Kanye West quits X after series of controversial posts, thanks Elon Musk before deactivating

Rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has deactivated his X (formerly Twitter) account after a series of inflammatory posts sparked widespread criticism. The 47-year-old musician and fashion mogul's departure from the platform comes after he made a string of antisemitic, misogynistic, and homophobic remarks, posted explicit videos, and reignited his long-standing feud with Taylor Swift.

West’s latest outburst included comments praising Adolf Hitler, identifying himself as a "Nazi," and making sweeping antisemitic statements. He also took aim at the Jewish community, declaring, “I’m never apologising for my Jewish comments.” These posts, along with derogatory remarks about overweight women and pornography shared on his account, led to his profile being flagged with a "sensitive content warning."

In the wake of his statements, public figures such as David Schwimmer and Piers Morgan called on X to take action and suspend his account. However, it remains unclear whether West deactivated his account voluntarily or if it was removed by X’s moderation team.

During the Super Bowl, West lashed out at Taylor Swift, who was in attendance to support her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce. He referenced Kendrick Lamar’s halftime performance and claimed Swift’s music undermines Black men. “IF IT’S ABOUT THE CULTURE... WHY ARE WE LETTING TAYLOR SWIFT BE SEEN ON TV SINGING A SONG ABOUT TAKING A BLACK MAN DOWN?” he posted in all caps.

The comments reignited the long-standing animosity between the two artists, dating back to the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, where West interrupted Swift’s acceptance speech to declare that Beyoncé had the best music video of all time.

West also made headlines for an unusual Super Bowl advertisement in which he claimed to have spent all the production money on dental work, filming the commercial using just an iPhone. The ad directed viewers to his website, Yeezy.com.

Shortly before his departure from X, West complained that his posts were being suppressed, stating, “MY TWITTER REACH HAS BEEN LIMITED SO I AM NOT ALLOWED TO TREND DURING SUPER BOWL.” He then announced plans to create a Discord channel instead.

Milo Yiannopoulos, a controversial figure who works with West’s Yeezy brand, later confirmed the deactivation, stating, “Ye has deactivated his X account for the time being.”

A Temporary Exit?

In his final message before leaving the platform, West acknowledged X owner Elon Musk, thanking him for allowing him to vent. “It has been very cathartic to use the world as a sounding board. It was like an Ayahuasca trip,” he wrote. “Love all of you who gave me your energy and attention. Until we connect again.”

Whether West’s exit from X is permanent remains to be seen, but given his history of erratic social media activity, it’s likely that he will find another platform to broadcast his controversial views.