Trisha Paytas Event Canceled After Student Protests? What We Know About the University Controversy

Western Michigan University’s Campus Activities Board (CAB) canceled its “Trishaween with Trisha Paytas” event on Oct. 22, 2026, nine days before the internet personality was scheduled to appear at Miller Auditorium in Kalamazoo, Michigan, following weeks of student protests and calls for a boycott, according to the Western Herald, the university’s student newspaper.

CAB adviser and Assistant Director of Campus Engagement Tyler Maruschak confirmed the cancellation to the Western Herald. CAB hadn’t issued a public statement as of Oct. 22. Posts promoting the event were removed from CAB’s social media accounts, and the event listing was taken down from Miller Auditorium’s website. Tickets are being refunded, the Western Herald reported.

Student Groups Organized Protests Against the Event

Western Michigan University announced the event on Sept. 1 during Bronco Bash 2026. The booking drew criticism from students who argued that Paytas’ history of controversial behavior could harm the university’s reputation and alienate members of its campus community, according to the Western Herald.

Several student organizations organized counter-events in response. The Black Student Union (BSU), You Beautiful Black Woman (YBBW) and the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW) held a Blackout Protest opposing Paytas’ appearance.

The NCNW also met with CAB after publishing an Instagram post calling for a boycott. According to the organization, CAB asked what outcome it wanted from the meeting, and the group said it wanted the event canceled. The meeting ended without an agreement. CAB said it couldn’t cancel the booking because of existing contracts, according to the Western Herald.

NCNW President Lataevaya Severe criticized the university’s response in a statement to the student newspaper, “There was no ‘I’m sorry’ for the community’s hurt. It just showed a lack of empathy for the communities affected. The NCNW stands for all Broncos, where CAB obviously does not.”

Past Controversies Behind Student Opposition

Paytas has faced criticism over incidents spanning nearly two decades of online activity. The controversies cited by student groups include a 2015 music video in which she dressed as Broomhilda von Shaft, a fictional Black character from the 2012 film “Django Unchained”; videos of her singing rap songs without censoring racial slurs; a Japanese pop star alter ego called “Trishii”; and a Halloween costume depicting an Israeli Defense Forces soldier in 2020, according to the Western Herald.

NCNW Chaplin Sydney McCarrall questioned the booking in light of the university’s stated commitment to diversity. “I think it is totally distasteful for us to be a DEI-centric school and for them to have ignored how much backlash this woman has against her and all the communities that have been affected,” McCarrall said.

Not all students opposed the event. Music theater performance major Mark Mumford told the Western Herald that he had followed Paytas for years and planned to attend. “I think that WMU has brought a lot of different artists and being a state school with so many colleges and such a diverse student body, each artist will be interesting to a different demographic and a different group of people,” Mumford said.

Other Universities Have Booked Trisha Paytas in 2026

Western Michigan University’s canceled event was one of several campus appearances involving Paytas in 2026. Penn State’s Student Programming Association hosted Paytas in a lecture-style event on Sept. 29. The event was moved from Heritage Hall to Schwab Auditorium to accommodate higher-than-expected attendance, according to Penn State student publication Valley Magazine.

The University of North Carolina Wilmington’s Association for Campus Entertainment also announced Paytas as the headliner for its “Big Show,” scheduled for Nov. 7 at Kenan Auditorium in Wilmington, North Carolina, according to Fox Wilmington.

The reason for Western Michigan University’s cancellation remains publicly unconfirmed. Paytas is still scheduled to headline the University of North Carolina Wilmington’s “Big Show” on Nov. 7, 2026, and it is unclear whether the WMU cancellation will affect that appearance.