Kanye West: Ye clashes with Piers Morgan in new interview, admits antisemitic comments caused ‘hurt’
George Floyd’s family is also considering a lawsuit against Kanye West after he spoke about how the 46-year-old man died over the weekend, according to their lawyer
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Kanye West has pologised for causing “hurt and confusion” with antisemitic comments he made last week.
Appearing on Piers Morgan Uncensored on Wednesday (19 October), the host asked the rapper whether he regretted threatening to go “DEFCON 3 on Jewish people”.
West initially doubled down on his comments, replying: “No, absolutely not.” Morgan then asked if he knew the comments were racist, to which West confirmed: “Yes, that’s why I said it... I fought fire with fire. I’m not here to get hosed down.”
Elsewhere, the mother of George Floyd’s daughter has sued Kanye West for $250m in the wake of his controversial comments about Floyd’s death at the hands of a Minnesota police officer.
And now Floyd’s family has issued a cease-and-desist letter to West for the comments he made on the Drink Champs podcast, which has now been taken down.
In the lawsuit filed by Roxie Washington, the mother of Gianna Floyd, lawyers said West made “false statements about George Floyd’s death to promote his brands, and increase marketing value and revenue for himself, his business partners, and associates.”
Earlier, The Drink Champs interview was pulled from YouTube, Rolling Stone reports.
The YouTube show’s host, N.O.R.E., apologised for the contents of the interview that he said “hurt” people during a Monday morning radio show appearance. Hours later, the video had been made private on YouTube while the podcast version of the conversation was removed from both Spotify and Apple Music earlier in the day.
Late in the night on Monday, Tesla billionaire and potential Twitter owner Elon Musk appeared to tease a possible business collaboration with West after he tweeted out a meme - and then deleted -that hinted at a team-up with the rapper and Parler, the right-wing social network he is in the process of acquiring.
Elon Musk deletes tweet that hinted at collaboration with Kanye West
ICYMI: Tesla billionaire and potential Twitter owner Elon Musk appeared to be teasing a possible business collaboration with Kanye West, despite the rapper’s recent antisemitic rants and attacks on George Floyd.
On Monday, Mr Musk shared an image playing on the Dragon Ball anime series, where two characters can fuse together into a more powerful being by touching fingers. In his version, the Tesla founder is edited onto one character, along with a Twitter logo, while West’s face is superimposed onto another, with the logo of Parler, the right-wing social network West recently purchased.
“Fun times ahead!” Mr Musk wrote below the image.
Hours later, that same tweet was deleted without comment from the Tesla chief executive.
Josh Marcus has more here.
Elon Musk deletes tweet that hinted at collaboration with Kanye West
Comes as rapper purchases right-wing network Parler
Even Trump thinks Kanye has gone too far
ICYMI: Donald Trump, who once posed for photos with Kanye West at Trump Tower after the rapper embraced the then-president-elect and invited him to the White House while in office, is privately rebuking the artist’s recent public tirades against Jewish people, according to Rolling Stone.
The former president has reportedly confided in multiple people close to him that the rapper’s social media blasts, in which he said he planned to go “death con 3” on “JEWISH PEOPLE,” have led him to believe that West is acting too “crazy” and he should seek out professional “help”.
Two sources familiar with the matter confirmed to Rolling Stone that the one-term president is intentionally avoiding commenting on the scandals that have erupted since the rapper began railing against the Jewish community.
Oliver O’Connell has the full report.
Even Trump concerned by Kanye West acting ‘crazy’, report says
Former president confiding in friends that rapper needs ‘help’
Kanye West moves into the social media business
ICYMI: Kanye West is buying Parler, the right-wing social media app that’s been banned by Apple and Google multiple times and was used to coordinate the January 6th riots.
The rapper, known as Ye, joined the platform today.
“In a world where conservative opinions are considered to be controversial we have to make sure we have the right to freely express ourselves,” said Mr West.
More details from Adam Smith.
Kanye West to buy right-wing social media app Parler
‘In a world where conservative opinions are considered to be controversial we have to make sure we have the right to freely express ourselves,’ said Mr West.
Kanye West invited to Holocaust Museum of LA after antisemitic posts
ICYMI: The Holocaust Museum of Los Angeles invited to Kanye West for a visit after he shared antisemitic posts online over the weekend.
The California-based facility extended the public invitation in a statement shared on Tuesday, noting that the musician’s words “reach millions” and he had the choice to either “incite or inspire”.
“Words matter and words have consequences Ye. We urge you to come visit us at Holocaust Museum LA to understand just how words can incite horrific violence and genocides,” the museum wrote in a statement, first reported by Page Six.
The statement comes after a chorus of celebrities and political figures across the country have condemned the musician’s comments over the past weekend, which earned him a lockout from his accounts on both Instagram and Twitter.
Johanna Chisholm has the story.
Kanye West invited to Holocaust Museum of LA after antisemitic posts
‘Your words reach millions and you can choose to incite or you can choose to inspire,’ the museum wrote
Rapper says he knew attacks were ‘racist'
Kanye West admitted his recent attacks were racist, during his interview with Piers Morgan.
“Yes. I fought fire with fire,” he told the TalkTV host in an interview airing on the UK network on Wednesday.
Piers Morgan interview with Kanye West set to air
Controversial rapper Kanye West has been interviewed about his antisemitism scandal by Piers Morgan in an interview set to air on the UK’s TalkTv at 3PM ET, 12pm PT.
Kanye West apologises for ‘hurt’ he has caused
Kanye West has apologised for the “hurt” he has caused during his antisemitism controversy.
The rapper told Piers Morgan in an interview for TalkTV in the UK that he was “sorry” for the hurt he had caused.
“I will say I’m sorry for the people I hurt,” he tells Morgan in the interview set to air later today.
“Hurt people hurt people, and I was hurt.”
Kanye West tells Piers Morgan about the ‘pain’ he is in
Kanye West talked about his “pain” and labelled Piers Morgan a “Karen” as he appeared on his TalkTV show on Wednesday.
“God forbid one comment could cause people to feel any of the pain my people have went through for years,” he said.
And he added: “No one has cared for Black people.”
“I was in a position where I had been hurt and I was in a position where I had the right to defend myself.”
Kanye West refuses to apologise for antisemitism but ‘sorry’ for ‘people I hurt'
Kanye West refused to apologise for his antisemitic remarks as he was interviewed by Piers Morgan on TalkTV.
When asked if he was “sorry” for what he has said, he replied: “Absolutely not... I will say that I’m sorry for the people I hurt and for the confusion I caused.”
Parler has been looking for buyer for weeks before West’s offer, says report
The owners of social media platform Parler have been looking to sell it for weeks before Kanye West made a move to buy it a report says.
Parler’s parent company, Parlement, had been trying to find a buyer, with one prosepective owner telling The Verge that the “asking price for the platform” was “wildly inflated.”
“Parlement has always been exploring strategic opportunities for all its brands and continues to do so,” the company told The Verge.
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