Kanye West is defending his use of the Confederate flag on promotional goods and throughout his Yeezus tour, saying he has taken the flag and made it his very own. Meanwhile, he took his fiancee Kim Kardashian shopping at the very luxury retailer that he ranted about at one of his performances- Barneys.
Is this really who Kanye West is? Or is he just having fun pushing our buttons?
In the past few days, West has caused controversy with his religious-themed Yeezus tour; dissed luxury brand Louis Vuitton for its expensive goods, while shopping for pricey threads for himself; and even compared his fiancee to first lady Michelle Obama.
The latest stunt that Kanye has pulled is using the Confederate flag throughout his Yeezus tour, even rocking a flag-emblazoned jacket.
So what did the self-proclaimed god have to say about it?
“React how you want,” Kanye said during an interview with 97.1 AMP Radio. “Like I said, any energy you got is good energy. You know, the Confederate flag represented slavery, in a way – that’s my abstract take on what I know about it, right?”
He then went on to say he has the right to comment on the Confederate flag and rebrand it, simply because he made the song “New Slaves,” which seems to tie into the theory that Kanye’s every move is more for publicity than authenticity.
“So I made the song ‘New Slaves,’ ” he continued. “So I took the Confederate flag and made it my flag. It’s my flag now! Now what are you gonna do?”
The irony is that Kanye seems to be branding himself a “new slave,” and yet he isn’t actually interested in fighting against what he says that represents.
“New Slaves” is a song about African-Americans who have been introduced to a new type of slavery that involves worshiping luxury, wealth and the consumerist culture.
As much as Kanye disdains the materialistic worship, he partakes in it just as much.
The day Kanye was spotted out and about with the Confederate flag-adorned jacket was the same day he decided to take Kim shopping at Barneys in Beverly Hills.
Barneys, of all places.
The same luxury department store that has landed rap star Jay Z in hot water with his fans, and that Kanye bashed last week for condoning “rich n**** racism.”
He even dissed Louis Vuitton for expensive clothes. He claimed the fashion brand’s high prices are the reason he would never design for them even if they wanted him to (which they don’t).
“If I had the opportunity to design for Louis Vuitton now, I wouldn’t because the prices are too extreme and I don’t want to use my message to have kids saving up that much to be a part of what the ideas are,” he said during a previous interview with Big Boy’s Neighborhood on Power 106. “That’s the problem for me with luxury.”
That’s a far cry from his attempt to rebrand the Confederate flag to represent the “new slaves” and then wearing that very same symbol as he goes shopping at a luxury retailer that has been accused of racial profiling.
