At the age of 39, Kanye was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. He was open about it in his music, and his wife Kim as well has been reiterating the issues of mental health.. Since his diagnosis, Kanye has always been in the spotlight, scandal after scandal. In 2020, in his presidential campaign, he claimed that Harriet Tubman did not free the slaves, but instead sold them to other slave owners. Fast forward, he would get divorced by his seven year long wife, Kim Kardashian, and the drama could not stop from then. Kanye would start harassing Kim’s new boyfriend, and he would blast all his efforts to get back with Kim on social media. The social media stunts would be highly dramatic, like sending a truck full of flowers to Kim's house, or sharing the texts she sends him on his status. .Many people were laughing at the matter, while others insisted that people take it seriously. The dilemma was that some people were accusing Kanye of harassing Kim, while others were claiming that Kanye was in a public breakdown. One thing these two sides had in common, however, is that this was no comedy as it affected people in real life, including Kim’s kids.
Mental disorders are very sensitive topics, and because of that people have to face a harsh reality of framing their words carefully. Kanye, in his new album “YE”, was faced with a similar challenge. He had to talk about his diagnosis with Bipolar disorder. In his song, “ Yikes", Kanye says “See that was my third person. That's my bipolar shit, nigga what? That's my superpower, nigga ain't no disability” While some people found this particularly empowering, some others thought that he was romanticizing a disorder that had real life consequences for some people. Some people considered it careless that someone with a platform as huge as his could spread misinformation by calling a serious illness a superpower. However, It is clear to see where Kanye comes from when he wrote the lyrics. After his coming out with his condition, it seems that bipolar disorder has become a label for Kanye. The way people talk about him reinforces the idea that black men with serious mental health conditions aren’t addressed with enough respect and compassion. The ableism that comes with admitting you have a condition might make one think that they are unworthy and incapable. Therefore Kanye reclaims his power by calling bipolar disorder his superpower. After all this was his artistic expression of his own experiences..
Among the many controversial things that Kanye has said in such a short span of time are his evidently conservative views on abortion and slavery. While listening to him speak, one might feel a lack of empathy from his disregard of the sensitivity of the topics, however he recognizes that he is not proud of his words and actions in his song, “I love Kanye”. The lyrics reads, “I miss the old Kanye, straight from the 'Go Kanye. Chop up the soul Kanye, set on his goals Kanye. I hate the new Kanye, the bad mood Kanye. The always rude Kanye, spaz in the news Kanye. I miss the sweet Kanye, chop up the beats Kanye.” In this song he shows that he is aware of how much his actions affect others and that he is not proud of that. Many people with bipolar might find it hard to maintain relationships due to what they do in their manic episodes. Kanye helps us to understand that these people are not particularly proud of their actions, and that they need a little more empathy if anything. Kanye’s actions might get justified because of his condition, but we have to understand that it’s a totally different case for a general person with BPD, and this is exactly why we need to push this conversation forward for as long as possible.
Kanye’s openness about his condition, helps in deconstructing the image of how black men are supposed to be in mainstream media. Hip hop is commonly known for pushing forward toxic masculinity, and hustle mentality. Most rappers talk about money, drugs and girls. The hip-hop industry encourages ‘toughness’ that there is almost no space for vulnerability. Kanye by opening up about his condition in a space like this sets a clear example of how men can be both masculine and still be allowed vulnerability. The stigma towards men’s mental health is significantly due to the fact that society shuns them from speaking up about them, therefore by talking about it, Kanye has broken a huge barrier we need to encourage other creatives to be vocal about issues that affect them.
Even Though Kanye’s portrayal of bipolar disorder might be misleading, and inaccurate. We can still recognize that the conversations around men’s mental health are more prevalent in mainstream media. This has allowed for people to voice up their own stories, and many people just like me were able to comprehend the disorder, and its implications. As a person with such a huge platform, Kanye has involuntarily opened up the discussion around mental health, and how it affects the people in the patient’s life. It is therefore important that people open up about their conditions, even with the potential risk of ableism, since there is no other way to combat ableism than removing the stigma around mental health.
References
I'm a Black bipolar woman. The way we talk about celebrities like Kanye West shows how much we still need to fight stigma around severe mental illnesses. (2022). Retrieved 30 April 2022, from https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/im-a-black-bipolar-woman-the-way-we-talk-about-celebrities-like-kanye-west-shows-how-much-we-still-need-to-fight-stigma-around-severe-mental-illnesses-/articleshow/77224515.cms
Robinson, K., Robinson, K., & Robinson, K. (2022). Black mental health: An overlooked and misused perspective when discussing Kanye West | The Emory Wheel. Retrieved 30 April 2022, from https://emorywheel.com/black-mental-health-an-overlooked-and-misused-perspective-when-discussing-kanye-west/
Lauren, S. (2022). Kanye West Is Opening Up About Bipolar Disorder And Not Everyone Is Happy About It. Retrieved 30 April 2022, from https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/laurenstrapagiel/kanye-west-talks-about-bipolar-disorder-on-his-new-album5
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