No matter how meticulously you slice it, this week in Yeezus has been a dauntingly disillusioning one.
After a week of Kanye West proclaiming his "love" for his "brother" Donald Trump due to supposed "dragon energy" affinities, West double-doubled down Thursday by sharing screenshots from a text exchange with John Legend. "You bringing up my fans or my legacy is a tactic based on fear used to manipulate my free thought," West told Legend.
So how are fans and fellow creatives who once looked up to West as a champion of artful self-empowerment supposed to deal with this shit? By and large, we're still deep in the throes of pissed-offness. But what's next? Whether West is trolling (and thus using very real societal dangers as toys for album promo) or genuine doesn't matter, as the results are the same. What does matter, however, is the very same family of fans West characterized as a collective manipulation tactic in his text to Legend.
Below, we take a look at the three leading styles of dealing with MAGA West.
Fuck Kanye
For many, it's really that simple. Trolling, genuine, or otherwise, West has chosen to associate himself with Trump.
Misguided Performance Art?
Again, even if this does turn out to be true, the results—i.e. images of West in that goddamn red hat—are the same. Joaquin would never.
Dire LOLs
Some have instead chosen to work through their anger by ruthlessly (and righteously) mocking West.
Stay strong, Yeezy fans.
