Kanye West made a lot of headlines near the end of 2022 – and not just because he finalized his divorce from Kim Kardashian. The polarizing rapper shared anti-Semitic comments on social media and during a podcast appearance later in the year. He subsequently received a considerable amount of backlash and eventually lost several of his biggest business deals. Over the past few months, West hasn’t conducted too many interviews and hasn’t shared any further disparaging remarks against the Jewish community. Now, via a new documentary though, he’s been accused of sharing more negative thoughts, which were allegedly said after he was angry over money.
The 46-year-old father of four’s anti-Semitic sentiments are the topic of a new doc entitled The Trouble with KanYe. Said production reportedly covers several facets of the controversy, including the immediate fallout that left Ye feeling as though he’d been “beat to a pulp.” At that time, Adidas spoke out about ending its Yeezy agreement with him, and Balenciaga was a company that followed suit. Alex Klein, the musician’s former friend and business associate, claimed that the rapper negatively referenced Jews while expressing frustration over his losses:
We turned down 10 million dollars. Kanye was very angry, you know, he was saying ‘I feel like I wanna smack you’ and ‘You’re exactly like the other Jews’ – almost relishing and reveling in how offensive he could be, using these phrases hoping to hurt me.
Alex Klein went on to claim in the documentary (via The Independent) that he confronted his former friend about his sentiments. He apparently asked Ye if he truly believed that Jewish people were hampering his career and 2024 U.S. Presidential bid. In turn, the Grammy winner allegedly responded with some brutally honest thoughts:
I asked him and I said, ‘Do you really think Jews are working together to hold you back?’ and he said ‘Yes, yes I do but it’s not even a statement that I need to take back because look at all the energy around me right now. Without that statement, I wouldn’t become president.’
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Kanye West went viral last fall due to his anti-Semitic tweets, one of which he used to convey that he wanted to go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE.” That comment and more got him suspended from Instagram and Twitter, though his accounts were eventually reactivated. His appearance on the Drink Champs Podcast also caused a stir as, while he was there, West opined that “I can say anti-Semitic things, and Adidas can’t drop me. Now what?” During the same interview, he also shared falsehoods about the murder of George Floyd, whose family filed suit against him. And before all of this happened, Ye was embroiled in fashion-related drama, part of which involved him wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt.
Back in March, Ye claimed to have forsaken his anti-Semitic viewpoints and attributed that to having watched Jonah Hill in 21 Jump Street. The since-deleted Instagram post featured a caption in which he mentioned that the 2012 comedy made him “like Jewish people again.” It remains to be seen as to whether he’s truly changed his ways, and that can also be said for whether others like Alex Klein step up with further allegations.
The Trouble with KanYe is set to premiere on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer today, June 28 and, as of this writing, it’s unclear as to when the program will be available in the U.S.
