On Oct. 3, Kanye West surprised fans with two things-first was the surprise yeezy fashion show in Paris and the second was the shirt he was wearing.
The 45-year-old rapper was seen sporting a "White Lives Matter" as he showcased his Season 9 collection. He gave a speech about various topics, reports say, namely about the struggles he faced entering the fashion industry, his feud with Gap and Adidas, as well as Kim Kardashian's 2016 Paris robbery, and more.
But what really caught everyone's attention was not the clothes that came out on the runway, but his shirt, which caused quite an uproar among fans and critics alike.
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Backlash
Netizens took to social media to express their dismay with the rapper's choice of clothing.
"Kanye West making Black models wear " white lives matter" shirts [are] a culmination of his anti-blackness and his immersion in white supremacy ideologies and methods. Disgusting," a twitter user wrote.
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Marc Lamont Hill, a host of BET news, also shared his thoughts regarding the matter, "Kanye [West's] decision to wear a "White Lives Matter" shirt is disgusting, dangerous, and irresponsible. Some of y'all will rush to defend him. You should ask yourselves why."
West took to Instagram to address the criticisms against his shirt, writing, "Everyone knows that Black Lives Matter was a scam. Now [it's] over. You're welcome."
The Message
As he doubled down on his stand on his controversial shirt, fans are rioting on Twitter. Even fellow artists were dismayed by his statement.
Jaden Smith was seen leaving the event, and tweeted, "I had to dip LOL" and "Black Lives Matter."
He then added, "I don't care who it is. If I don't feel the message, I'm out" and "We demand a more progressive future."
Ironically, his theme for the collection was revealed to be unity and self-expression.
"There's just people. From the same planet. And sometimes, in high school, it feels like we don't fit in. And in a situation like this, we have the opportunity to come together to express who we are," he said.
Prior to the show, he told Vogue that he fancies himself to be a producer like George Luas or Quincy Jones, "My main job is to be a producer, in a Quincy Jones sense. Who takes a symphony of ideas and then plays a song."
This fashion show marks West's 11th show and his fourth show in Paris. According to reports, seven out of his eight previous shows were done in New York. When asked about this, he described Paris as the "cathedral of fashion."
"If I'm doing music, rap music, I'm going to put my hoodie on, and get an Uber, and go over to Future's house. Day after day. And if we're working on clothes? Paris."
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