Karen Hunter has a message for listeners considering Kanye West’s new album, “Bully”: the music does not erase the man.
Speaking on her SiriusXM show this week, Hunter rejected what she described as West’s latest effort at reinvention, arguing that years of inflammatory statements and political alliances cannot be set aside simply because a new album has arrived.
“I hesitated playing it, but I want to be fair,” Hunter told her avid listeners. “Is the music good enough for us to forget that this man not just said slavery is a choice, but his outright support of Donald Trump, hugging that man, wearing the MAGA hat?”
According to Hunter, West’s conduct has gone beyond provocation and entered the realm of real harm.
“His behavior has been destructive,” she said. “At this point, we should be zero tolerance of anybody who is not in line with humanity and people having rights and resources.”
West, who has spent years cycling through public controversies, appears to be mounting another comeback campaign around “Bully.” Hunter noted reports that he recently earned $35 million from two nights of performances in Los Angeles but maintains that commercial success did not absolve him.
“The only way you can show people what it is you really care about is through what you support,” she continued. “If you’re still clicking on and supporting and going to the concerts and buying the records, do you really care?”
At one point, Hunter reached for a metaphor to explain why she believes West’s music and public persona cannot be separated.
“Kanye’s like pee in the water,” she said. “I need my water to be pee-free.”
Hunter also reflected on West’s late mother, Donda West, a professor and educator with whom Hunter once collaborated on the book “Raising Kanye.”
“Kanye’s mother was a whole Ph.D.,” Hunter said. “That woman was brilliant. I do believe if she were here, he would not be out here doing these things.”
Later in the segment, a caller asked about reports that Lauryn Hill and Erykah Badu might be connected to West’s new project, saying that while she could not speak to their motives, she believed that financial pressure may leave some artists with difficult choices.
“We shouldn’t even be down that bad,” she said.
