Musician Kanye West: 'The latecomer' in the race to the White House

Who is Kanye West?

The entertainment world is probably no stranger to the name Kanye West. He is a rapper, musician, music producer, fashion designer and businessman. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1977, West had a rough childhood when his parents divorced when he was 3 years old. The black boy suffered a lot of trauma but nurtured the desire to become a powerful, rich and no less than anyone.

He began his career in the early 2000s as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, before releasing his first solo rap album, “The College Dropout,” in 2004. Since then, West has released more than 10 albums and over 100 songs. In 2019, Kanye West was ranked as the world’s highest-paid hip-hop artist with earnings of more than $150 million, according to Forbes. Kanye has also won 21 Grammy Awards – a recognition that any artist dreams of.

Rapper Kanye West announced his candidacy for US President in 2020. Photo: AP

However, West's income is not only thanks to music. In 2015, West made waves in the fashion industry when he launched the "Yeezy" brand of clothing, in collaboration with German sportswear brand Adidas. Yeezy quickly "made a fortune" thanks to Kanye's unique ability to promote products. This is said to be the main source of income in the assets of more than 1.3 billion USD that Kanye owns. Obviously, in terms of career, no one can deny Kanye West's talent and success.

Kanye's scandals are said to stem from his reckless, arrogant personality.

Kanye West's popularity increased significantly after he married reality TV star and businesswoman Kim Kardashian in 2014. The marriage of two famous figures in the American entertainment industry consumed a lot of ink in the press. However, along with fame came a lot of scandals. Kanye's scandals are said to stem from the reckless, arrogant personality of a talented artist, who grew up from his own injuries and always wanted others to recognize him.

Kanye has made no secret of the fact that he is prone to strong emotions about… everything. Sometimes this can easily turn into anger. His ego and overconfidence in his talent have led the rapper to occasionally make shocking statements like “I am the only one chosen by God” or “I always predict everything”. He has also declared himself a creative pioneer and “the most influential artist of our generation”. All of this has caused Kanye West to be criticized and receive a lot of “anti-fans”. No wonder when they learned that this rapper was running for President, many people considered it a “joke” or “a plot point in a reality TV show”.

West married reality TV star and businesswoman Kim Kardashian in 2014. Photo: Reuters

Kanye's political path

From a talented artist, a successful businessman and also a person with many scandals, now Kanye West wants the public to pay attention to a completely different, ambitious role: the head of the United States. In the past, the rapper has repeatedly publicly voiced his support for President Donald Trump. On the TV show Saturday Night Live in 2018, Kanye West took the mic to criticize the Democratic Party and praise Trump. The 43-year-old man has also made many controversial political statements, such as calling for the abolition of Article 13 of the US Constitution, banning slavery, or voicing support for far-right commentators on Twitter like Candace Owens, who called ethnic protesters "toddlers pretending to be oppressed".

Kanye's political views are complex and ever-changing.

Kanye's political views, however, are complex and ever-changing. In 2005, West said then-President George Bush "doesn't care about black people." Years later, he clarified that the comment came from a murder victim's perspective. West and his wife Kardashian are also known to be advocates for prison reform. Last year, on Kardashian's birthday, West donated $1 million to prison reform charities in his wife's name.

While meeting with President Trump at the White House to discuss prison reform in October 2018, West wore a red “Make America Great Again” hat as a way to support the incumbent President. However, Kanye has now said he is “taking the hat off” and no longer supports Trump. The artist confirmed that he is running as an independent candidate and has formed a new party called the “Birthday Party”…

During a meeting with President Trump at the White House, West wore a hat with the words “Make America Great Again” printed on it. Photo: Reuters

What are Kanye West's chances?

From an artist to a political one, many people are skeptical about Kanye's moves and consider this a "trick" to promote the single Wash in the Blood and the upcoming album titled God Country or a move to "distract" voters who are hesitant to choose the current President or former Vice President Joe Biden of the Democratic Party.

In many ways, Kanye West's opportunities are not wide open.

However, the public quickly discovered the connection between Kanye and President Donald Trump. They were friends, both rich and both had "unusual" personalities. Four years ago, Mr. Trump did amazing things, and now, Kanye can also do something in the upcoming election. Moreover, West is famous in the young black community, a model of "overcoming difficulties" in America - a factor that can attract young voters with many aspirations for change. However, in many other aspects, if the male rapper's intentions are completely serious, the opportunity for him is not open at all.

The 2020 presidential election is still months away, but in American politics, that’s not a long time. In fact, those who want to run must file certain forms by specific dates, and West has already missed some deadlines. According to some reports, it’s too late for West to register as an independent candidate in Texas, Indiana, North Carolina, and New Mexico.

There's not much time for Kanye West's campaign. Photo: Washington Post

Those are just four of the 50 states, but two of them are the most important places in the election, and others where the window to file could soon pass. Not to mention he will have a long time to convince voters that his intentions are serious. Independent candidates who start late like West often do poorly because they don’t have enough time to campaign, especially in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Because of these factors, analysts believe that Kanye West's participation may just be a "trick" or aimed at influencing the outcome of this year's US presidential election. This "latecomer" could take away votes from voters who support Trump or Biden. This is perhaps an interesting unknown of this year's US election season.