Kanye West: I Never Said Slavery Was a Choice

In a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times, Kanye West discussed his controversial statements about slavery—and how he worried wife Kim Kardashian West might leave him after the infamous interview on TMZ Live. “I said the idea of sitting in something for 400 years sounds—sounds—like a choice to me, I never said it’s a choice. I never said slavery itself—like being shackled in chains—was a choice,” he said. The rapper continued to explain his mental process, adding, “I think an extreme thing; I adjust it, I adjust it, I adjust it. That’s the way I get to it, but I have to push to, you know, the furthest concept possible.” West made the slavery remark during a TMZ Live interview in April. “There was a moment where I felt like after TMZ, maybe a week after that, I felt like the energy levels were low, and I called different family members and was asking, you know, ‘Was Kim thinking about leaving me after TMZ?’” he said. “So that was a real conversation.” In the Times interview, West also discussed his support for President Donald Trump, saying, “I hear Trump talk and I’m like, I like the way it sounds.’”