# Kanye Interrupts Imma Let You Finish

> Kanye Interrupts Imma Let You Finish is a 2009 snowclone spawned when Kanye West grabbed Taylor Swift's microphone at the MTV VMAs, declaring "Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you, Imma let you finish"—an infinitely recyclable preemption catchphrase.

On September 13, 2009, Kanye West walked onto the MTV Video Music Awards stage, grabbed the microphone from Taylor Swift during her Best Female Video acceptance speech, and declared that Beyoncé's "Single Ladies" was "one of the best videos of all time." His words, "Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you, Imma let you finish," instantly became an endlessly recyclable internet template. The moment spawned photoshops, mashup videos, a snowclone catchphrase, and nearly 300,000 tweets in a single hour, making it a defining meme of the late 2000s.

## Origin
The 25th annual MTV Video Music Awards were broadcast live from Radio City Music Hall in New York City on September 13, 2009[1]. When country-pop singer Taylor Swift won Best Female Video for "You Belong With Me," she took the stage and began her acceptance speech. Kanye West then jumped from his seat, walked up, and took the microphone from her hands.

"Yo, Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'mma let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time! One of the best videos of all time!" West declared, referring to Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" music video[1]. The live audience booed as West shrugged his shoulders, handed the microphone back to Swift, and walked off stage while flipping off the crowd[2]. MTV cut to pre-recorded footage of Tracy Morgan while a stunned Swift tried to recover[8].

West was ejected from the venue shortly after[15]. Later that evening, Beyoncé won Video of the Year for "Single Ladies" and used her moment to invite Swift back on stage to finish her speech[1]. Behind the scenes, Beyoncé had been in tears backstage. "She was like, 'I didn't know this was going to happen, I feel so bad for her,'" Van Toffler, then-president of Viacom Media Networks, told Billboard[6]. Toffler said he suggested to Beyoncé that she would likely win an award later in the show and could bring Taylor back up to have her moment. Beyoncé agreed[6].

- **Platform:** MTV VMAs (televised event), Twitter / Tumblr (viral meme spread)
- **Creator:** Kanye West (originator of the moment), Patrick St. John (first viral mashup video)
- **Date:** 2009

## Overview
"Kanye Interrupts" or "Imma Let You Finish" refers to the moment Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift at the 2009 MTV VMAs and the massive wave of internet content it produced. The meme takes two primary forms: a snowclone text format where users substitute new subjects into West's declaration ("Yo [X], I'm really happy for you, Imma let you finish, but [Y] had one of the best [Z] of all time"), and photoshopped images placing West into scenes where he "interrupts" historical events, fictional moments, or other ceremonies. The instantly recognizable still frame of West holding the microphone while a bewildered Swift looks on became one of the defining images of late-2000s internet culture. The "Imma Let You Finish" catchphrase entered everyday vocabulary as shorthand for any rude or comedic interruption.

## How It Spread
The internet response was immediate and enormous. According to social media analytics firm Trendrr, 293,024 tweets about the incident landed within the hour after it happened[4]. Kanye West was a top trending topic on Twitter for days. Celebrities piled on across the platform: Pink wrote, "Kanye west is the biggest piece of shit on earth. Quote me"; Katy Perry tweeted, "FUCK U KANYE. IT'S LIKE U STEPPED 0N A KITTEN." Justin Bieber, Kellie Pickler, Boys Like Girls singer Martin Johnson, and dozens of others all publicly rallied behind Swift[11].

West posted an apologetic blog entry in all caps on his website while the show was still airing. "I'm sooooo sorry to Taylor Swift and her fans and her mom," he wrote, though he doubled down on Beyoncé in the same breath: "Beyonce's video was the best of this decade!!!!"[8]. He deleted the post within hours, then published a second apology comparing himself to Ben Stiller in *Meet the Parents*: "That was Taylor's moment and I had no right in any way to take it from her"[16].

The next day, September 14, West appeared on the premiere of Jay Leno's new primetime talk show in what turned into an unplanned confessional[19]. When Leno asked what his late mother Donda West would have said, Kanye paused for a long, visibly emotional moment. "I'm just ashamed that my hurt caused someone else's hurt," he said. "I need to, after this, take some time off and just analyze how I'm going to make it through the rest of this life"[10].

On September 15, Taylor Swift appeared on *The View* and recounted her thought process: "Wow! I can't believe I won! This is awesome. Don't trip and fall... Oh! Kanye West is here! Cool haircut. What are you doing there? And then 'Ouch,' and then, 'I guess I'm not gonna get to thank the fans'"[3]. She told the hosts that West had not reached out to her personally. According to Rolling Stone, Kanye called Swift shortly after her segment aired, and she accepted his apology[3].

