On Wednesday, April 25, Kanye West went on a tweeting spree covering all manner of topics, most notably his opinions on Donald Trump.
The rapper shocked many when he voiced his admiration for the President, writing that the two are both “dragon energy.”
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“He is my brother,” West wrote of Trump. “I love everyone. I don’t agree with everything anyone does. That’s what makes us individuals.”
Naturally, the father of three’s words sparked a torrent of reactions, many of them negative, including one seeming to come from West’s friend John Legend.
On Thursday, West posted a screenshot of what appears to be a text conversation between himself and Legend, with the musician having texted West in response to his support of Trump.
“Hey it’s JL. I hope you’ll reconsider aligning yourself with Trump,” Legend said in the text. “You’re way too powerful and influential to endorse who he is and what he stands for.”
He continued, “So many people who love you feel so betrayed right now because they know the harm that Trump’s policies cause, especially to people of color. Don’t let this be part of your legacy. You’re the greatest artist of our generation.”
Never one to hold back, West responded, “I love you John and I appreciate your thoughts. You bringing up my fans or my legacy is a tactic based on fear used to manipulate my free thought.”
Legend’s wife, Chrissy Teigen, later stepped in to offer her thoughts about the fact that West had shared the private text.
“Everyone keeps asking me to comment on s—. Comment on psycho Tami Lasagna, whom I refuse to give the joy to, say something about RHOA, speak up about kanye. When it comes to people we know, we DO speak up. To THEM. not on Twitter,” she wrote. “And sometimes, I guess it makes it to Twitter.”
Everyone keeps asking me to comment on shit. Comment on psycho Tami Lasagna, whom I refuse to give the joy to, say something about RHOA, speak up about kanye. When it comes to people we know, we DO speak up. To THEM. not on Twitter. And sometimes, I guess it makes it to Twitter.
— christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) April 26, 2018
West later shared his reasoning for sharing Legend’s text.
“I tweeted the John text to show that there are people around me that disagree with me and voice their opinion,” he wrote. “I respect everyone’s opinion but I stand my ground.”
He added, “If you feel something don’t let peer pressure manipulate you.”
The rapper also posted a screenshot of Legend’s response, with the musician offering a thoughtful dialogue as well as a joking moment of self-promotion.
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) April 26, 2018
I really appreciate this dialogue with John Legend because I’m actually very empathetic. Im still the kid from the telethon. I feel when people think of MAGA they don’t think of empathy.
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) April 26, 2018
This is year one. We can’t ad empathy to MAGA by hating. We can only ad empathy with love and time and truly hearing all sides
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) April 26, 2018
John Legend new single on line now 😂
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) April 26, 2018
After West had moved on to tweeting cartoons, Teigen jokingly posed a question to West’s wife, Kim Kardashian.
@KimKardashian are we still doing dinner Friday or no lol
— christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) April 26, 2018
Photo Credit: lev radin / Shutterstock.com
