[5] This marked Lamar's first live appearance with a full backing band, although his label Top Dawg Entertainment wanted him to focus on recording rather than joining the tour.

A Tribe Called Quest opened the concerts in New York at the Barclays Center and Madison Square Garden on November 20 and 24, respectively, marking their first shows since performing in California during August.

Live Nation Entertainment held a credit card-sponsored presale the following day and tickets went on sale on January 10, while a press release said the leg would be the last chance for North Americans to see the rapper's "creative concept".

Online said that the Yeezus Tour would combine "state-of-the-art staging, production, and lighting design with [West's] unmatched aesthetic", creative mind, and decade-long discography of singles.

The rapper's concert with Jay-Z in Atlantic City was supposed to feature mountains and icebergs in 2012, which West and Devlin used as a starting point for the tour's planning.

[28][32] Scenography and choreography were done by Italian designer Vanessa Beecroft, who worked with West on material such as a listening party for his 2008 album 808s & Heartbreak, his 2010 short film Runaway and the music video of "Only One" in 2015.

Maison Margiela was not briefed for the Yeezus Tour and only told to design in line with Beecroft's artistic direction, working closely with West since the start of the year and beginning from reinterpretations of their archives.

[37] Each theme's name was projected in white block letters on the LED screen in front of the mountain peak, being introduced over the arena speakers as passages and symbolism from the Bible were utilized.

[6][38][39] The rapper utilized a bejeweled luchador brown mask with a graffiti style for Fighting, featuring a patchwork of beading, decorative borders, and polished metals.

[36][46] He self-proclaimed himself as a genius and made comparisons to figures such as inventor Nikola Tesla and Jodorowsky,[36][42] as well as criticizing his media coverage and encouraging the audience to achieve their dreams.

[36][38][39] For the closing number "Bound 2", West and a dozen robe dancers fell to their knees next to White Jesus atop the mountain as the character delivered a sermon.

[6][38] He brought out fellow rapper E-40 for him to perform "Function" at a tour stop in San Jose on October 22, 2013, coinciding with the one year anniversary of Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.

[55] For the concerts opened by A Tribe Called Quest, the group were backed by a body-painted lady representing "Bonita Applebum" on the screen, who appeared in black, red, and green.

Other group members Phife Dawg and Jarobi White leapt into the air with choreographed steps during tracks like "Excursions" from their 1991 album The Low End Theory, while the two walked across the stage for "Bonita Applebum".

[65] Author Bret Easton Ellis revealed around the same time of the trailer that he was working with the rapper on a project, after having re-imagined a scene from American Psycho (2000) for a promotional clip of the tour.

[65] The film was set to be shot by director Hype Williams, who previously directed music videos for West's singles like "Gold Digger", "Stronger", and "Heartless".

[65] In October 2023, Williams explained to Complex how after he shot the film with West in Chicago and Toronto, the two engaged in a dress rehearsal with attention to detail so intense that they lost its original meaning.

[66] The director and Scooter Braun spent six months negotiating with IMAX for the film's release, although it was discarded due to West's personal issues after his then-wife Kim Kardashian was robbed in Paris.

[67] Writing for Rolling Stone, Jonathan Ringen described the tour as "totally bonkers" for its combination of entertainment, ambitions, and West's emotion delving into "places that are dark and weird and sad".

[46] Baker described the Yeezus Tour as a funeral of West's frustrations in a haunted house through the backing guests of "goths [and] men in skirts", praising the stage design for its layering and the mountain.

[46] Forbes staff member Zack O'Malley Greenburg noted the tour as divine art from West's flourishes of fire and ice, as well as the mountain and his masks.

[68] Jim Farber of the New York Daily News found that West's masks make him appear like a gladiator and he had a dramatic moment of moving his arms out to surrender to the arena's white light, highlighting the glacier-like structure and LED screen.

Farber was thrilled with how the tour manages to either "startle or appall" and praised the appearance of the dancers, while he concluded that "unyielding beats, hellish textures and a brusque flow" were offered with an impact "as stunning as West's ego itself".

[70] McGuire highlighted West's speeches after "Runaway" and how his inspiration is unique from other artists, seeing him as representative of "the parts of us that popular culture rarely allows us to reveal" with the provocative element of his focus on both religion and erotica.

[70] For The Hollywood Reporter, Jeff Weiss was compelled by the tour's themes and West's masks; he lauded the mountain, dancers, and Yeti demon, while observing the significance of the character White Jesus' appearance.

Weiss saw it as "syncretistic extravaganza" and highlighted West's meticulous approach to his performances, noting that the proclamations in the rapper's speeches "strike a bizarre thunder in person" and concluding him outmatching Lamar's impressive opening set leaves the question, "What's a King to a God?

Reiff told Business Insider at the time of publishing that the tour was one of the greatest live rap presentations ever and emphasized West's level of thought put into performing, believing anyone who knew nothing about him could watch it and "come away wowed at least".

[73] During the Yeezus Tour's concert at Qantas Credit Union Arena in Sydney on September 12, 2014, West insisted that he could not continue with the show and perform "Good Life" until all of the audience stood up.

[74][75][76] West noticed the two wheelchair-bound fans after they were brought to his attention by bodyguard Pascal Duvier and others seated nearby, accepting their exceptions and then performing "Good Life".

[75] West delivered a five-minute rant about the incident at a tour stop in Brisbane on September 15, 2014, offering the likes of Matt Lauer, Michael Strahan, Whoopi Goldberg, and Robin Roberts to look at him from a new perspective rather than providing negative headlines.