The meme machine, meanwhile, was running at full speed. Freelance graphic designer Patrick St. John uploaded a mashup video on September 13 combining West's rant with footage of Representative Joe Wilson shouting "You lie!" during President Obama's healthcare speech[14]. St. John tried to get Rachel Maddow's attention on Twitter, but instead Bill O'Reilly found the video, aired it on his show, and called St. John "a patriot." The designer's reaction on Twitter: "Bill O'Reilly just called me a patriot, for making the Obama/Kanye mix. *facepalm*"[14]. The New York Times covered the mashup, and it spawned roughly 500 similar Kanye Interrupts videos[9].

Within days, Facebook and Twitter users began photoshopping West into famous scenes alongside George W. Bush, Neil Armstrong, Adolf Hitler, and Usain Bolt[15]. A dedicated Twitter account (@KanyeInterrupts), single-serving websites like IsKanyeWestADouchebag.com and imaletyoufinish.com, and Tumblr blogs including Kanyegate and Kanye Interrupted all launched to house ongoing snowclone and photoshop content[9]. On September 17, "Imma Let You Finish" was chosen as Urban Dictionary's Word of the Day[9]. Compilations of the meme images were featured on Mashable, MTV, and the Daily Mail between September 15 and 18[15].

## How to Use
The Imma Let You Finish meme typically works in one of three formats:
1. **Snowclone text:** Take any situation where something is being praised or awarded. Swap in new subjects: "Yo [person/thing], I'm really happy for you, Imma let you finish, but [alternative] had one of the best [category] of all time." Works in tweets, comments, or text over images.
2. **Photoshop interruption:** Place a cutout of Kanye (usually the still frame of him holding the mic on stage) into a scene where he "interrupts" something. Popular targets include historical moments, fictional scenes, other award ceremonies, or any serious occasion.
3. **Four-panel dialogue:** A comic-style format showing Kanye and Taylor on stage with dialogue bubbles. The setup follows the interruption structure, often with absurdist or niche humor filling the punchline.

## Cultural Impact
The 2009 VMAs interruption was one of the first major pop culture events where Twitter reaction happened at massive scale in real time, with nearly 300,000 tweets in a single hour setting a new benchmark for how fast the internet could respond to live television[4].

The incident drew commentary from a sitting US president (Obama's "jackass" remark), condemnation from former president Jimmy Carter, and reactions from future president Donald Trump[2]. Obama's off-the-record comment became its own mini-controversy about journalistic standards in the social media era[5].

It also shaped two of the biggest pop music careers of the 21st century. The public sympathy for Swift after the incident boosted her visibility enormously, and the ongoing tension with West defined tabloid narratives for nearly a decade[7]. For West, the backlash led to a period of public retreat and, by his own account, lasting damage to his radio career[7].

The original incident was watched by more than 27 million people globally and logged around 2 million views on MTV.com alone[15]. The snowclone format proved so recognizable that "pulling a Kanye" and "Imma let you finish" became shorthand in mainstream English for rudely interrupting someone, well beyond internet spaces.

## Fun Facts
- Patrick St. John, the graphic designer behind the Obama/Kanye mashup, was mortified when Bill O'Reilly aired it and called him "a patriot." He tweeted, "My girlfriend Meryl noticed a few of the YouTube comments were mentioning The O'Reilly Factor, and our jaws dropped"[14].
- Beyoncé's invitation for Swift to finish her speech was not spontaneous. Viacom president Van Toffler went backstage, found Beyoncé crying with her father, and suggested the idea after telling her she would likely win Video of the Year[6].
- Comedy Central reran the South Park "fish sticks" episode, which mocked Kanye's ego, four consecutive times the day after the VMAs[16].
- West told Jay Leno he realized his mistake "as soon as I gave the mic back to her and she didn't keep going"[1].
- The 2009 VMAs broadcast drew 9 million US viewers, a 17% jump over 2008 and the highest VMAs ratings since 2004[2].

## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is "Imma Let You Finish"?
"Imma Let You Finish" is an internet meme based on Kanye West interrupting Taylor Swift's acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV VMAs to declare that Beyoncé's "Single Ladies" video was "one of the best videos of all time." It became a snowclone template used in text, image macros, and photoshops[1].

### Where did the Kanye Interrupts meme come from?
It originated from the live broadcast of the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on September 13, 2009, when West took the microphone from Swift during her Best Female Video acceptance speech[2].

