Fans of Kanye West are struggling to keep up with all the latest twists and turns as the rapper-turned-politician appears poised to make a pivot back toward music. At least, that’s the most obvious way to interpret his latest tweets.
According to reports by TMZ, Kanye is “in the middle of a serious mental health episode” related to his bipolar, but that he is refusing the advice of friends and family and refusing to seek medical help.
Fans were left even more perplexed after he wrapped a wild night on Twitter with the official announcement of his newest album, “Donda,” coming Friday. He shared the news with a track list. And right before that, he wrote, “Ima focus on the music now.”
But before that renewed “focus,” there appeared to be almost no focus as he went on a Twitter tear, unleashing a torrent of tweets including allegations that Kim Kardashian was trying to bring a doctor to Wyoming to have him committed, comparing himself to the main character in “Get Out,” and lashing out at Kris Jenner.
He also lamented that his family wasn’t with him. “I love my wife. My family must live next to me. It’s not up to E or NBC anymore,” he tweeted.
While most fans expressed concern for his mental health as he tweeted and deleted a whole litany of truly incendiary and perplexing comments (including mentions of Jennifer Lawrence, Anna Wintour, Shia LaBeouf and others), some were being insensitive and even making jokes at his expense.
Halsey, who has been publicly open about her own struggles with bipolar, quickly took to Twitter to try and convince these people that this is something to be taken seriously. Making public light of mental health is dangerous for the individual suffering, and others suffering in silence as well.
“Personal opinions about someone aside, a manic episode isn’t a joke. If you can’t offer understanding or sympathy, offer your silence,” she chided.
“Taking this opportunity to make offensive remarks and vilify people with mental illnesses is really not the way to go,” she continued. “This is the exact triggering shit that causes people to keep quiet about it.”
Kanye had previously stated that he often forgoes taking his medication because he feels it stifles his creativity. With a new album now on the horizon, it’s clear that he’s been expressing that creativity, so could that mean he’s been off his medication for some time now?
Most of the rambling, random, and ranting tweets of Monday evening have been deleted from his page, though TMZ and other outlets have captures of them.
Still on his page as of this writing is the decree that “West children will never do Playboy,” referencing Kris (as her manager) allowing Kim to do so in 2007. That’s followed by a screenshot of a Google search for “crichoues indignation” being autocorrected to “righteous indignation.”
When Kanye first announced his bid for the presidency on July 4, fans were skeptical of just how serious he was, with many theorizing that it was a publicity move to help promote his inevitable upcoming album — he had, after all, just released a single.
If that were so, then Kanye apparently got carried away, going so far as to file paperwork, conduct an interview and stage a campaign rally.
It’s also unclear just what this latest statement means.
Is he going to abandon his presidential bid to “focus on the music”? He’s already too late to be on the ballot in several key states and not currently polling with any meaningful numbers against Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
Most fans on social media were agreeing with media outlets that the rapper appears to be in the middle of a mental health crisis. Kanye and several of the people he mentioned quickly began trending as fans tried to process what was happening.
While they were hanging on his every tweet Monday night — and reluctantly cracking up that he referred to Corey Gamble as “Calmye” — they were nevertheless deeply concerned for his well-being and quick to go after anyone making light of the situation.
