Kanye West opened up to Jimmy Kimmel in a wide-ranging interview on Thursday that covered President Donald Trump, Galileo, porn, masturbation, mental health, fashion, love, empathy, his new album and even what might be on his tombstone.
At one point, West urged the audience to hold its applause because “everything I’m gonna say is gonna be amazing.”
But there was one moment of the interview when the loquacious hip-hop superstar clammed up, and that was during a discussion of West’s support for Trump.
“You so famously and so powerfully said, ‘George Bush doesn’t care about black people,’” Kimmel said, referring to comments West made at a 2005 benefit for Hurricane Katrina relief. “It makes me wonder what makes you think that Donald Trump does or any people at all?”
After four seconds of silence, Kimmel offered a lifeline, throwing to a commercial break and promising to let West answer later.
The question didn’t come up again.
However, West did speak about Trump during the segment, including going public earlier this year with his support for the president and the moment he put on a “MAGA” hat. At the time, West said he didn’t agree 100 percent with Trump, “but the mob can’t make me not love him.” He also famously announced that both he and the president were “dragon energy” and “brothers.”
Donning the hat wasn’t about the president’s specific policies, West told Kimmel:
“It represented overcoming fear and doing what you felt no matter what anyone said, and saying, ‘You can’t bully me.’ Liberals can’t bully me, news can’t bully me, the hip-hop community, they can’t bully me. Because at that point, if I’m afraid to be me, I’m no longer Ye. That’s what makes Ye.”
Kimmel also asked about West’s wife, Kim Kardashian, visiting Trump at the White House earlier this year to help win a commutation for Alice Johnson, a 63-year-old grandmother who had been serving a life sentence for a first-time nonviolent drug offense.
“Were you ever concerned about her being alone in the Oval Office with President Trump?” Kimmel asked.
“Well, he is a player,” West replied.
See the full conversation in the clips above.
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