Kanye West Calls Rap Misogynistic, But Calls Fashion The ‘Highest Art Form’ [Video]

Kanye West is notorious for saying surprising things in interviews, and this week is no exception. Despite having become internationally famous for his career in rap music, Kanye West recently slammed rap as being “generally misogynistic” while praising fashion as the “highest art form.”

In the interview above, live-streamed by Showstudio, you can see rap icon Kanye West criticizing his own genre for its sexism toward women, as well as discussing other hot topics like race and social status.

Among the diverse discussions, Kanye West was made to answer a fan-submitted question about how black women are negatively portrayed in many rap lyrics. Though clearly uncomfortable with the question, Kanye West eventually admitted that the misogyny comes with the territory of the industry.

“I definitely think generally rap is misogynistic. Not that that’s justifying the culture.”

Kanye West then continued to clarify his surprising criticism, claiming that the sexism is a result of institutionalized racism against many black males, causing them to lash out against those closest to them in an attempt to build themselves back up.

“So let’s take that to the idea of a black male in America, not getting a job, or getting f***ed with at his job, or getting f***ed with by the cops or being looked down upon by this lady at Starbucks,” said Kanye West. “And he goes home to his girl … and this guy is like … you just scream at the person that’s the closest to you.”

But West also claimed that some eras of rap voiced a more positive attitude toward women, with rappers often putting the women in their life on a pedestal.

“There was a time when we had Afrocentric rap, and everybody was more like how [rapper] Common is – ‘my queen’ and all that.”

Similar to his explanation about misogyny in rap lyrics, Kanye West also provided a surprisingly honest justification for his often accused narcissism. He has infamously described himself as a genius and a visionary, which may seem arrogant to some spectators. But when asked why he uses these words, West responded that he does so to fight the negative terms used to describe him.

“Because otherwise I’m called celebrity,” Kanye West explained. “I’m called n***er. I’m called rapper. And when they use the word celebrity, n***er or rapper, it’s not in a positive way. So I have to define who I am.”

But Kanye West wasn’t finished criticizing the music industry. As reported by Harper’s Bazaar, the rapper claimed that those popular in the world of music are more heavily scrutinized for their talent than those in the fashion industry. While popular musicians, such as Justin Bieber or Kanye West himself, might be massively successful, many remain skeptical that they’re actually good artists. Meanwhile, successful people in the fashion industry are never doubted. For this reason, Kanye West declared that fashion is actually the highest form of art.

“Right now, the highest art form is actually fashion,” Kanye West said. “With music, it’s in question if a song is popular, if that person is really a good artist. In fashion, if someone’s really popular it’s agreed upon that they’re an amazing artist.”

This may not be a surprising answer considering West’s recent venture into fashion design. Though he’s considered himself a fashionable person for quite awhile, the artist finally decided to put his style sense to the test by designing his own line of clothes.

As reported by the Inquisitr, Kanye West has been heavily criticized as a result, because many believe his designs look like the clothing of futuristic slaves.

What do you think about Kanye West’s opinions on rap and fashion?

[Image credit: Kevork Djansezian / Kevin Winter / Getty Images; Showstudio]