Kanye West is a singer, rapper, writer, producer, and fashion designer. He is also one of the most well known hip-hop artists of all time. For many years, West has found a way to become relevant in social media, a lot of times receiving a lot of backlash.

West is one of the world’s best-selling artists, selling over 160 million records. He has won 24 Grammys and earned 75 nominations. As a person with a large following and impact, West has recently been taking some actions that not all agree with. Just this October, West was suspended from both Twitter and Instagram for making anti-semitic remarks. West said that he wished for “Defcon 3 on Jewish people.” Despite West’s comments, people are still drawn to his music.  

“Kanye West has an impact on people’s lives because he touches on harder topics that many can find relatable without making his music sadistic,” sophomore Mia Suero said.

West’s social media suspensions may not seem like a big deal, but because West has such a large platform, people idolize him. West has an influence and his opinions can influence his followers. During season 9 Paris Fashion Week, West wore a shirt that said “White Lives Matter” while standing next to Candace Owens, an American conservative and activist, who was also wearing the shirt. 

West has previously made comments that have received backlash. Taylor Swift, an American Pop-Artist, won Video of the Year at the 2009 MTV VMAs. During Swift’s acceptance speech, West ambushed the stage, interrupting her speech voicing his opinion that Beyonce should’ve won the award instead of Swift. Some think that this problematic interruption boosted West’s career. 

“I think Kanye got clout from Taylor Swift at the VMA’s in 2009,” junior Sareena Kandalkar said. “As a Swiftie and liking Kanye’s music, I really feel like Taylor Swift gave him his fame.”

West has been open about his diagnosis of being bipolar. Bipolar disorder is a mental condition that causes depression and major mood swings. This condition causes a wide range of issues for those who suffer with it, causing someone to go through intense manic phases down to depressive episodes which can last for months. West has been open about getting help and working on handling his illness, although the challenges of being bipolar still do affect his choices and decisions. 

“There is no defending him, but I also think jumping on him and hating him is ridiculous,” senior Mason McDonald said. “He’s obviously mentally ill, if you couldn’t tell from his Instagram and Tweets. Eventually he’ll get the help he needs. Besides, he wrote ‘Graduation’, so any hate is immediately invalidated.” 

Recently, multiple celebrities have spoken out against West’s anti-semitic comments, including his ex-wife, Kim Kardashian, who said that West needs to stop with his “hateful rhetoric towards [the Jewish community].”

“He can’t really control being bipolar,” sophomore Logan Roth said. “At the same time, I feel like some things that he does, he can control but just chooses not to.”