KEY POINTS:
You've got to hand it to Kanye West - he certainly knows how to capture a nation's attention.
The call came out a week earlier. The country's media were invited to an exclusive Kanye press conference, to take place just hours before his Auckland show on Monday.
It's
not usual for visiting artists to hold pressers. The last one anyone at the Herald can recall was Robbie Williams - another notoriously self-assured performer - back in 2001.
But Kanye has never been a wallflower. You don't have to be an avid gossip-reader to know he holds strong views on ... well, just about everything really.
So as the dark basement bar filled up with a battalion of journalists, the tension was palpable.
We were warned not to mention his mother's passing or any "gossip" (presumably the break-up of his long-term relationship from fiance Alexis Phifer ... ) lest he walk out on us.
After a 30-minute delay, which saw the room grow more and more restless under the sweltering heat of studio lighting, a black curtain was drawn back to reveal a stainless steel door to the carpark. How very furtive.
An assortment of handlers and publicists slowly trickled in, confirming Elvis had entered the building.
Or should that be Mr President? It's hard to keep tabs on who Kanye West is each week, he constantly changes his mind. Last week he proclaimed he wanted to be the next Elvis. He told our press conference he was the "President of me".
One person he doesn't want to be is James Bond. Apparently, the role isn't conducive to his love of sneakers. But then, that could change next week. Such is Kanye's prerogative.
He recently told Britain's Daily Telegraph he was done with hip-hop. Referring to his new album 808s and Heartbreak, Kanye said: "Hip-hop is over for me. I sing, not rap, on this album."
But in Auckland this week he denied ever saying it. "That quote is so wrong. I never said that. I still listen to hip-hop."
Perhaps he was misquoted. But as the Q&A session continued, another possible - and altogether more likely - cause became clear. Perhaps Kanye just doesn't remember saying it. The man talks so much, he can't possibly recall every sentence to come flying out of his mouth.
By the end of the 30-minute session, everyone was physically exhausted from listening to Kanye talk, and talk and talk ...
Some of what he said was insightful. Some was completely nonsensical. But all was said with good humour and a general sense of fun. It's easy to quote the outrageous things Kanye says, but it's much harder to convey his tone and attitude as he says them.
Yes, he is brazenly confident. But he's not nearly as obnoxious as so many stories make out.
He regularly jokes about how self-absorbed he is. He acknowledges what "the politically correct" thing to say would be - and then says the complete opposite anyway, beaming a cheeky grin.
At one point, Kanye says: "I'm completely just a grown child talking to you."
Tellingly, this is one of the truest statements he makes.
Like a child, the man is completely unaware of when to censure himself. Of when to stem the constant babble that flows from his mouth. Like a child, he craves constant attention.
But then, the attention creates headlines. And headlines bolster profile. And profile generates record sales. And there's nothing childlike about that.
