Kanye West made a surprise appearance at Howard University's homecoming on Saturday morning.
The megastar rapper brought his Sunday Service show right to D.C. for a crowd that gathered at 8 a.m. on the Howard quad for a performance that's sure to become legend.
Kanye took the stage in a tan coat, performing new verses and raising his hands to the sky for the worship-style show. Grammy-award winning R&B singer Tony Williams presided over the service, conducting a mass of artists including choir singers, drummers and a brass band.
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True to its intended church-like vibes, Sunday Service wasn't all music. Momolu Stewart and Halim Flowers, two D.C. men who were convicted in murder cases when they were teens, took the stage to tell their stories. The Washington Post reports that Kim Kardashian West wrote a letter on behalf of Stewart's petition to be released from prison after more than 20 years.
Howard University kept their homecoming Yardfest lineup quiet this year, promising artists would be announced as they took the stage. On Friday, huge crowds showed up to see DaBaby, Terrance J and Mack Wilds.
Photos: Famous Howard University Alumni and Former Students
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Kanye has been bringing a worship-style concert to cities around the country in anticipation of "Jesus Is King: A Kanye West Experience," a documentary-album hybrid.
Kanye's appearance at the historically black college in the nation's capital evoked some criticism.
"If @kanyewest is indeed at #HowardU this morning, send him to the third floor of the Founder's Library after he's done. I have some books for him," Greg Carr, the chair of the Howard University Department of Afro-American Studies, said on Twitter.
Kanye's D.C. service was a family affair. Kim Kardashian West tweeted a photo of two of the couple's kids, Saint, 3, and North, 5, headed to Sunday Service. Kanye could be seen holding his kids on his shoulders during the performance.
The Howard show wont be the District's only chance to get a taste of Kanye West's new material: George Washington University also announced a surprise "Kanye West Experience" centered around the album-documentary for Saturday afternoon.
Tickets to that show, announced overnight, sold out by 8 a.m.
