Kanye West created his own destiny by envisioning a perfect existence. Us? We’re just living in it.

By Noah Callahan-Bever; Computer-Generated imagery by Chris Milk

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PRODUCTION: SWAY STUDIO; SCAN: ICON IMAGING STUDIO; SCAN: DR. PAUL DEBEVEC AND USC’S INSTITUTE FOR CREATIVE TECHNOLOGIES GRAPHICS RESEARCH LABORATORY

You know that video and those pictures made the Internet go apeshit, right?

Kanye West: It blew their fucking mind, didn’t it? I’m going to honestly say I don’t know exactly what it was. Was it—

Taz’s tights.

Kanye West: That’s what I was about to say! Was it Taz’s outfits? What does Taz wearing tights have to do with me? How does Taz—mind you, a dude who is straight—wearing tights make me gay this week? How am I gay this week?

You know, since then, people who know that I know you have asked two recurring questions: Is he on drugs? Is he gay?

Kanye West: [Laughs.] What do you tell them?

That I’ve never seen you do drugs, but I’ve definitely seen you go in, as far as chicks—

Kanye West:[Laughs very hard.] But, you know, that doesn’t prove anything [to them], right? Someone could just be like, “He’s just running in girls when he’s really thinking about fucking guys.” That’s, like, the devil’s advocate thing that they probably say. But drugs? How perfect is that? People think I’m on drugs! I didn’t even have to do drugs for people to think that I was on them. And what’s funny is that I feel like my outfits were very masculine and very hip-hop.

Why do you think there’s such a fixation on your sexuality?

Kanye West: I really think it’s because society tries to dictate the way a guy is supposed to dress and the way a guy is supposed to act, and I refuse to conform. A lot of these dudes would never be accused of being gay just because they all look exactly alike. If people could just realize the amount of mundaneness and followers that lack creativity… I think people’s mentality is like, Only gay people are that creative. And it’s true there are a lot of gay people who are incredible creative minds, but there are straight people who are incredible creative minds—and there’s gay people who can’t dress or create at all, too. Closed-minded gay people probably say they dress “straight.”

What does the brand Kanye West mean?

Kanye West: Pop but Luxury. Edgy but Comfortable. I’m about clashing worlds that you think don’t belong together. This is our world and everything belongs together. That’s the ill thing about our president. Our president is black, but our president is white, too. And the original struggle of America is racism, and to have someone in office that represents both of those sides is what I think this world is about. Segregation and snobbery and elitism should be the wack words. That should be what people use to dis people.

Your fashion endeavors have been much more exclusive and expensive than your music. Does your brand translate equally to both mediums? Do they have the same audiences?

Kanye West: It’s a similar goal. But I feel like when I do my own line it’s not going to be anywhere near as mass as I am to start off with, because it’s impossible to start off there and be credible. I have to start small not only to gain respect but to have time to learn and get better. I have to do some things that affect the world or affect culture, like I did with music. In fashion, trends are set on a high level, so I need to do stuff that hits the runway; like with the Louis shoe and its reverse tongue, that could set a trend that you’ll see on other shoes.

The Yeezys and the LV shoes represent two very different sides of your aesthetic.

Kanye West: I’m going to keep coming up with ideas, but I do want to state in black and white that somebody needs to give me a fucking chance. Don’t just one-off me! If Nike gave me the opportunity to be in there creating—not that they don’t already have genius designers like Hiroshi—I’m not saying that I think I’m the best designer in the world, but what I’m saying is that I think I can become that. I want to be able to be mentioned in the same breath as the greats. I just want to be competitive. Doing a licensing deal or something like that, that’s not real. What if Nike would’ve really given me a deal and allowed me to do lifestyle?

To do an entire sportswear line?

Kanye West: Yeah. You don’t think I would’ve killed that?

Sure. Could be ill.

Kanye West: Right. And I just feel like I’m screaming and jumping up and down; I feel like when I was trying to get a record deal and nobody would sign me. And yeah, I could put out an album independently, but without that Def Jam machine I wouldn’t be able to get to a point where I could do the Glow in the Dark Tour. Home // CELEBRITIES // COVER STORY // Kanye West