TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of a Sexual Assault case and Antisemitism
The rap singer Kanye West (also known as Ye) has previously been vocal about his right political standing. He has been receiving significant hate recently after harassing Taylor Swift, showing up to the Grammys uninvited, and now with his Super Bowl ad campaign.
After being on an Instagram hiatus, he returned to the social media platform days before the Grammys and followed only one account – Taylor Swift’s. He made this action abundantly clear to followers by posting his follower count on his story.
The pair has had long long-running drama ever since Ye took Swift’s mic away from her during the 2009 Video Music Awards (VMAs) to proclaim how Beyoncé should have won the category Swift was actively winning. Other incidents include dissing her in his 2016 song entitled “Famous” and releasing edited private phone conversations regarding the lyric in question. This drama surrounding the song “Famous” led to Swift’s year long hiatus in 2016 and 2017 after which she reclaimed the words from Kim Kardashian, Ye’s wife at the time, calling her a snake and turning it into an album now known as “Reputation,” which was released in November of 2017. Not only are the recent events not Taylor Swift’s first time dealing with Ye, but she has previously been the victim of a sexual assault case that she discussed in her 2020 documentary “Miss Americana.”
While this action on Instagram seemed random, it was largely brushed off as insignificant until news reports came out that he was seeking knowledge of where Taylor Swift would be at the Grammys and was plotting to get an intimate conversation with her caught by cameras. This tipped off news outlets and Swifties alike with concern about what actions may be brewing. While people decided to provide information, that did not stop him from showing up to the Grammys uninvited with his wife, Bianca Censori.
Despite not being invited, the pair made it to the carpet in front of the cameras that were streaming live to The Recording Academy YouTube Channel before Bianca Censori dropped her large black cloak jacket to reveal a clear dress at which point the pair were escorted out of the Grammys.
Again, it was believed that this was the end of this show, but a mere week later during the Super Bowl, a local ad in the Los Angeles area aired promoting Ye’s fashion brand Yeezy, including directing viewers to the Yeezy website. Upon reaching the website, viewers found the only product was a white T-shirt featuring a black Swastika for $20, which is considerably cheaper than most Yeezy products. The product listing was also under HH-01, which is a code associated with “Heil Hitler.” Additionally, the terms of service to the Yeezy website had been updated to include clauses that banned holding Yeezy and its personnel responsible for any actions the site or products may cause, indicating that people on the Yeezy team were aware of the potential implications of such actions and yet proceeded anyway. This product has since been removed.
On Saturday, a day before the Super Bowl, Ye posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, “I would never sell a swastika tee because people could be physically harmed wearing it…I love my fans and supporters.” He has since been locked out of his account in X and restricted on Instagram. It is important to note that this is not the first time that Ye has been locked out of his X account for anti-Semitic comments, as a similar thing occurred in 2022. It appears anti-Semitic actions have been on the rise among those who politically identify as right-wing in recent weeks after Elon Musk recently appeared to do the Nazi salute at a Donald Trump Rally.
While it is up to individuals to determine what action or inaction they take in these events, it is important to be aware that Ye is doing a good job at garnering views, traffic, and attention due to his actions. He is employing a strategy that is not very different from any other advertising, petition signing or awareness raising as he promotes his ideology. These recent incidents offer a good reminder that actions have power, and as consumers we should think about the content we are consuming before clicking out of habit.