Kid Cudi has kicked off his opener M.I.A. from his current Rebel Ragers tour today, following a controversial performance in Texas this past weekend. The tin foil-donning, experimental artist promoting her new Gospel-leaning record M.I.7 upset both concert attendees and Kid Cudi's team for making several offensive and xenophobic remarks, including an off-color joke about undocumented immigrants.

During her performance at Dos Equis Pavillion in Dallas, TX, M.I.A. upset fans by saying, “I can’t do ‘ILLYGIRL,’ though some of you could be in the audience,” Variety reports. (The hook of "ILLYGIRL" from 2010's MAYA goes, "I'm illegal / Fuck your law / Illygirl, illygirl, illy.") She then went on to say, "I’ve been canceled for many reasons. I never thought I would be canceled for being a brown Republican voter."

Fans responded with an uproar of boos. Watch clips below:

"I told my management to send a notice to her team before we started tour that I didn't want anything offensive at my shows, 'cuz I already knew what time it was, and I was assured things were understood," wrote Kid Cudi in a statement posted to his Instagram Story today. After receiving many complaints about her comments and getting informed of the situation, the headliner added, "This, to me, is very disappointing, and I won't have someone on my tour making offensive remarks that upsets my fanbase." He has since removed M.I.A. from the lineup.

M.I.A. took to X to respond to the circulating videos attempting to justify her remarks. Writing in all caps, she claimed, "I STARTED THIS INTRO TO THE SONG WITH THE STATEMENT SAYING I'M ILLYGAL, AND I SAID MY TEAM HASN'T GOTTEN VISAS YET." She still believes in the sentiment of "FU&% THE LAW" and played mutliple songs that included those lyrics, according to her post. She then continued:

"I WROTE BORDERS AND ILLYGAL AND PAPER PLANES BEFORE YOU THOUGHT IMMIGRANT RIGHTS WERE COOL. I'VE HAD THSES BATTLES BY MYSELF WITHOUT THE HELP OF MILLIONS OF FANS BACKING ME . I DON'T NEED THIS VIRTUE SIGNAL ERA TO ALL OF A SUDDEN ERASE AN ENTIRE LIFE I'VE LED. JESUS WAS AN IMMIGRANT AND A REBEL. I HAVE NO APPOLGY [sic] FOR THE JUDGEMENTAL [sic] THE WICKED AND THE IGNORENT [sic], FOR THOSE ARE SPIRITS THAT WE MUST OVER COME IN OUR LIVES AND IN THIS WORLD."

M.I.A.'s right-wing spiral began long before the release of her Gospel-influenced, mystical, trance-ish record M.I.7, including (but not limited to) sharing COVID-19 misinformation online, indulging in antisemitic conspiracies, and promoting her tin-foil "anti-5G" clothing brand OHMNI on the Alex Jones era of InfoWars. Though it's certainly a feat to separate art from the artist and recognize the power of Kala, Arular, MAYA, and Matangi, someone as authentically herself as M.I.A. would probably not leave those opinions away from the stage.

Despite canceling tomorrow's Alabama date due to low ticket sales, Kid Cudi will resume the Rebel Ragers tour this week without his original opener. There have been no words on M.I.A.'s replacement yet.

The Needle Drop may earn an affiliate commission via purchases on ticket links through this article.