What did John Legend say about Kanye West? Singer responds to “mashed potatoes” comments

John Legend is responding to his former collaborator, Kanye West's, claims that he smells like mashed potatoes. Back in March, while speaking with DJ Akademiks, Ye, dressed in an outfit that resembled the KKK uniform, said of Legend:

“Look at John Legend’s old sissy a**. I ain’t never do nothing wrong to that n—a. I changed generations of his life. And he got on that f—-t ass hot sweater. They said he smells like mashed potatoes.”

The singer, 46, recently sat down for an interview with HOT97’s Ebro in the Morning, where he acknowledged Ye's comments.

“He was very obsessed with the sweaters, and he said I smell like mashed potatoes,” Legend said. “What kind of potatoes? Cheesy, garlic?. … All of it makes me sad, though. All of it does. And it’s not for me because obviously, I smell great.”

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John Legend laments not knowing former collaborator Kanye West's political inclinations as he recalls working with him: Read more

During his recent appearance, co-host Peter Rosenberg asked John Legend if any of Kanye West's other comments “offended” him or made him “sad,” to which he said all of it makes him “sad.”

He added,

It never affects me personally, but the whole story is sad. Like, seeing this guy praise Hitler, seeing this guy be this force of hate and vitriol and nastiness. Somebody who has made some of the great art of this century as an artist, as a performer, as a fashion designer. All the things that he’s done to make the world more beautiful and more interesting and then for him to be this now is sad. It’s just sad.”

The All of Me singer-songwriter doubled down on his sentiments as he noted

he never saw this side of [West] that was obsessed with Hitler and that he “truly” had “no idea” that the rapper thought this way.

“I have friends that I talk about politics with all the time; he was never one of them,” Legend said. “So I never thought of him as a person that thought about who was president or any of these social and cultural issues. He just never talked about it in conversation.”

In retrospect, John Legend said of his time with West: “What a time, what a time.” When probed to describe the man he once knew and collaborated with on several tracks, the Grammy-winning singer said:

“He was full of so much energy and creativity and optimism and we really believed that we were starting a new movement in music, and being a part of that was inspiring,” he recalled. “It was truly inspiring. That’s why it’s sad now because we did amazing things together as a collective, as a movement. Just think about all the amazing music that came from it. The G.O.O.D. Fridays, all the things that happen during the first 10 years of his career, just thrilling and to be part of that was amazing. I have no regrets. Even though he’s gone completely left now, I’m so glad that we did what we did together.”

Kanye West and John Legend collaborated on the famous track 'Blame Game' from *My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy*, released in 2010. They also worked on songs like 'Number One' and 'It's Over,' among others. The latter shared his thoughts on Ye's ongoing controversy back in May when he spoke to The Times.

"Back then, Kanye was very passionate, very gifted, and he had big dreams not only for himself but also for all the people around him He had so much optimism, so much creativity. It does feel sad, sometimes shocking, to see where he is now."

John Legend is confused by Ye's connection to right-wing views, reiterating that he never noticed any signs of it early in their friendship.

"I didn't see a hint of what we're seeing now — his obsessions with antisemitism, anti-Blackness — and it is sad to see his devolution," he told the outlet.

When asked about his thoughts on Ye's drastic change, he replied curtly,

"I don't think we're qualified to psychoanalyze him." He added, "After his mother passed in 2007 there was definitely a difference. His descent started then and seems to have accelerated recently."

John Legend, an EGOT winner, will be hitting the road for a world tour in honor of the 20th anniversary of his debut, Get Lifted. He announced the news back in March, Hot 97 has reported. He will be heading to Europe before kicking off the North American leg of his tour.

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