Why did John Legend end Kanye West friendship? Singer recalls exact moment rapper began spiraling years before meltdown

Recently, singer John Legend shared his thought regarding his friendship with Kanye West. While West is hailed as one of the most prominent figures in hip-hop music, in recent times he has made frequent headlines for his controversial statements and actions. Legend has explained that his friendship with Kanye West became strained because of the direction the latter took politically.

John Roger Stephens, famously known as John Legend, was one of the first artists to be signed by Kanye West’s record label, GOOD Music. Legend released his debut studio album Get Lifted, and the hit song, All of Me, under West's label. The song All of Me made its way to the number one spot on the BillBoard Hot 100 record charts. It was Legend’s first number one single in the United States.

Why did Kanye West and John Legend have a fallout?

In an interview with The New Yorker, three-time Grammy winner Legend explained the reason that caused a rift between the two friends.

“Yeah, what it got described as was, we stopped being friends because he supported Trump, which was a mischaracterization of what I said. That was kind of the Rupert Murdoch version of the story — it was all over the New York Post and Fox News.” he shared.

John Legend added:

"What I was saying was that he was very upset with me that I didn’t support him running for President, and that was the real impetus for us having a strain in our friendship. I don’t know what will happen in the future, but he was very upset with me that I didn’t support him and I supported Joe Biden. It’s up to him whether he can get past that."

Later in the interview, John recalled reaching out to Kanye about his support for President Donald Trump.

“Exactly. Everyone saw how I talked to him about it. I talked to him with love and with empathy, and tried to help him see another way of looking at things. And obviously he went the way he went with it. The most frustrating thing about his run for the Presidency for me was how much it was an operation run by the Trump campaign,” explained the singer.

He added:

"I don’t know how aware he was of the fact that there was so much Trump personnel throughout his campaign, raising money for him, getting petitions signed for him, getting him on the ballot. I saw their work on his behalf as a clear scam and an operation to try to siphon Black votes away from Biden, so there was no way I was going to support it. Kanye was upset with that, and we haven’t been friends since, really."

In a recent conversation with The Sunday Times, John Legend reflected on his relationship with Kanye West saying he no longer sees the artist as the same person who brought him into the spotlight by signing him to GOOD Music in 2004.

“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,” he shared.

The end of John Legend’s friendship with Kanye West in 2022 was widely publicized, stemming from what Legend described were controversial endorsements on the part of West. Legend said:

“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.”

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When pressed on what may have triggered such a transformation, Legend stops short of making any diagnosis. He said:

“I don’t think we’re qualified to psychoanalyse him, but after his mother passed in 2007 there was definitely a difference. His descent started then and seems to have accelerated recently.”

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