VIDEO: Kanye West's Big Chill rant in full

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West: no stranger to flashbulbs and notoriety
West: no stranger to flashbulbs and notoriety (Image credit: Soul Brother/Retna Ltd/Corbis)

UPDATE: It would be unfair of us to report on Kanye's onstage rants and not mention his music. So it's worth adding that the rapper's collaborative album with Jay-Z, Watch The Throne, has finally been released this morning. Stream it here - it's sounding good to us on first listen.

ORIGINAL STORY: MusicRadar was lucky enough to be at the Big Chill festival 2011 on 6-7 August to witness some great performances from Robert Plant & The Band Of Joy and Rodrigo y Gabriela amongst others but one man certainly captured the headlines: Kanye West.

Taking to the stage half an hour late and struggling with a hoarse voice throughout, West's performance was as hit-packed and overblown as you might expect, although his set drew mixed responses from the crowd.

Just when we thought it couldn't get any more Spinal Tap, the hip-hop star broke off into a meandering seven minute rant that drew a mixture of boos and cheers, and saw fans leave the field in droves.

To quote one member of the MusicRadar team, "I kind of feel like going to see Kanye and complaining that he went on a mental,egotistical rant is like going to an Oasis concert and complaining that they played Wonderwall."

Is Kanye West a perfectionist or deluded egotist? Check out the video and let us know what you think.

Chris Vinnicombe

Chris Vinnicombe worked with us here on the MusicRadar team from the site's initial launch way back in 2007, and also contributed to Guitarist magazine as Features Editor until 2014, as well as Total Guitar magazine, amongst others. These days he can be found at Gibson Guitars, where he is editor-in-chief.