Kanye West makes Türkiye debut before massive Istanbul crowd

World-renowned rapper Kanye West performed in Istanbul for the first time on Saturday, drawing a mammoth crowd of some 118,000 fans to Atatürk Olympic Stadium in one of the year’s biggest music events.

The concert, organized in cooperation with NTRteam, attracted thousands of visitors from Türkiye as well as the U.K., Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Russia, Poland and countries across the Middle East.

The stadium reached capacity hours before the show as fans gathered to watch the Grammy-winning artist’s long-awaited debut performance in Türkiye.

West opened the concert with his song “Father” and closed the nearly two-hour set with “Stronger.”

Performing atop a giant spherical stage, the artist delivered some of the most popular tunes from his long career, including “King,” “Runaway,” “Power,” “Flashing Lights,” “Heartless,” “Black Skinhead,” “All The Love” and “Homecoming.”

Fans joined in throughout the performance, singing along and dancing as applause and chants echoed around the stadium.

One of the concert’s most striking features was its stage design, inspired by West’s performances at Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium. A massive hemispherical structure erected at the center of the venue was transformed into a giant globe through high-resolution projection technology.

The show was accompanied by elaborate lighting displays, smoke effects and synchronized visuals. Thousands of spectators illuminated the stadium with their cellphone flashlights, creating a sea of lights across the stands and field.

The concert was also streamed live on West’s official YouTube channel, attracting millions of viewers within minutes.