Houston Police Shut Down Kanye West’s ‘New Slaves’ Screening

by Sheme Jobs

A Houston screening of Kanye West’s “New Slaves” video was shut down last night (May 24), the Houston Chronicle reports

West planned to project the music video for his new song around the world Friday night, including at three Houston locations. However, the showing at the Rothko Chapel was shut down before it even began. Houston police arrived on the scene and ordered the gathering crowd to disperse or be arrested for trespassing.

The screening’s premature end apparently wasn’t because of an unruly crowd; according to the Chronicle, those gathered were excited, yet respectful.

The two other Houston screening locations had issues, too. Technical difficulties apparently hampered one location, while another was a no-show entirely, with fan Janet Quiroa revealing that the only entertainment was having sprinklers come on and “obnoxious people screaming Kanye threats.”
West debuted “New Slaves” last week in a similar fashion, with building projections around the world, including New York (a full map of screenings is located on West’s website). Houston’s projections were part of the second wave of screenings in preparation for West’s new album, “Yeezus,” which is set for a June 18 release.

Watch a video of “New Slaves.”