20m people watched Kanye’s fashion show / listening party live stream

The live stream of Kanye West’s fashion show / listening party in New York this morning drew an estimated audience of 20 million. 

According to a press release from Tidal, which hosted the stream, the event at Madison Square Garden saw 20 million tune in at its peak. However, due to some early technical difficulties, it’s unclear how many of those viewers stayed for the almost two hour-long broadcast.

 

 

DUE TO OVERWHELMING DEMAND OF OVER 20M PEOPLE TRYING TO STREAM KANYE WEST, THERE WERE ISSUES WITH THE FEED PROVIDER AMV.

— Def Jam Recordings (@DefJamRecords) February 11, 2016

The companies responsible for the stream’s technical aspects were digital media company AMV (Coachella, The Grammys) and content distribution network Akamai, whose clients include American Idol and Fox Sports.

The debut of West’s new album sat equally at the forefront alongside the unveiling of his Yeezy Season 3 fashion line this morning. Following previous titles like So Help Me God, SWISH, and Waves, West settled on The Life of Pablo last night, which has previously been referred to as TLOP. West released the tracklisting last night, along with the artwork by Belgian artist Peter De Potter.

Final track list for The Life Of Pablo pic.twitter.com/PMH94MAAeJ

— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 11, 2016

Cover by Peter De Potter pic.twitter.com/wdQOHk6QBA

— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 11, 2016

While the inspiration behind the album title is yet to be discussed by West, he has in the past made comparisons between himself and artist Pablo Picasso. "My goal, if I was going to do art, fine art, would have been to become Picasso or greater," West told the Oxford Guild Society at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History last year. "That always sounds so funny to people, comparing yourself to someone who has done so much, and that’s a mentality that suppresses humanity."

West ended the event by revealing he is creating a video game. Titled Only One (named after West And Paul McCartney’s 2014 track) is about his mother "traveling through the gates of heaven."  The show reel depicts his mother flying through clouds riding a Pegasus.