Kanye West denies claims he only apologized as a PR/brand move

[PEZ 6,550]

To me it sounds like he's focused on bragging instead of apologizing  Can I see more acknowledgement from him of how he affected others? Like "I see how when I said ____ that would make Jewish/Black/other folks feel ____. I'm sorry I hurt/offended/smeared others." I associate that more with an apology and acknowledgement of hard feelings than what he's doing here.

His post yesterday and this today feels very "me, me, me" and all about his feelings instead of other's feelings

Edited January 27 by PEZ

[Kayioshka 3,080]

25 minutes ago, Roughhouse Dandy said:

No he's not and that's a weird thing to call a Black man who has never had a crack use accusation. Especially one who has spoken out against that specific drug, and makes a point to keep it away from his creative spaces. 

I'm poc too, I'm not saying this because of his skin's color. But it's kinda popular that celebs do crack after parties and big ceremonies. Idk it make them de-stress maybe..?

Even Taylor Swift does according to ppl on Twitter :

I'd say that it's the drug for rich ppl not only popular class of people.

[Roughhouse Dandy 13,115]

13 minutes ago, Kayi said:

I'm poc too, I'm not saying this because of his skin's color. But it's kinda popular that celebs do crack after parties and big ceremonies. Idk it make them de-stress maybe..?

Even Taylor Swift does according to ppl on Twitter :

I'd say that it's the drug for rich ppl not only popular class of people.

I didn't say you said it based on the color of his skin. My point stands. 

Edited January 27 by Roughhouse Dandy

[MadArchitect 1,382]

 

4 hours ago, PartySick said:

I mean. He lowkey has a point. He sells regardless so he didn't have to promise to change to sell more.

Still waiting to see how that change is gonna manifest itself though.

he does not have a point at all, he can be striving to be at the #1 spot, he is no stranger to stunts to keep ppl talking about him, and yes regarless that the projects of such high profile people like him will always do good no matter what, the ego of these people is so high that it is never enough for them, they always want more and they to stunts to achiev the best position they can no matter what, his lasts projects didn't so as well and he's still holding on in this post to his Graduation success, this is just reactionary and pure bragging and boasting

[Kayioshka 3,080]

21 minutes ago, Roughhouse Dandy said:

I didn't say you said it based on the color of his skin. My point stands. 

Yeah I agree sometimes racists ppl say this about young poc ppl especially 

[Addison Rae 17,864]

such an incredibly unlikable human being

[Laxy 264]

I believe his apology is sincere.

[PartySick 171,024]

3 hours ago, MadArchitect said:

 

he does not have a point at all, he can be striving to be at the #1 spot, he is no stranger to stunts to keep ppl talking about him, and yes regarless that the projects of such high profile people like him will always do good no matter what, the ego of these people is so high that it is never enough for them, they always want more and they to stunts to achiev the best position they can no matter what, his lasts projects didn't so as well and he's still holding on in this post to his Graduation success, this is just reactionary and pure bragging and boasting

He does have a point though, he didn't need to repair his image 'cause he still raked in the fattest stacks while selling literal Nazi merch.

For sure, he's always had an ego problem and he's always been an idiot, but he's not factually incorrect when he says he didn't need to make that apology to sell well.

I definitely still have my doubts about the validity and sincerity of his words but I've never been a fan anyway. I think the only time I've actively looked for his music is to rip part of it for a Lil Nas X remix I was making  

[LGAte 670]

Although I do think he should have to make some very large investments in time and money to make amends and maybe even artistically show some very very VERY big efforts to roll back what he said and show a deep apology, it disheartens me to see the ignorance about certain mental health disorders on this website in the comments. 

There is a way to absolutely not excuse any of the behavior he exhibited and to 100% stand our ground and say, "what he said was damaging." But it also feels like people are denying the actual realities that accompany mental health disorders. We live in an era where people ironically stigmatize mental health more when they project their own anecdotal experiences on it. You might see some people with a disorder and generally think that is how all people act, and then discard Kanye's racist and disgusting outbursts and attention seeking acts as way worse or inexcusable. But the reality is...most people with his severe head injury, combined with aging and 20 years of ignoring it, combined with a cocktail of misdiagnosis and bad prescriptions, combined with the effects of being a black celebrity in America with an actual viewpoint, combined with early childhood abuse that he experienced, combined with the immense amount of fame and isolation that creates, combined with a multitude of personal and private family dynamics that we simply know about- this, my fellow little monsters, creates a very very very unique situation where someone gets into a uniquely deep dark place. 

Did this very thing not happen to our favorite artist Lady Gaga? Did she not tell us it made her act very erratically? Did we believe her more for certain reasons? Perhaps because she never displayed outward racism or homophobia we gave her a pass. But just because her pain wasn't thrusted outward like Kanye West's was...does not mean that her pain wasn't messy and ugly and imperfect on the inside. Perhaps Gaga's way of healing was different than Kanye's is going to be. And we have got to understand the very REAL reasons why Gaga was able to heal in her environment differently than a black man like Kanye West who is expected to be this titan. I am in no way deducing Gaga's struggle- I'm just saying- her process of healing is way less judged by society- whereas- Kanye's is innately more judged- because he is black, has bi-polar, and grew up in poverty- and that has a sort of compounding socialization effect that caused him to act more what we deem "out of line". 

I guess I am just saying I wish we maybe didn't decide too quick. I am in no way saying "let's forgive Kanye West right now". The man has work to do. But we also should not be saying today "let's not forgive Kanye West." Realistically if we want to heal...we have to embrace unlikely people. Obviously test them to see if they are really changed. But we should never close the gates on someone making an attempt to heal and if we are really good stewards of equality and equity, in time we should be able to decode whether or not he is serious about getting back to the Kanye we loved- or maybe becoming a better version that is a great dad and an amazing rap legend. Maybe he can even reel Nicki back to the light... 

I also want to mention I am not saying this to be apolitical. (I cannot stand people right now who are standing for nothing consider what is going on in America.) I am saying this both strategically on our end as fighters for social justice and equality but also as humans who recognize that this system can make good people bad. And we have to understand and take serious that unaddressed mental health issues can absolutely make people act even in racist, homophobic, transphobic, sexist, and violent ways. 

Infact, I believe 99% of the time that is precisely WHY most people are racist, homophobic, transphobic, sexist, and violent. It does not happen in a vacuum. It is caused by a mixture of pain, isolation, rejection, anger, and fear that leads to a lifetime of wiring the brain to see others as negative and to blame problems outward rather than taking accountability. It is on us to be a light to teach people that holding yourself and others accountable is a good thing and not something we should demonize. So when someone says "I want to be better", we should believe them. We shouldn't be fools, of course, but we should earnestly give people a shot at changing. Otherwise, society will never change. We need to forgive eachother. We need the light back in our hearts and we need to remind people of the better parts of themselves.