Chance the Rapper corrected President Donald Trump on Twitter Friday after he says the president mistakenly took his tweet as a sign of support.
The Chatham native came to the defense of Kanye West — who has fired off dozens of Tweets on various subjects since Wednesday — but it appears his message wasn’t clear.
West’s social media spree this week has included inspirational quotes and statements expressing his “love” for Trump.
The seemingly disconnected tweets prompted concerns — and no shortage of comments — on social media about the former Chicagoan’s mental health.
Kanye even took a swipe at President Barack Obama late Wednesday, proclaiming “nothing got done” during his eight years in office to help battle racial injustice and crime in Chicago.
Chance the Rapper eventually jumped into the fray to quell rumors of mental illness, asserting that his old friend was “in a great place.”
Talked to him two days ago. He’s in a great space and not affected by folk tryna question his mental or physical health. Same Ye from the Vmas, same Ye from the telethon. https://t.co/2zY3KpllV2
— Chance The Rapper (@chancetherapper) April 25, 2018
After Kanye called Trump his “brother,” Chance defended his fellow Chicago rapper and tweeted: “Black people don’t have to be democrats.” He also wrote that the next president will likely be an independent candidate.
Trump took Chance’s tweets as a sign of support for him. Trump tweeted Friday morning that he appreciated Kanye’s support. He also grouped Chance and Dr. Darrell Scott.
“They really get it,” Trump wrote.
Chance, who has been outspoken against the president on multiple occasions, quickly corrected Trump and tweeted: “Nah that ain’t it yo.”
Chance clarified his comments in a statement shared on Twitter.
“Anyone who knows me knows how passionate I am about my city and my loved ones,” Chance wrote. “Kanye West is not just a mentor or big homie to me. He’s my family. No matter how much I may disagree with him, it’s hard for me to watch people talk about someone I love — even if they were justified in doing so.”
Chance added that his tweets were meant to “help my friend” because he felt that he was being “used to attack” Kanye.
“Unfortunately, my attempt to support Kanye is being used to discredit my brothers and sisters in the movement and I can’t sit by and let that happen either,” Chance continued.
“I’d never support anyone who has made a career out of hatred, racism and discrimination. I’d never support someone who’d talk about Chicago as if it’s hell on earth and then take steps to make life harder here for the most disenfranchised among us. I understand why people are disappointed in my words, but I was raised to believe actions speak louder than words.”
Read the full statement below:
My fault yo pic.twitter.com/TIWhG8o1ST
— Chance The Rapper (@chancetherapper) April 27, 2018
Contributing: Miriam Di Nunzio