Candace Owens says she had an oh-s*** moment before Kanye West‘s Chicago homecoming show … when she suddenly spotted Kim Kardashian across the lobby.

Candace recounted the awkward run-in on her podcast … saying she was talking to someone from Ye’s team when she looked over and saw Kim — someone she says she hadn’t seen since before Kim and Kanye’s 2021 divorce.

Her first thought? She might be stuck in the same box with Kim all night … which Candace admits would’ve been especially awkward considering some of the things she’s publicly said about her over the years.

Candace says the two basically stared at each other from across the lobby … and she compared the moment to a viral meme, joking that it perfectly captured the energy between them … but no fireworks followed.

Candace says she later realized Kim wasn’t even there for Kanye’s show — she was in town for North West‘s performance the following night.

So, crisis averted … with Candace saying there were “no hard feelings” and sending love to Kim and her family.

As for the concert, Candace went on to say she eventually made her way from a box down into the crowd because the energy was too good to pass up.