Just when you thought 2020 couldn’t get any weirder, rapper Kanye West declared his US presidential candidacy. West has been in the headlines for a number of reasons lately. Whether for his 10-year deal with Gap or for his latest surprise single “Wash Us In the Blood” featuring Travis Scott.
The 21 time Grammy winner celebrated America’s birthday with the announcement on Twitter, which was met with mixed reactions and skepticism.
“We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future,” West wrote. “I am running for president of the United States.” The post was accompanied by a stars and stripes flag, an exclamation mark and “#2020VISION”.
With just four months to go before polling day on 3 November, it’s not clear whether West is joking. It’s also not clear if the 43-year-old has filed any official paperwork to appear on state election ballots. The deadline to add independent candidates to the ballot has not yet passed in many states.
Kanye has Elon’s ‘full support’
West may have just launched his campaign, but he already has one famous supporter. Elon Musk, the Tesla giant and the rapper’s close friend was quick to respond to Ye’s tweet. Musk wrote, “You have my full support!”
Trump and Kanye
The news comes as a surprise to many as West has been quite vocal about his support for Trump in the past. In fact, just a few months ago, West implied that he would be voting for Donald Trump in 2020. In an interview with GQ magazine, the rapper talked about voting in the upcoming election, adding “And we know who I’m voting on.”
West and his wife have visited Trump in the White House to discuss prison reform. At one bizarre meeting in 2018, West wore a red “Make America Great Again” cap. He said Trump made him feel like Superman, hugged him and declared, “I love this guy right here.” When asked if West could be a future presidential candidate, Trump replied, “Could very well be.”
Kanye’s previous presidential claims
However shocking Kanye’s tweet may be, it isn’t surprising anymore. The rapper has floated the idea of running for president before. In January last year, a tweet that said simply “2024” was interpreted as a sign that he would run for the White House that year. In 2015, he announced his bid at the MTV Video Music Awards while accepting the Video Vanguard Award.
“It’s about ideas, bro. New ideas. People with ideas. People who believe in truth,” West said during the rambling speech. “And, yes, as you probably could have guessed by this moment. I have decided in 2020 to run for president.”
Last November, he talked about moving manufacturing for his company Yeezy to the United States to create new jobs. “When I run for president in 2024, we would’ve created so many jobs that I’m not going to run, I’m going to walk,” he said.
If he does indeed run, West would follow in a long tradition of independent or third-party campaigns challenging the Democratics and Republicans.
Celebrity Reactions to Kanye’s announcement
Fans have learned over the years, it’s best to take any major announcement from Kanye with a grain of salt. Seems like fans have already caught on and are turning West’s supposed presidential bid into a meme. Everything from the current apocalypse to the rapper’s own music videos have been covered.
Shortly after Kanye tweeted about his plans to run for president, his wife, Kim Kardashian retweeted the post. The reality star simply added an American flag emoji to show her support.
Actress and comedian, Tiffany Hadish gave a sarcastic reply on twitter, insisting that she too was running for president. Paris Hilton and Bob Saget shared similar thoughts on running for the presidential election themselves.
Actress Octavia Spencer indirectly called West delusional, stating, “It’s obvious that some people live in a bubble. It’s about time to burst it. #2020vision.”
Ty Dolla Sign, Billy Eichner and April D Ryan are some of the other celebrities who reacted to the rapper’s tweet.
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