### What does "Imma Let You Finish" mean?
The phrase is used as humorous shorthand for rudely interrupting someone to express a contrarian opinion. In meme format, it follows the template: "Yo [X], I'm really happy for you, Imma let you finish, but [Y] had one of the best [Z] of all time"[15].

### How do you use the Imma Let You Finish meme?
You can write a text-based snowclone substituting your own subjects into the template, photoshop an image of Kanye holding a microphone into any scene, or create a four-panel dialogue comic using stills from the broadcast[9].

### Is "Imma Let You Finish" still popular?
The meme peaked in September 2009 but became a classic format that gets revived whenever Kanye West or Taylor Swift are in the news. Jay-Z referenced it at the 2012 BET Awards, and Aubrey Plaza echoed it at the 2013 MTV Movie Awards[12][13].

### What did Kanye West actually say to Taylor Swift?
His exact words were: "Yo, Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'mma let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time! One of the best videos of all time!"[1].

### What did Taylor Swift say about the interruption?
On *The View* two days later, Swift said: "I think my overall thought process went something like: 'Wow! I can't believe I won! This is awesome. Don't trip and fall... Oh! Kanye West is here! Cool haircut. What are you doing there?' And then 'Ouch'"[3].

### Did President Obama really call Kanye a jackass?
Yes. During an off-the-record exchange before a CNBC interview on September 14, 2009, Obama said, "The young lady seems like a perfectly nice person. She's getting her award. What's he doing up there? He's a jackass." An ABC News reporter tweeted the quote before it was deleted[5].

### Did Kanye West apologize?
Multiple times. He posted an all-caps blog apology while the show was still airing (later deleted), a second blog apology comparing himself to Ben Stiller in *Meet the Parents*, and an emotional on-camera apology on the premiere of the Jay Leno Show[8][16][10].

### What happened to the Kanye and Lady Gaga tour?
The FameKills tour, a highly anticipated joint run, was cancelled shortly after the VMAs. While officially blamed on "creative differences," the backlash from the Swift interruption was widely believed to be the real cause[7].

### Did Beyoncé know she would bring Taylor Swift back on stage?
Yes. Van Toffler, then-president of Viacom Media Networks, told Billboard that he found Beyoncé crying backstage and suggested that she could invite Swift back up when she won her own award. Beyoncé agreed[6].

### How many tweets did the incident generate?
According to Trendrr, 293,024 tweets about the incident landed within the hour after it happened, making it one of the biggest real-time Twitter events of 2009[4].

### Who made the famous Obama/Kanye mashup video?
Freelance graphic designer Patrick St. John uploaded the mashup on September 13, 2009. It combined West's rant with Representative Joe Wilson's "You lie!" outburst and was later featured on the O'Reilly Factor and in the New York Times[14].

### When did Jay-Z reference the meme at an awards show?
At the 2012 BET Awards, Jay-Z interrupted Kanye's acceptance speech with "Excuse me Kanye, I am going to let you continue, but..." The audience and Kanye both burst out laughing[12].

