Rumors confirmed: Kanye West sets Fresno date

Flashback to last week when local radio stations inadvertently set off rumors (and some debate) that Kanye West would be stopping in Fresno on his Saint Pablo tour.

The rumors, it turns out, were true.

The rapper/producer/pop icon and greatest rock star on the planet added several cities to his current tour, including Fresno.

West will play Tuesday, Nov. 22, at Save Mart Center. Tickets are $29.50-$129.50 and available starting 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 22 at the Save Mart Center box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at 800-745-3000. All presale tickets will be available starting Friday, Oct. 21.

West may be one of the most polarizing figures in pop music at this moment. It’s hard to believe the 39-year old was once just a Chicago rapper and hip-hop producer who released his debut, “College Dropout” in 2004.

His penchant for outrageous outbursts and marriage to Kim Kardashian have made him tabloid fodder and somewhat obscured the fact that he has released some really great music and is considered by some (well, by quite a few people actually) to be the G.O.A.T.

That’s greatest of all time.

He has won 22 Grammys, sold more than 30 million albums and was listed in Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world – twice. His latest album, “The Life Of Pablo,” debuted at the top of the Billboard 200 album chart based solely on streaming services.

As a bit of local trivia, West visited Fresno in 2005, not for a show, but as a publicity stunt for the grand opening of the urban fashion shop FTK. The shop was run by Sam Hansen, who did design work on West’s debut album. About 1,000 people showed up for an autograph session, which ended abruptly after an overeager patron got in a fight with security.

This story was originally published October 18, 2016 at 2:06 PM with the headline "Rumors confirmed: Kanye West sets Fresno date."