As reported by Ken Barnes at http://blogs.usatoday.com/listenup/

How The West Was Lost
The most successful performers at Bonnaroo are those who adapt their sets to their surroundings, not the ones who expect the festivalgoers to adapt to their sets. It's a lesson the Police would have learned last year, had they walked around the grounds after what was widely viewed as a perfunctory performance. Metallica was reminded of the lesson this year when Hetfield asked for a show of hands from people who were seeing their first Metallica show and more than half the 70,000 people raised theirs.
Kanye West learned that lesson early this morning. Just before Bonnaroo, West moved his show from a scheduled 8:15 p.m. start time to 2:45 a.m. so he could be on a stage that could fit his science-fiction-themed set. Then, pushed by Pearl Jam's three-hour set on that stage -- an hour longer than expected -- West's start time was delayed to 3:15, then 3:30. After that, the large screens on the sides of the stage quit listing a time, saying simply, "Kanye West Up Next!"
At 3:15, part of the crowd began to leave. At 3:30, several of those remaining began to boo. At 4:20, they began throwing things. One item -- a bottle, perhaps -- hit West's center screen, damaging it. More people tried to hit it, and the boos grew louder.
West went on stage at 4:30 a.m., as an electronic voice -- the computer of the set's "space ship" -- ironically urged him to "Wake up, Mr. West!" just as the sky in the east opposite the stage began to lighten. Before he walked off stage 58 minutes later, his video and lighting effects were all but lost in the daylight, revealing the hip-hop superstar's "man behind the curtain," and making him look like nothing more than a guy in a funny costume dancing on oddly shaped risers.
Many left fuming.
"(Expletive)! Don't ever bring him back again!" yelled Sarah Corkill of Newnan, Ga.
Others were more tactful but no less upset. "Kanye tried," said Nashville's Lance Bloom, "but the whole mood was ruined because he didn't come out for two hours."
Meghan James of Boone, N.C., said she admired West's bravery in putting one what essentially a one-man show (a live band was hidden from sight by the stage). "Everyone was interpreting it as 'He's a (expletive), how dare he?'" she said. "The crowd was starting to turn and that made us nervous."
Perhaps one anonymous fan summed up the crowd's feelings most succinctly when he exclaimed a few minutes before Kanye took the stage, "(Expletive) you, Kanye! You (expletive) off Bonnaroo." — B.M.

Lol.....at the title of this thread.
Kanye could NOT pull a Prince if Prince was hooked up 2 a tow truck with Kanye driving it.

June 16, 2008. MANCHESTER, Tenn. - (AP) Kanye West's late night performance at Bonnaroo was delayed nearly two hours, angering the festival crowd who responded by chanting "Kanye sucks" and pelting the empty stage with glow sticks.

West had been scheduled to take the main stage at the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival at 2:45 a.m. Sunday morning. While the sleepy thousands in the audience waited, a message on the jumbotrons told them West's show would be delayed until 3:15 a.m., and when that didn't happen, that he would start at 3:30. West didn't hit the stage until 4:25 a.m.

The delay was caused by problems setting up West's elaborate stage set, which included an interplanetary landscape of a wavy black platform with a slanted floor in the middle and a video screen above. West performed a spectacular galactic-themed concert complete with interaction with his spaceship, a disembodied female voice named Jane (a kind of sexier HAL).

Ken Weinstein, a spokesman for the annual festival held on a 700-acre site south of Nashville, said the delay was simply a matter of unloading the Pearl Jam stage (the band went an hour past its scheduled end time, playing until about 1:15 a.m.) and loading the West stage.

The festival, which boasted more than 150 acts spread out over four days, was otherwise very punctual. The West delay was all the worse because of its already very late schedule, and many campers lost energy before the concert and returned to their sleeping bags. Midway through his performance, the morning light showed that the crowd had dwindled substantially.

West had originally been slated to perform at 8:15 p.m. Saturday night, but requested a late night performance. At least in the first hour of his performance, West didn't address the crowd regarding the delay.

Later Sunday, the Bonnaroo crowd was still upset. Pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph led a "Kanye sucks" chant.

A spokesperson for West didn't immediately return a request for comment.
[Edited 6/16/08 11:46am]

Prince never been THAT late b4 though.

paisleypark4 said:

Well though i will stick up for PRINCE in the whole "showing up late" because they ALL DO IT, whether its gigs or interviews or auto-signings, there aint one perormer/actor/actress etc..that is ever on time for anything. HOWEVER, Prince has outdone that Kanye 2hour lateness by a mile. Back in 1999, i saw Prince at CLUB LIFE (ironically its last gig before closing down) this was an aftershow for his appearance on the WEB awards earlier that night. Well the show was scheduled for 12, tickets went on sale the day prior, well it was mid july and a big thunderstorm hit and the club let people in (general admission show) early, doors werent supposed to open to 11 but they let people in at about 9:30 or so. Well at 12 no sign of the man, not even instruments on stage, At about 1am they said that Prince had just left the awards show and was stuck in traffic and would arrive at 2am, well they showed at about 2:30 and then set up everything since nothing was set up, and Prince took the stage at 3:40am, most people left after paying 50dollars, i wasnt leaving cause i was dead front and center, 2 feet from the man the whole show, the show ended at about 6am.

lastdecember said:

I went to a Prince show which started late. It was in 1997 when he was on his "Jam of the Year" tour. The show was scheduled for 8:00 pm and the arena let people in the door at 7:15 pm. but they wouldn't let anyone into the arena floor or seats. It turned out that Prince was still doing a sound check at the time which ended about a half hour later. The show didn't begin until about 10:00 pm, but he played for nearly three hours and everyone left happy.

As for the Kanye situation, he was scheduled to go on at 8:15 pm but not on the main stage. He was pissed that the organizers didn't consider him to be main stage material, but he said that he wanted to go on the main stage later that night after Pearl Jam so he could set up his stage show, which he apparently could not do on the second stage. The festival organizers allowed him to go on late, sometime after 1:00 am after Pearl Jam finished their show. When Pearl Jam heard about this, they got pissed at Kanye's diva attitude, so they deliberately extended their set for an hour after they were supposed to be finished, and their show ended around 2:00 am. Because Kanye's stage set was so elaborate, it took longer to set up, and instead of coming on by 3:00 am, it wasn't until after 4:00 am that his set began.

Graycap23 said:

728huey said:

I think when i went to see the jam of the year in KC the show was ticketed for 7 the doors didn't open til 7 CCS didn't take the stage til about 830 and i think P was on by 10.

Madge always starts 45mins after the scheduled times, and than Spice Girls started an hour later.

lastdecember said:

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At least he performed. Not to many entertainers are going to do 3 hour shows much less until 6:00 am.

laurarichardson said:

I had no problem with it because he NEVER has shown up on time for any gig, regular concert or aftershow, and ive seen him 73 times and he is 0 for 73 with being on time, but i could care less because usually at the GA shows the morons who want to just hear Purple Rain leave. But the irony of this was this event got the club shut down, which was oversold and had no air conditioning working in Mid July.

lastdecember said:

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I'll be the first one to say P is not prompt for his performances but, he makes up for and from what I remember he did good on the Musicology tour by exactly starting on time I don't think it compares to the Kayne situation.