JAY Z-led song featuring West, pop star Rihanna, and fellow rapper Eminem. “Because I wrote my [‘Run This Town’] verse in two days, Taylor Swift cannot beat Beyoncé” – Kanye West (allegedly)

“When I heard Eminem’s verse on the Drake shit [the ‘Forever’ single], I went back and rewrote my shit for two days. I canceled appointments to rewrite! I fuckin’ care! Because I wrote my verse in two days, Taylor Swift cannot beat Beyoncé,” he concludes.

There’s some vitriol spat Pink and MTV’s way also, with the alleged West shouting “Fuck MTV,” and questioning, “how the fuck Pink perform two songs and I didn’t even get asked to perform ‘Heartless’?”, the single taken from West’s then-release 808s & Heartbreaks, the “biggest song of the year!” – he spits; “It had the most spins of the first quarter.”

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As Gawker points out, there’s no way to confirm that the man ranting in the secret audio recording is in fact Mr. Yeezus himself, but it’s a hell of a good impersonation if it isn’t.

Coincidentally, 2013 VMAs Nominations have just been announced by MTVwith Taylor Swift once again up for a Best Female Video Award for her song ‘I Knew You Were Trouble’ (insert joke here), though Beyoncé does also get a look-in for Best Video With A Social Message (who comes up with these categories?) for her track ‘I Was Here’.

Mr. Beyonce Knowles and Kanye’s Watch The Throne partner is also up for a gong for his guest spot on Justin Timberlake’s ‘Suit & Tie’ in both the Best Collaboration and Best Direction categories.

Mr. West’s nominations? A grand total of zero. It seems that projecting your face onto city buildings around the world simultaneously doesn’t qualify in the eyes of MTV and the VMAs judging panel.

You can read a transcript of the audio in all its raging glory below:

I’d rather just let the [inaudible] speak for itself. You know, it’s like, I was happy to be in a situation where people couldn’t say, oh, I was trying to promote my own song. For the times that I’ve, like, defended myself… [Tape break] I’m pushing the envelope! I wrote my fuckin’ ‘Run This Town’ verse for a fuckin’ month! When I heard Eminem’s verse on the Drake shit, I went back and rewrote my shit for two days. I canceled appointments to rewrite! I fuckin’ care! You know what I’m saying? And that’s what I’m saying. Because I did that, Taylor Swift cannot win over Beyoncé! Because I wrote my verse in two days, Taylor Swift cannot beat Beyoncé. As long as I’m alive! And if I’m alive, kill me then! Kill me then! As long as I’m alive, you gon’ have to deal with it. ‘Cause there ain’t gonna be no more motherfucking Elvises with no James Browns.

[A female voice asks, “Why are you so angry? What’s the anger?”] Because my mother got arrested for the fuckin’ sit-ins. My mother died for this fame shit! I moved to fuckin’ Hollywood chasing this shit. My mother died because of this shit. Fuck MTV.

It ain’t no love. What the fuck was Pink performing? Don’t nobody know that song. Pink performed twice! Two songs? How the fuck Pink perform two songs and I didn’t even get asked to perform “Heartless.” “Heartless” is the biggest song of the year! It had the most spins of the first quarter! I don’t know that Pink song! But I noticed that she’s pink! They put me in a fuckin’ room and [inaudible – maybe “projected it”].

[A male voice asks, “How the fuck did Eminem get the Best Hip-Hop song in 2008?”] Eminem won Best Video! Rap Video! Yo, when he won that shit, I was so happy. I was so happy I [unclear – “ran all this shit,” maybe]. I said, “Nigga, I’m gon’ do this until y’all put a bullet in my head. I’m runnin’ up to y’all, put a…” [tape cuts].

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