A political rift between John Legend and Kanye West apparently ended their friendship.Legend admitted on a new episode of The Axe Files podcast that they became estranged over West’s support for Donald Trump.
“[Kanye and I] aren’t friends as much as we used to be,” the “You & I” singer told host David Axelrod. “I honestly think because we publicly disagreed on his running for office, his supporting Trump, I think it became too much for us to sustain our friendship, honestly.”
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Legend and the singer have a long history, dating back to the beginning of Legend’s mainstream success. West helped produce Legend’s 2004 debut album Get Lifted and released it on his GOOD Music label. Over the years that followed, they collaborated frequently and supported one another musically.
In the end, however, Legend could not support West’s failed 2020 presidential bid.”I wasn’t alone in that, but, you know, he [West] was not happy about that. And we really haven’t been close since then,” Legend said.
Legend expressed his appreciation for West’s honesty, despite their rift. “I think he’s been very open with who he is and his struggles with mental health,” Legend explained. “And he’s very real, honestly. So I think there’s not a lot about him that people don’t get… Like he’s been pretty upfront with his opinions, his struggles, all the things that he’s dealing with. And I think what you see with him is pretty much what you get.”
West and Legend’s relationship initially appeared on the rocks in April 2018 after West shared private messages between the two on Twitter. A screenshot of a message from Legend in one tweet read, “Hey, it’s JL. I hope you’ll reconsider alining [sic] yourself with Trump. You’re way too powerful and influential to endorse who he is and what he stands for. As you know, what you say really means something to your fans. They are loyal to you and respect your opinion.
“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.”
At the time, West, an outspoken supporter of then-president Trump, replied, “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.”
Later, West discussed what compelled him to post the private messages.”I tweeted the John text to show that there are people around me that disagree with me and voice their opinion. I respect everyone’s opinion but I stand my ground. If you feel something don’t let peer pressure manipulate you.”
In response to the privacy breach, Legend spoke to Vanity Fair and explained his feud with West, saying, “I think what was always challenging about it was Kanye has never been political.” While the two were friendly and spent holidays together, while their wives – Kim Kardashian and Chrissy Teigan – socialized, Legend admitted they were “never the closest of friends.”
“I don’t think he knows one way or another what policies of Trump’s he likes. He just kind of embraced Trump’s blow-it-all-up spirit and the energy of himself being countercultural in supporting him.” Legend added, “I’m not trying to disown Kanye because I still love him and love everything we’ve done together creatively, but we were never the closest of friends.”
He then took to Twitter to clarify some points following the article’s publication.”I get why people want to make this a thing. But I was explaining to the reporter how I’ve seen people I love reacting to the deaths of their mothers,” Legend wrote.
He explained in his tweets that he was “thinking specifically about myself, Chrissy’s mom, and others.” Legend said he did not disown West even though the two had disagreed publicly and privately about politics.
