If you haven’t heard it enough already, Kanye West is at it again. He’s spewing angry and hurtful nonsense and is quickly spiraling downward. Yes, he has always been controversial, but recently it’s been dramatically different. Here’s an update on some of the disgusting things he’s said only within the past two weeks.
You’d have to be completely unplugged to have not heard that West’s Twitter and Instagram were locked after he wrote and posted several antisemitic comments. One tweet said he was “going death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE… the funny thing is I can’t actually be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew,” he then continues by saying “you guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.”
The statements Kanye has made rightfully drew a huge wave of backlash from multiple Jewish individuals and organizations. As a Jewish individual myself, I was definitely sickened when I heard some of the things he was saying. I’ve been listening to his music for years, and he has been one of my favorite artists; it’s unfortunate to see how much my perception of him has changed as he continuously does and says outrageous and hurtful things. It has become extremely difficult to separate his persona from his music.
In addition to West being outwardly antisemitic, he also recently addressed the death of George Floyd, claiming that it was due to fentanyl use and not at the mercy of Derek Chauvin. Kanye appeared on a podcast called drink champs, and stated that the cop’s knee “wasn’t even on his neck like that,” and basically implied that George Floyd had been taking drugs, which ultimately was the reason for his death.
There is talk about George Floyd’s family considering suing Kanye as a result of the disrespect and false claims he has been stating so openly to the public about his death.
Kanye’s actions are causing him to lose a lot of brand deals— Gap has already ended their partnership with him, and Balenciaga and Adidas have put their Yeezy deal under review. A spokesperson for Adidas said that the “Adidas Yeezy partnership is one of the most successful collaborations in our industry’s history.” So many things that have contributed to his financial success are suddenly being stripped away. It is difficult to work with someone whose reputation is that unreliable and has become unrelatable to consumers of these brands.
All of the recent news surrounding Kanye West’s disrespect is not only hurting himself, but it’s affecting so many different people who already feel marginalized. It’s difficult to see a celebrity with such a huge platform act like this on social media as well as real life. The most concerning thing to think about is whom or what he could attack next.