Rapper Azealia Banks was scheduled to take to the main stage at Wynwood Pride at 1 a.m. Saturday. But when she arrived hours later, her set did not last long.
Banks, a controversial singer who was charged as headliner for the first day of the LGBTQ music festival, left the stage in the middle of her performance. Fans disapprove and mock the rapper. She answered with two middle fingers.
The video recorded by the Miami Herald journalists shows what led to the rapper leaving early after her late arrival.
Hours before Banks’ scheduled appearance, the first day of the three-day festival at the RC Cola Plant went relatively smoothly. The crowd grew as the night passed and fans enjoyed the DJ sets and drag artists playing on stage.
By 1 a.m., hundreds of fans were on stage, dancing to a DJ and waiting. And they were waiting. And wait. And wait.
The DJ on stage did his best to keep the audience energized, but at 2:30 a.m., people were disappointed. Some chanted for money back. Others shouted, “Get her out!”
Finally, around 3 in the morning, Banks took the stage. She was wearing a bodysuit that revealed her breasts. The crowd loved it.
But things changed a few songs in the show. Banks, who was visibly low on energy while playing, took a break from rap to speak to the crowd about her frustration with the event organizers.
“I was picked up,” he said. According to Banks, the event was about whether or not she would be the protagonist and changed the times she had set.
The words of the banks offended the artists who were in the VIP section. Some called her to go home. Many, including the famous drag artist Miss Toto, left.
Banks continued to sing a few more songs, but stopped again. This time, he told the audience that he did not want to be there. Then came the disapproval. Banks tossed her microphone when it was off. As she was leaving, someone threw water at her from a bottle.
They accompanied her off stage. The lights came on. Safety started driving frustrated, shocked and angry fans from the RC Cola Plant.
Banks is notorious for controversy and Twitter beef. The rapper, who is bisexual, has made homophobic and transphobic attacks in the past. Despite its behavior, Banks has maintained an LGBTQ fan base for years.
But the chaotic appearance at Wynwood Pride does not bode well for the rapper’s reputation in her new city. Banks moved to Miami last year.
Later Saturday morning, Banks took to Twitter to share her story. He said he initially had a reservation for 10 p.m. and the organizer moved her set to 1 p.m. (The program posted on the Wynwood Pride website stated that Banks would appear at 1 a.m. The festival was supposed to end at 3 a.m.)
Banks also claimed that there was dry ice at the scene that caused her an allergic reaction. In a Twitter post, she said that someone spat water at her “from his HPV-infected mouth” and made inflammatory statements about “Hispanic citizens in South Florida.”
Wynwood Pride was very ghetto. I had to bounce. Every tech rider in the history of Azealia Banks live performance says specifically – not dry ice, as I am EXTREMELY allergic to it. The photos will show huge clouds of dry ice that started to make me dizzy in a place I could
– Azealia Banks (@Azealiaishere) June 11, 2022
A fan asked Banks why he showed up hours late. “When you hire DJs drummers glam squad security guards and a whole crew waiting to work from 7, and your tour manager is notified that the time you have set is now 1 a.m., people have to rearrange the whole their itinerary. “Excellent unprofessionalism,” he replied.
Wynwood Pride declined to comment.
After the Wynwood Pride announced its turn last month, the Miami Herald asked event co-founders Jor-El Garcia and José Atencio to book Banks as headliner despite its troubled past. Garcia defended Banks because he apologized for her previous behavior.
“We believe in a culture of redemption, not a culture of annulment,” Garcia told the Herald.
Xyanna Gibbs, 18, said she also wanted the banks bought out. “But then he goes and does that? “It looked like a spit in the face,” he said.
Regardless, Gibbs said the man who threw the drink at Banks exceeded the limits.
“You don’t have to spit in her face just because she did,” Gibbs said. “It is not an eye for an eye.”
As the crowd dispersed, Gibbs and some friends gathered to discuss the drama. The group of young people was frustrated and upset.
Mars Tran, 22, said he had mixed feelings about Banks’s appearances because of her previous behavior. He recalled a transphobic incident in which Banks called Arka, a musician identified as a non-binary trans woman, a boy.
As a trans man, Tran said he was surprised a Pride event would book the Banks in the first place.
“Why would you invite this person who made it clear that he does not like trans people and that he thinks their pronouns are stupid?” said Tran. “Why would you invite them to a place that is supposed to be safe?”
Nick Chong, 18, said they wanted at least a partial refund. It was their first time at Wynwood Pride.
“I’m upset that I paid $ 90 to come and see her and then she sang four songs, gave no energy and then left,” Chong said.
However, Chong said they would return on Saturday to see the second headliner, British pop star Marina. After all, they paid for it.
Lauren Costantino, a producer dedicated to the Miami Herald, contributed to this report.
This story was originally published on June 11, 2022 at 5:13 p.m.
