The rapper and fashion designer formerly known as Kanye West is talking about his political beliefs following a stir he caused on social media this week by wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt at his fashion show in Paris and later putting a statement on Instagram calling the Black Lives Matter movement “a scam.”
WATCH: YE MAKES ‘WHITE LIVES MATTER’ STATEMENT AT FASHION SHOW
In a wide-ranging interview Thursday, West said the reason for the message on the shirt was “because they do.”
“My dad is an educated ex-black panther and he put a text to me today and he said, ‘White lives matter, hahaha.’ I thought it was funny, the idea of me wearing it was funny, and I said, ‘Why do you think it’s funny?’ And he said just, ‘A black man stating the obvious,'” West said on Tucker Carlson Tonight. “That was my favorite response because I kept thinking — people are looking for an explanation, and people say as an artist you don’t have to give an explanation, but as a leader, you do.”
West spoke at length about his faith in God and how that guides him.
“I don’t care about people’s responses, but I care about the fact that there are more black babies being aborted than born in New York City at this point. That 50% of black death in America is abortion. I really don’t care about people’s response to that. I perform for an audience of one, and that is God,“ West added.
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West told host Tucker Carlson that he started to feel the need to express himself “on another level” when Donald Trump ran for president.
“My so-called friends/handlers around me told me if I said that I liked Trump that my career would be over, that my life would be over,” West told Carlson.
“They said stuff like ‘People get killed for wearing a hat like that.’ They threatened my life. They basically said that I would be killed for wearing the hat. I had someone call me last night and said anybody wearing a ‘White Lives Matter’ shirt is going to be greenlit. That means they are going to beat them up if they wear it. I’m like, you know, OK, greenlight me then,” West added.
“God is preparing us for the real battles. We are in a battle with the media. The majority of the media has a godless agenda, and they are like, ‘Ye is crazy.’ They don’t work because the media have also watched travesties happen, even specifically to me. Just watch it and act like it wasn’t happening and they stay quiet about it,” West said.
Part two of the interview with West will air on Tucker Carlson Tonight on Friday.
