NEW YORK -- Kanye West defended himself from criticism over his delayed performance at the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, saying on his blog that the flak he's taken has left him "the most offended I've ever been."

West's performance at the Tennessee festival was scheduled for 2:45 a.m. in the early morning of June 15. West didn't take the stage until 4:25 a.m., angering much of the crowd who had stayed to see the rapper perform.

The delay was caused by problems setting up West's elaborate stage set. Pearl Jam, which had performed on the main stage earlier, also went an hour over its scheduled time. While waiting for West's concert to begin, many in the crowd pelted the stage with glow sticks and beer.

Writing Tuesday on his blog at www.kanyeuniversity.com in almost all caps, West said he was offended that anyone would think he doesn't care about his fans and blamed the delay on festival organizers.

"This Bonnaroo thing is the worst insult I've ever had in my life," West wrote. "This is the most offended I've ever been ... this is the maddest I ever will be."

West was critical of the festival for not releasing a statement in his defense. The morning after the show, festival spokesman Ken Weinstein told The Associated Press that delay was a matter of unloading the Pearl Jam stage after its set and loading the West stage.

Following his performance, West's publicist didn't reply to a request from The AP for West's take on the criticism.

Weinstein on Wednesday relayed a statement on behalf of the festival that read: "Our world-class event production team strives to accommodate the needs of every performer."

West concluded by saying his elaborate stage cuts his payday in half and leaves him icing his knees. "Call me what you want," he said, "but never say I didn't give my all!"

First Published: June 26, 2008, 4:00 a.m.