Kanye West’s off-the-cuff comments about slavery continue to generate controversy, with Kobe Bryant becoming the latest celebrity to denounce the bizarre remarks.
In a recent interview with TMZ Live (below), West appeared to blame slaves for hundreds of years of enslavement. “For 400 years, that sounds like a choice,” said Yeezy. “You was there for 400 years. And it’s all of y’all?”
The comments have led to a petition for Adidas to drop the rapper, a Detroit radio station banning West’s music and harsh criticism levelled at him by such stars as Janelle Monae and Stevie Wonder, who called his words “foolish.”
We can add Bryant’s name to the list of critics, with the NBA great taking West to task for his remarks.
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“I’m sure the same way everybody else here in this room feels,” said Bryant to a group of about 300 students at a pop-up festival dedicated to affecting change in the mental health system, reports People.
“‘What the hell are you talking about?’ I think that was my reaction as is everybody else’s reaction,” admitted Bryant.
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While the former L.A. Lakers star, 39, says he “completely disagrees” with West’s opinion, he defends his “right to say whatever it is that you want to say,” pointing out that West, 40, is “one of these entertainers that’s always in a constant state of growth” and “doing a lot of questioning internally himself.”
