Christianity and Ye

When Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, released the album “Jesus Is King”, it created a conversation across the country. People who worked at my Seventh-day Adventist academy listened to the album earnestly, trying to decipher where Ye was on his faith journey. Was his conversion the beginning of a new Christian movement in the United States? Was the pendulum finally going to swing back in favor of the family, traditional values, and churchgoing? Was his emphasis on Sunday perhaps indicative of something more sinister?

Ye is, by all estimates, someone who struggles with mental health. While he currently rejects his diagnosis, many consider it clear that he is in need of intervention. But people do not usually talk about him in this way. I have seen lots of people online and in the media try to read  Ye’s antics like tea leaves. There was a time when he held a very large bit of cultural capital, a time which led him to see himself as some sort of “god among men.” 

Many people want to see him as the figure that he created for himself. It is easy to see him as just another musician, but for some even easier to see him as a chaotic genius with almost magical powers. When Ye started expressing overtly-antisemitic beliefs last year, only a few dedicated fans were left to try and defend him.

However, he attracted new fans too. Elements of the alt-right encouraged Ye’s antisemitism. Many remember his infamous appearance on Alex Jones’ Infowars alongside other prominent antisemites. These people are easy to shrug off as extremists. We assume that they are small in number and not eminently threatening. While most people are not anti-semitic, to ignore the fact that some are is dangerous. 

When Ye posted a video trailer for his new album series “Vultures,” he faced a very strange sort of backlash. The video, designed by Canadian artist John Rafman, featured some abstract images of owls and hooded figures. His comment section was almost entirely filled with lamentations from Christians about the dark imagery.

Ye’s actions are actually a lot like tea leaves. You can try to read something into them, but they are not very meaningful. The readings only reveal the minds of those doing the reading. My question for Christian fans who are upset about new video is this: Why speak up now? What is more evil to you: the portrayal of scary images, or the spreading of harmful rhetoric? 

By Luke Morris