Halsey disses Kanye before performing 'Tokyo Narita' on Back to Badlands tour

Halsey calls out Ye before performing Tokyo Narita, referencing him in lyrics, during a moment on tour

During a recent stop on her Back to Badlands tour, Halsey sparked conversation after openly dissing Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, before launching into her song “Tokyo Narita.” The performance took place as part of the 10th-anniversary celebration of her debut album Badlands, which kicked off on October 14, 2025, at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Before performing the track, which features a direct reference to West’s music, Halsey addressed the crowd with a pointed remark:
“Alright, we are gonna do this one but it’s f**k Kanye, okay?”

She then transitioned into “Tokyo Narita,” which includes the lines:
“So we laid down on the floor next to our brand new bed / Just so we could listen closer to this new Kanye West.”

The moment quickly went viral after Pop Base shared a clip of the performance on X, igniting a wave of commentary. Some fans praised Halsey for confronting what one user called a “modern artist’s dilemma” — the challenge of reconciling older work that references public figures whose reputations have since become controversial.

“Alright we’re gonna do this one but it’s F*** Kanye, okay?”

— Halsey before playing ‘Tokyo Narita’ (in which she mentions Kanye West’s music) as a surprise song.https://t.co/HNhkXiebdi

— Pop Base (@PopBase) October 15, 2025

“This is her actively reclaiming her own narrative in real-time,” one commenter observed. “It’s a real-time ‘death of the author’ moment.”

Other users were more critical, suggesting the move was performative or attention-seeking. “Halsey turned a song drop into a public roast,” one noted. Others brought up Ye’s past impact on her career, with one pointing out that Donda released the same weekend as her album, overshadowing its debut.

Despite the mixed reactions, the viral moment has reignited conversation around the ethical boundaries of performance, artistic ownership, and the evolving relationship between creators and the public figures they reference. The Back to Badlands tour continues, with fans anticipating more surprise setlist additions.