Courtney Muenchow | Contributing Writer

Even from a young age, most people don’t always like doing what they’re told. Usually, however, the case is one of stubbornness rather than inability.

In Sydney, Australia, two of Kanye West’s fans refused to comply with the rapper’s demand that the entire crowd get up and dance, not because they were set on defying him, but because they were handicapped, both in a wheelchair, one with a prosthetic limb. Somehow, though, they were expected to perform the impossible in order to please the performer they paid to see.

According to CNN, Kanye stopped his concert in order to fix the lack of audience participation. He was convinced the best thing to do was to demand the entire crowd get on their feet, naively ignoring the possibility that some of his fans could actually be handicapped.

“At my concerts, I make sure everybody has as good a time as possible. In theory, that’s a wonderful policy to live by. In the real world, however, good intentions don’t always work as planned,” Kanye said at a later concert in Brisbane.

Clearly, Kanye’s theory didn’t work well for the two fans singled out in wheelchairs. One waved a prosthetic leg in the air to prove he couldn’t obey the celebrity, the other had to be checked by a bodyguard to be absolutely certain the reason he wasn’t standing was due to an inability rather than a desire to disobey the arrogant rapper. Their public humiliation, complete with a loud booing from other crowd members, reflected none of the fun Kanye West must have envisioned for his concerts. Still, he didn’t seem to realize the humiliation he was causing by the demands he put on his audience.

These demands are far more unrealistic than most performers expect. How many artists actually expect their entire audience to participate? They resign themselves to expecting only a majority to be so active and accept when not every fan can, or wants to, show their excitement that way. Kanye, though, seems to take a more egotistical approach to his concert expectations.

Although he eventually did accept the legitimate excuse given for their lack of standing, Kanye never apologized for the public humiliation he caused. Instead, he simply said, “If you’re using a wheelchair, then it’s fine. Only if he’s in a wheelchair.” His statement makes sure that the other, more able, fans don’t get any ideas about sitting against Kanye’s orders.

Perhaps the situation would be forgivable if the star had taken a mere two seconds of his time to say a simple apology to those he embarrassed. His ego, however, didn’t even seem to allow for that.

Graphic by Krystal Schulte