## References
1. [300,000 Kanye West Tweets Interrupt Twitter | Mashable](<https://mashable.com/archive/kanye-twitter>)
2. [Kanye West On Jay Leno: I’m Ashamed [VIDEO] | Mashable](<https://mashable.com/archive/kanye-on-jay-leno>)
3. [Top 10 Kanye West Interruption Parodies | Mashable](<https://mashable.com/archive/kanye-west-parodies>)
4. [Kanye Interrupts / Imma Let You Finish - Know Your Meme](<https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/kanye-interrupts-imma-let-you-finish>)
5. [2009 MTV Video Music Awards](<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_MTV_Video_Music_Awards>)
6. [Urban Dictionary: Imma let you finish](<https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Imma%20let%20you%20finish>)
7. [Beyoncé's Reaction To Kanye West Interrupting Taylor Swift At The 2009 VMAs Was Really Emotional](<https://www.bustle.com/p/beyonces-reaction-to-kanye-west-interrupting-taylor-swift-at-the-2009-vmas-was-really-emotional-18691074>)
8. [Taylor Swift Kanye West VMA Moment Turns 10](<https://people.com/music/taylor-swift-kanye-west-mtv-vma-interruption-everything-said/>)
9. [The Ricochet Effect of Kanye West's 'I'mma Let You Finish' Moment](<https://theboombox.com/kanye-west-imma-let-you-finish-2009-vmas/>)
10. [Obama Caught on Tape Calling Kanye 'Jackass'](<https://www.tmz.com/2009/09/15/obama-caught-on-tape-calling-kanye-jackass-taylor-swift/>)
11. [MTV | Homepage - Shows & Schedules](<https://www.mtv.com/news/1621404/kanye-west-asked-to-leave-vmas-after-rant-against-taylor-swift/>)
12. [Celebrity Twitters Love Taylor Swift: ohnotheydidnt — LiveJournal](<https://ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/39158628.html>)
13. [Kanye Sees Taylor's View -- Calls to Apologize](<https://www.tmz.com/2009/09/15/kanye-sees-taylors-view-calls-to-apologize/>)
14. [Taylor Swift Recounts Kanye West VMAs Incident on "The View"](<https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-recounts-kanye-west-vmas-incident-on-the-view-70768/>)
15. [Archive blogs - Los Angeles Times](<https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2009/09/kanye-west-apologizes-to-taylor-swift-.html>)
16. [Obama: Kanye Is A "Jackass" | HuffPost Entertainment](<https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/14/obama-kanye-is-a-jackass_n_286623.html>)
17. [Kanye West On Jay Leno: I’m Ashamed [VIDEO] | Mashable](<https://mashable.com/2009/09/14/kanye-on-jay-leno/>)
18. [kanyeinterrupted](<http://kanyeinterrupted.tumblr.com/>)
19. [MTV | Homepage - Shows & Schedules](<http://www.mtv.com/news/1621410/kanye-west-apologizes-to-taylor-swift-for-vma-rant/>)
20. [300,000 Kanye West Tweets Interrupt Twitter | Mashable](<https://mashable.com/2009/09/14/kanye-twitter/>)
21. [MTV | Homepage - Shows & Schedules](<http://www.mtv.com/news/1621529/kanye-west-tells-jay-leno-hes-ashamed-of-vma-outburst/>)
22. [BET Awards 2012: Jay-Z interrupts Kanye's acceptance speech after West ruined Taylor Swift's back in 2009 | Daily Mail Online](<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2167743/BET-Awards-2012-Jay-Z-interrupts-Kanyes-acceptance-speech-West-ruined-Taylor-Swifts-2009.html#ixzz1zbbgQPR8>)
23. [MTV | Homepage - Shows & Schedules](<https://www.mtv.com/news/1621416/katy-perry-pink-hayley-williams-bash-kanye-wests-vma-rant/>)
24. [Aubrey Plaza Tweets "Thanks" to Kanye West After Crashing Will Ferrell's Speech](<https://www.eonline.com/news/408012/aubrey-plaza-tweets-quot-thanks-quot-to-kanye-west-after-interrupting-will-ferrell-s-mtv-movie-awards-speech>)
25. [Kanye West Apologizes for Upstaging Taylor Swift - SPIN](<https://www.spin.com/2009/09/kanye-west-apologizes-upstaging-taylor-swift/>)
26. [Kanye West On Jay Leno: Apologizes To Taylor Swift (VIDEO) | HuffPost Entertainment](<https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/14/kanye-west-on-leno-apolog_n_286675.html>)
27. [Top 10 Kanye West Interruption Parodies | Mashable](<https://mashable.com/2009/09/15/kanye-west-parodies/>)
28. [Kanye West Calls His Taylor Swift VMAs Outburst "Rude" on "Leno"](<https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kanye-west-calls-his-taylor-swift-vmas-outburst-rude-on-leno-73264/>)
29. [Kanye West's MTV rant sparks wave of internet virals | Daily Mail Online](<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1214080/Kanye-Wests-MTV-rant-sparks-wave-internet-virals.html>)
30. [Aubrey Plaza Pulled A Kanye And Reportedly Got Kicked Out Of The MTV Movie Awards](<https://www.buzzfeed.com/lyapalater/aubrey-plaza-pulled-a-kanye-and-reportedly-got-kicked-out-of>)
31. [Photos - 2025 - BET Awards - BET](<https://www.bet.com/shows/bet-awards/2012/photos/show/bet-awards-2012-highlights.html?ftcnt=HP_Shows#!070112-shows-beta-bet-awards-highlights-angela-bassett-lela-rochon-loretta-devine>)
32. [MTV | Homepage - Shows & Schedules](<http://www.mtv.com/news/music//2009/09/17/the-top-10-best-kanye-west-interruptions-meme-pics/>)
33. [MTV | Homepage - Shows & Schedules](<http://www.mtv.com/news/1688876/jay-zkanye-west-bet-awards-2012/>)
34. [The Inevitable Wilson-Kanye Mashup - The New York Times](<https://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/15/the-inevitable-wilson-kanye-mashup/>)

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