Kanye Gets Owned By TMZ Reporter After Saying Slavery Was “a Choice”

Kanye West has had a very weird couple of weeks. Soon after the superstar returned to Twitter, he started tweeting about his love of Donald Trump to the delight of the president and the confusion and frustration of fans everywhere. However, fans struggling to make sense of the star or justify his musings have another huge hurdle to clear today. During an interview with TMZ, West claimed that slavery was “a choice,” prompting reporter Van Lathan to call out West on his controversial statements to his face.

Today, West was scheduled to appear on TMZ Live with conservative pundit Candace Owens. Before that appearance, the rapper crashed the TMZ offices in a sort of free-for-all. West again praised Trump, saying about the president, “That’s my boy!”, but the most shocking statements West made were about slavery. It’s best if I let Kanye take it away:

“When you hear about slavery for 400 years. For 400 years?! That sounds like a choice. You was there for 400 years and it’s all of y’all. It’s like we’re mentally in prison. I like the word ‘prison’ because ‘slavery’ goes too direct to the idea of blacks. Slavery is to blacks as the Holocaust is to Jews. Prison is something that unites as one race, blacks and whites, that we’re the human race,” West said.

It’s hard to know where to start with that statement. Thankfully, TMZ’s Van Lathan already had a response ready. In an impassioned response that was still respectful to West, Lathan criticized the artist, highlighting why his words matter so much to fans.

“You’re entitled to believe whatever you want, but there is fact and real-world, real-life consequences to everything that you just said. While you are making music and being an artist and living the life that you’ve earned by being a genius, the rest of society have to deal with these threats to our lives,” Lathan said. “We have to deal with the marginalization that has come from the 400 years of slavery that you said for our people was a choice.” You can (and should) watch the full video below.

There’s also a Curb Your Enthusiasm version of the moment that’s been cut to include West’s original controversial statements:

Even celebrities like Jimmy Kimmel have been watching the drama unfold:

Lathan’s takedown has gotten so much attention because it rings so true. It calls out a super-celebrity for seemingly failing to understand the weight of his own words and his reach. This reporter is far form the first person to confront West about his remarks. John Legend earlier texted West, urging the star to reconsider his tweets.

Kanye West is still one of the biggest names in music, fashion, and pop culture as a whole. He’s beyond just a star. He’s a symbol and an idol, and his words matter. Lately, a lot of fans are being hurt by those words and how West has been using his all-encompassing influence.