Help for the hurricane evacuees is pouring in from everywhere, including NBC's Concert For Hurricane Relief held Friday night.

But unscripted comments from musician Kanye West threatened to take some of the show's focus off raising funds.

Musician and New Orleans native Harry Connick Jr., whose voice was raw from spending the last couple of days in the devastated area, was among the performers who took part in the NBC special.

Other Louisiana natives performing on the special were Aaron Neville, Wynton Marsalis and Tim McGraw. McGraw's wife, Faith Hill, comes from Mississippi.

During the special, West apparently ignored the script provided to him to give his opinions about coverage of the relief effort and express his criticism of President George W. Bush.

West said, "George Bush doesn't care about black people," and "they've given them permission to go down and shoot us."

Here is a statement from NBC regarding West's comments on the telethon:

"Tonight's telecast was a live television event wrought with emotion. Kanye West departed from the scripted comments that were prepared for him and his opinions in no way represent the views of the networks. It would be most unfortunate if the efforts of the artists who participated tonight and the generosity of millions of Americans who are helping those in need are overshadowed by one person's opinion."

NBC pulled the comments from its West Coast broadcast and issued a statement after the show.