Why I am not offended by Kanye West

In a world where redemption is scarce and disrespect is at an all-time high, many hold passionate opinions of the outspoken musical genius we know as Kanye West. Most surprising, the Black Christian, specifically the Black Christian -Apostolic Community has debunked and defamed the "Kanye West Sunday Worship Service."

In the past months we have seen Kanye West travel the continent sharing revamped and modernized gospel music classics in sold out and standing room only venues. For 15 years we have listened to Kanye West's music with Christianity undertones.

Christianity Today reviewed Kanye West’s debut album, The College Dropout—quoting verses from “Jesus Walks” and other God-tinged tracks, while warning that the release overall is “far from pious, with an array of expletives and lyrical undesirables.”

“One wonders why West so adamantly makes a case for Christ in ‘Jesus Walks,’ yet quickly dismisses him via duplicitous party rhymes,” wrote Andree Farias. “The answer is probably in the album’s liner notes, where West openly declares that he’s not where he needs to be, despite still being on God’s side.”

Christian fans have asked questions about Kanye’s relationship with God over and over since then (as they do with many other celebrities who reference faith in their work and interviews). What does it mean for him to make a “gospel album with a lot of cursing”? What’s up with the Yeezus nickname and Christ imagery? Is Kanye’s discussion of his spiritual life sincere or just part of an act?

For followers of Kanye—who’s now also a designer, shoe mogul, husband to Kim Kardashian, and friend of President Donald Trump—the questions around his Christianity have compounded lately. (Shellnutt, 2019)

More recently, his appearance at Howard University's Homecoming sparked racial and religious debates. Greg Carr, an associate professor at Howard's Department of Afro-American Studies, asked his followers to send Kanye to the library after the performance.

"I have some books for him," he wrote, followed by the hashtag #TheMiseducationOfTheNegro.

Another professor at the school, Keneshia Grant, also tweeted her opinion about the performance. "This Kayne [sic] church thing makes me uncomfortable. There, I said it," she wrote. Writer Frederick Joseph also criticized the school's embrace of West. "Can't blame Kanye anymore, he's shown us who he is. Black people need to stop making space for his anti-Blackness," he wrote.

Still, West's Sunday Service performances -- his signature hip-hop and gospel pop-up events -- have been huge. Brad Pitt even pulled up to one last month, and it doesn't get much bigger than that. (Asmelash, 2019)

There is a clear feeling of uncertainty about this version of Kanye West. Most are confused, many offended and the core are angry with the new "acceptance" of this version of Kanye West. As a Black American Christian, I am appalled by our lack of forgiveness, compassion, and integrity.

What we seem to miss are the millions of unchurched followers of Kanye West that are now bobbing their heads and singing lyrics to worship songs. This is the alternative introduction to Christ that I have been talking about for years.

I spoke a little about this on my Facebook Live, Going to Church with The Sullivans, starting at 16 minutes in. I said it then and I will say it again; the gospel music industry may be upset at the actions taken by Kanye West however, the kingdom of God is not upset, offended or threatened by Kanye West.

Moreover, why is there such a backlash? Why do we find fault in a sinner finding God through song and sharing their testimony with the world? Are we really upset that Kanye West may win the only gospel category at the next Grammy Award Show? Are we mad that he is serving the unchurched, forgotten and displaced community for free while we struggle to meet capacity for our gospel concerts and worship experiences?

We ... us ... our ... Black Christians ... JUST STOP! Look at what we are standing for and what we are fighting for. We have more issues than another race, nationality, religious organization, sexual preference and beyond. Do we really want to waste time speaking against another black person, another black Christian, for serving an audience we tend to forget about?

If we do not step out of our comfort zones to meet the needs of the people, who will? Well, Kanye West has started. We will acknowledge the movement he has started that WILL HELP fellow Christians and the unchurched community or we will stay in our bubble of church folk and NOT spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and bring more souls to Christ.

Yes, Kanye West showed us in the past years that he is more than off his rocker, but what is he saying now? If we change our mindset to actually live like Christians and welcome ALL who want to worship HIM and tell the world how awesome OUR GOD is, all the rest is irrelevant! No Kaney West is not the next messiah, he is not Jesus reincarnated, NO! But he is showing that with all the wrong you may do in your life, God will always forgive you. God will always accept you. We should all be glad that we serve a God that will give you new mercy every day and not a GOD that will push you aside the first, second, or fifth time you do something wrong.

What a mighty God We Serve. He is performing miracles right in our faces. We aren't saying, "this is wonderful, a secular artist is embracing God as his savior .... the kingdom wins again." Why aren't we saying that?

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Works Cited

Asmelash, Leah. “Kanye West Brought His Sunday Service Pop-up to Howard University -- but Not Everyone Supported It.” CNN, Cable News Network, 12 Oct. 2019, www.cnn.com/2019/10/12/entertainment/kanye-west-sunday-service-howard-university-trnd/index.html.

Shellnutt, Kate. “Has Kanye Lost His Jesus Complex and Found Christ?” ChristianityToday.com, Christianity Today, 30 July 2019, www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2019/july-web-only/kanye-west-sunday-services-jesus-walks-christian-faith.html.