Kid Cudi Drops M.I.A. From Tour After Crowd Backlash

What started as a high-energy concert tour quickly took a sharp turn over the weekend. Fans came for music, but one performance stirred up controversy that changed the lineup.

Kid Cudi has dropped M.I.A. as one of his tour openers.

On Monday, May 4, the "Pursuit of Happiness" singer, born Scott Mescudi, announced he was removing her from his tour after she was booed at the Saturday, May 2 show for ranting about politics and her immigration status on stage.

“TOUR UPDATE: M.I.A is no longer on this tour. 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," Cudi, 42, wrote on his Instagram Stories.

"After the last couple shows, I've been flooded with messages from fans that were upset by her rants," he continued. "This, to me, is very disappointing, and I wont have someone on my tour making offensive remarks that upsets my fanbase. Thank you for understanding. Rager."

At the May 2 show, which was held in Dallas, the British-born Sri Lankan rapper and singer (born Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam) was booed after she made comments such as "I can't do 'Illygirl' though some of you could be in the audience," according to fan footage from the show on TikTok. (She was referring to the 2010 track from her Maya album, which includes the line "I'm illegal, f--- your law.").

After being booed, M.I.A., 50, announced, "Alright, I'm illegal. Half of my team are not here because they didn't get the visa. I want you to know that," according to fan footage.

As news that she'd been dropped circulated Monday, M.I.A. posted multiple times to X about the situation, addressing specific touchpoints and asking that fans "not gaslight my words."

"I WROTE 'ILLYGAL' ON THE MAYA LP A SONG FROM 2010. I STARTED THIS INTRO TO THE SONG WITH THE STATEMENT SAYING I'M ILLYGAL, AND I SAID MY TEAM HASN'T GOTTEN VISAS YET. THEN PLAYED A SONG THAT HAD LYRICS SAYING "FU&% THE LAW", WHICH I STILL BELIEVE, IF THE LAW IS UNJUST F@%& IT. DO NOT GAS LIGHT MY WORDS. THAT IS THE WORK OF SATAN," she wrote.

"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 FOR THE JUDGEMENTAL THE WICKED AND THE IGNORENT, FOR THOSE ARE SPIRITS THAT WE MUST OVER COME IN OUR LIVES AND IN THIS WORLD."

M.I.A. also responded to an X user commenting on her endorsement of President Trump, writing that she cannot vote in the United States despite her onstage remark about being a brown Republican voter.

"DON'T BE AN AGENT OF DIVISION, I CAN'T VOTE IN THE US, AND 48% OF LATIN COMMUNITY VOTED TRUMP. SO ARE YOU GOING TO HATE THEM ALL? WE MUST UNITE TO MAKE THIS COUNTRY, THAT EVERYONE WANTS TO LIVE IN A BETTER PLACE," she wrote. "IF YOU ARE EASYLY LED BY RUMOUR THEN YOU DON'T SEE THE LIGHT FOR YOURSELF. I PRAY FOR YOUR AWAKENING."

The "Mr. Rager" musician launched the Rebel Ragers Tour on April 28 in Phoenix and he's set to make stops in over 30 cities across North America. The tour also comes ahead of the release of his directorial debut Doe.