“If a black man from Chicago was taught to stand far away from gay people because he didn’t want to be accused of being gay. What would happen if he’d run into a gay man? What’s the talk? What would he learn, what would I learn? I learned that people in Chicago were wrong and I had been an asshole all along.” — Kanye West continues the discussion inside his head about sexuality [AHN]
Photo: Bauer-Griffin
Chitown Kev
WTF!
Kanye, from one gay black man in Chicago to another (maybe)…STFU (Japhy and David, are y’all trying to get me banned? LOL.) Queerty is rolling with the hits today.
buttmunch
“I feel good about the music I make. God chose me. He made a path for me. I am God’s vessel. But my greatest pain in life is that I will never be able to see myself perform live.”
and sayings like these makes me wish he dies a horrible death pretty soon
Smokey Martini
I’m shocked.
This is one of the more nuanced comments that have ever come out of his mouth. This talks of experience and not, as he had been doing previously, of an attempt to make nice with the gays by pigeonholing us into stereotypes. I commend him (this time)!
Chitown Kev
Kanye, just come on up and do a little concert for Market Days in August, sheesh…
getreal
At least he is trying. I think it is great that in his own garbled way he continues to talk about the stupidity of homophobia. Boy you are damned if you do damned if you don’t at least someone in hip-hop is taking a stand against hate speech and fear of gays.
Anthony
This guy is ridiculous. Why do we still pay attention to a thing he says?
Jason
I give him credit for trying to have an honest dialogue. He’s been saying for years that homophobia is rampant in hip hop and has go to, and I (think) admitted that a cousin of his came out awhile back and it caused him to challenge his own homophobia.
Kanye is a bit of a nut but I think it means he says things that other people wouldn’t. It’s really remarkable we have a mainstream hip hop star who even wants to talk about these things so candidly.
Chitown Kev
@Jason:
yeah, but Common has been doing this ever since got with Serena Williams and his statements have been far more articulate than Kayne’s.
I just just imagine Kanye’s Mom (may she RIP)going old school on him by giving him a slap on the back of his head and telling him, “Boy, talk like you got some sense.”
sal
he’s straight,come on the awkward comment duh
sal
hell i’ll take it,believe it or not he is helping my black hetro brothers to not be so judgmental,so i give him props.hip hop,dub,dancehall,soca was once pushing against him but changes are happening ,im seeing it with my own eyes
Tallskin
Um, just a question, but if he were white wouldn’t we all consider him to be simply a fucking arsehole and wanker?
getreal
@Tallskin: No he would still be a straight awkwardly trying to tell other straight guys that homophobia is stupid.
John from England(used to be just John but there are other John's)
@getreal:
I think he’s having a breakdown cause he wants to come out…I’m not being snarky, just putting the pieces together!
John from England(used to be just John but there are other John's)
@getreal:
Thats true but he’s still odious…
vernonvanderbilt
Kanye may not be incredibly eloquent when he’s not rapping, but that doesn’t change the sentiment he’s expressing. Love him or hate him, he’s one of our allies, in a field where we need to happy about having any we can get. I love Kanye, and I am proud to call him an ally. People who want to nitpick and belittle his speaking talents are looking a gift horse in the mouth, and it’s ludicrous and uncalled-for.
Chitown Kev
@getreal:
I mean, Donda West was the chairwoman of a university English Department. Kanye was taught to speak much more articulately than he lets on.
John from England(used to be just John but there are other John's)
@Chitown Kev:
Exactly.
Why do people think all hip hop guys are ghetto????!
They aren’t!
P-Diddy went to private school and West went to art school..
I guess that’s the good thing about being black….you can pretend to be more ghetto..
Heck, people are calling Barack O African American when he is actually Black African and White American….
Chitown Kev
@John from England(used to be just John but there are other John’s):
Yeah, Will Smith refused to play that whole “ghetto” game and he was demonized for not “keeping it real.”
getreal
@John from England(used to be just John but there are other John’s): I think questioning the sexuality of every hip-hop artist who dares to stand up to the community on it’s take on homophobia and is to me very counter-productive. I mean we complain hip-hop is homophobic (why does no one every complain about reggae or for that matter country) but when a hip-hop artists isn’t homophobic that makes them gay? It makes no sense to me. I’m sure what pieces you are putting together but I live in LA have seen him around at clubs and in beverly hilss shopping that man is not gay.
sparkle obama
they are jealous and uncomfortable in the face of his cultural prominence.
they learned it from their parents.
meanwhile, they glorify b. spears.
mb00
Why is this guy so famous anyway? All know about him is what I’ve seen and heard on awards shows and SNL, but I don’t think he’s that great or spectacular. Nothing he’s done is new or exiting, it’s all been done before. I just ignore him and hope he’ll just go away soon.
MZL
good on kanye for trying to figure this out
MZL
he has a good soul…
getreal
@mb00: Go onto to itunes and listen to his most popular song. Many well respected musicians consider him a musical genius. He does have a musical gift. You have probably heard some of his songs already in TV shows or movies.
getreal
i meant songs
buttmunch
musical genius… can you really mention him on the same page with mozart?
Sebbe
@Chitown Kev – Someone is trying to ban you. NOOOOOOOOOO. I like your comments most of the time. R u serious?
Chitown Kev
@Sebbe:
Nah, I just saw the headline, “Mormons in Illinois” this morning and went ballistic on that thread. Then to come and read this. I didn’t even have a chance to get to the transvestite thugs in NYC story (I lived in NYC in 86-87 and I knew a few “transvestite thugs” then) I was just joking with Japhy and Dave that all my buttons were being pushed today.
Nick
@Tallskin:
No. We’d be fawning over them, proclaiming their “hotness,” and prattling on about how “enlightened” they were.
burton21
@buttmunch: I would argue that there are different qualifying levels of “genius”… not everyone can or will be a Mozart, but I think in terms of his musical innovation, he has really pushed boundaries and is one of the prominent musical influences of the 21st century. Also, he’s not afraid to alienate a small base of his audience to stand up for what he believes in, which makes him a-ok in my book. Wish the ego could deflate a little bit, but then again, we wouldn’t be blessed with all of those amazingly ridiculous soundbytes.
Phoenix (Still A Cauldron Of Simmering Queer Rage Over Prop H8)
Sheesh! The guy is trying! Give him props for that. Point me out a member of Westboro who even tries to be open minded. Point me out a Republican (Log Cabinettes included) who reflected on what it’s like to be the outsider.