Kanye and the President
Will any good come out of this new relationship?
Kanye showing his love for the president with his signed MAGA hat.
Kanye West shocked the media with a series of tweets in support of President Donald Trump. He even added a photo of a signed “Make America Great Again” hat, which Trump later retweeted. In one tweet, West said “He is my brother. I love everyone. I don’t agree with everything anyone does. That’s what makes us individuals. And we have the right to independent thought.” Kanye’s wife, Kim Kardashian, wanted Kanye to make it clear that he doesn’t agree with everything Trump does as well as defending her husband, calling him a “free thinker,” but wants to make it clear that she doesn’t agree with all he supports either.
There are many takes on whether or not Kanye should just stop tweeting now. Some, like LHS Junior Quinn Casheros, believe “that everyone has a voice and should be able to share their opinions.” Others, like Junior Jacquelyn Boesler, think that he should indeed stop tweeting, “He’s over dramatic and trying to get popularity.” She also mentioned that she “doesn’t really care about” Trump and West’s relationship. West said he reached out to former President Obama over the years, but said he ‘couldn’t get anything done.’ Kanye even called out Obama for failing to apologize for calling him a “jackass” multiple times. Some Trump and West fans were thrilled with the new-found relationship, while others bashed and quickly unfollowed.
The 40-year-old rapper visited Trump Tower in 2016 to discuss multiracial issues, specifically in his home town Chicago. Trump even said they’ve been friends for years. On the New York Times, Hope Hicks, a spokeswoman for Trump at the time, said West was the one who requested the meeting. This relationship is not supported by many of Kanye’s celebrity friends. In a text conversation between singer John Legend and West, Legend said, “I hope you’ll reconsider aligning yourself with Trump. You’re way too powerful and influential to endorse who he is and what he stands for.” West replied back with saying that he loves John but also saying John was manipulating his “free thought.”
Samantha Soule, LHS Junior, is of the opinion thatTrump and West’s relationship is ‘too close for comfort’. Others like Junior Quinn Casheros think it is ‘a beautiful mend between two different personalities from similar platforms.’ According to the Pop Crave twitter account, Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, Rihanna, Ariana Grande, Harry Styles, Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, and Kendrick Lamar are just a few famous names that decided to unfollow West on twitter.
After the many tweets sent, fans began to question West’s mental health. His wife was quick to shut the hate down with, “To the media trying to demonize my husband let me just say this… your commentary on Kanye being erratic & his tweets being disturbing is actually scary. So quick to label him as having mental health issues for just being himself when he has always been expressive is not fair.” Trump didn’t keep quiet either as he discussed Kanye at his recent rally in Michigan. “Kanye West gets it,” Trump said. “When he sees that African-American unemployment is the lowest in history, you know people are watching. That’s a very important thing he’s done for his legacy.”
Kanye didn’t really help his cause with the people when saying in a recent radio interview that slavery ‘was a choice.’ The Detroit radio station then banned West, calling for the hashtag ‘mute Kanye’. West faced even more backlash after he tried to explain what he meant in an interview with TMZ, where he said “when you hear about slavery for 400 years. For 400 years?! That sounds like a choice.” Anyone can support who they want but, most people can all agree that when it comes to something as serious as slavery, Kanye might just want to keep quiet.
Who knows, maybe some good can come from this new relationship. LHS Junior Samantha Soule said that “you never know, possibly or possibly not.” Casheros thinks that “beautiful things can come out of this.” Trump tweeted that “Kanye West has performed a great service to the Black Community- big things are happening and eyes are being opened for the first time in decades.” Hopefully “big things” really are happening.
