Kanye West left live-streaming podcaster DJ Akademiks stunned as he turned up for his interview on Rumble wearing a black Ku Klux Klan-inspired outfit.
The rapper appeared in the hour-long interview wearing a pointed black leather hood resembling the KKK’s notorious garb. He eventually removed the troubling outerwear to reveal a T-shirt designed by Sean “Diddy” Combs and a necklace bearing a swastika medallion—accessories he previously wore in a video with white nationalist Nick Fuentes.
West, who said he had both the black and a matching white version of the outfit custom-made, admitted he considered wearing it publicly, but ultimately decided not to out of fear of backlash.
“I wanted to wear it yesterday,” he said, “but I was worried that people would put me in a hospital for my outfit.”
Throughout the conversation, the pair veered through a sprawling range of West’s personal grievances and industry feuds — touching on his regret over his relationship with Kim Kardashian, frustrations with their child custody battle, the Kardashians’ influence over his children, and safety concerns that prompted him to relocate from L.A. to Japan.
He also defended Diddy – currently in detention and awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges – alleging media hypocrisy in targeting Black artists while sparing others.
The interview comes with a string of increasingly extreme appearances from West, whose recent social posts have flirted with Nazi imagery and have been removed by Instagram for violating hate speech policies.
Earlier this month, West dubbed a white KKK robe the “outfit of the day” in a now-deleted Instagram post.
West’s spiraling public behavior has cost him numerous major brand partnerships, including with Adidas and Balenciaga.
Watch:
Kanye West appeared for an interview wearing a black KKK-inspired outfit, commenting he had a white version as well—and they were both custom-made.
“I wanted to wear it yesterday, but I was worried that people would put me in a hospital for my outfit.”
What’s going on with Ye? pic.twitter.com/s6Y0mZKnhC
— Julia (@Jules31415) March 31, 2025
