Kanye West’s staggering Coachella pay cheque revealed

The massive sum Coachella was due to pay Kanye West to headline the festival has been revealed - as his replacement fights for the same deal.

Kanye West’s staggering Coachella pay cheque has been revealed as his replacement, The Weeknd, reportedly threatened to pull out if he didn’t receive the same sum.

Coachella organisers allegedly tried to stiff the Blinding Lights singer – real name Abel Tesfaye – after he stepped in at the last minute to replace West as the Sunday headliner at the festival later this month, NY Post reports.

West, 44, who is reportedly seeking treatment for mental health struggles, was set to rake in $10.6 million plus a $666,000 production fee.

Kanye West was supposed to headline Coachella. Picture: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Coachella

Coachella organisers announced on Wednesday that The Weeknd, 32, and house music supergroup Swedish House Mafia will be taking over the rapper’s slots on Sunday, April 17, and Sunday, April 24.

“The Weeknd came in at short notice to take Kanye’s top spot. But Phil Anschutz [who owns the Coachella Festival through AEG Live] wanted to hold on to Kanye’s money and pay The Weeknd far less, just a few million. The festival would pocket the rest,” a source told the publication.

The ploy led to fraught negotiations this week between The Weeknd’s management and Anschutz’s company Goldenvoice, which produces the festival.

The source continued, “Even after Coachella announced the new line-up on Wednesday, a deal wasn’t in place for The Weeknd, who threatened to pull out at an hour’s notice if he didn’t get the same deal as Kanye.

“Finally, on Wednesday — faced with the prospect of a second headline act pulling out of Coachella at the last minute — Anschutz’s company caved and agreed to pay The Weeknd the same money.”

The figure is the standard sum for headliners at the festival, with Ariana Grande paid $10.6 million in 2019, while Beyonce reportedly pocketed between $10.6 million and $16 million in 2018, according to Billboard.

The Weeknd was reportedly set to walk away from the gig if he wasn’t paid the same sum. Picture: Rich Fury/Getty Images for Coachella

A rep for The Weeknd didn’t return multiple calls for comment, and West’s rep also didn’t respond.

It comes after West bailed on the gig on Monday, less than two weeks before showtime because he “wants to get help” after publicly dragging former wife Kim Kardashian and her boyfriend Pete Davidson on social media – which led to a 24-hour Instagram suspension and having his Grammys performance axed.

“Kanye has definitely pulled out of Coachella,” an insider told the publication. “He hasn’t been rehearsing or putting on a production.”

A source confirmed that Travis Scott, who shares two children with Kylie Jenner, “was supposed to be joining [West] on stage.”

“Now it would be virtually impossible for him to get it together. Look for The Weeknd to replace him,” our source shared, adding, “Kanye is backing out because he wants to stay out of the public eye after all the drama with Kim and Pete; he wants to get help.”

Sources said West, who shares four children with the SKIMS mogul, promised not to make “any public appearances or inflammatory social media statements” while he is “away” getting “better.” Kardashian and West were declared legally single in March amid their ongoing divorce.

A rep for the Grammy winner told the Post at the time, “Ye is committed to a healthy co-parenting relationship with Kim and is focused on raising their beautiful children.”

This story originally appeared on New York Post and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Kanye West’s staggering Coachella pay cheque revealed