On the opening night of his Yeezus tour Saturday (October 19), Kanye West was greeted on stage by a person dressed as Jesus Christ.
During a recent interview with San Francisco radio station Wild 94.9, Kanye West spoke about the significance of having Jesus portrayed at his concert.
“I had a friend of mine that’s a pastor there as we started discussing how we wanted to deliver it,” Kanye West said. “My girl even asked afterwards, ‘Is that weird if Jesus comes on stage?’ They’re like, ‘No. We do plays all the time. People play Jesus. You know what’s awesome about Christianity? We’re allowed to portray God. We’re allowed to draw an image of him. We’re allowed to make movies about him. Other religions, you’re not allowed to do that. That’s what’s really awesome about Christianity. That’s one of the really awesome things.'”
During the interview, Kanye West also said that his concert is a form of artistic expression.
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“It’s a painting,” West said. “It’s a sculpture. It’s a moving opera. It’s a play. It’s a message. I’m not even going to do any comparisons with that. God knows where my heart is with that.”
The portrayal of Jesus Christ in Kanye West’s concert was also meant to have a message, the rapper said.
“One of the things that I wanted to really get across with that message is that you can have a relationship with Jesus, that you can talk to Jesus,” West said. “In the same way how someone will have ‘Jesus is My Homeboy’ [on a T-shirt], that is the way I would express it and the way I create, is that you can have a relationship with Jesus, that you can talk to him.”
The reason why I thought it was funny to say ‘White Jesus’ is whether it’s a portrayal of what your image of something is, all that matters is what you see, how you believe in you and how you love your family. That’s my opinion. The real opinions are in the Bible. This is my opinion, my message for what I’m dealing with right now.”
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Kanye West Says He Only Thinks Of God & Jesus When He Creates
Kanye West also addressed his comment on stage when he referred to the actor dressed as Jesus as “White Jesus.”
“It’s funny because you hear the term ‘Black Jesus’ all the time, but you never hear the term ‘White Jesus,'” West said. “It’s just some Kanye West shit, really. The same way how Will Ferrell gets up and performs his stuff, I’m a performance artist. I’m a believer and any time the word Jesus can be used more in our lives, I believe it’s a good thing. So, even with the title Yeezus, what I say is, ‘People want to be like Mike. I want to be like Christ.’ I keep it 5-years-old at all times. People have had all these boundaries to peoples’ opinions that hold them back from what they honestly want to create. So, the biggest thing about me having any form of portrayal of Jesus is, I wanted to do it.”
When asked if he was thinking about Illuminati symbols when creating his show, West denied those statements.
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“There’s only two things on my mind when I create,” West said, “God and Jesus.”
A person dressed as Jesus joins Kanye West on stage before the rapper performs “Jesus Walks,” a song from his 2004 album, College Dropout. Kanye West details his faith in Jesus Christ throughout the selection.
“The way schools need teachers,” Kanye West raps on the song. “The way Kathy Lee needed Regis / That’s the way I need Jesus.”
Kanye West made headlines today (October 22) after it was announced that he and Kim Kardashian are engaged. West reportedly proposed to Kardashian at a private event inside of AT&T Park in San Francisco, California. West reportedly hired a 50-piece orchestra and purchased a 15-carat diamond ring for the occasion.
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More from Kanye West’s recent Wild 94.9 interview can be viewed below, followed by a clip of West’s performance during his Seattle, Washington tour stop, via ddotomen.com.
