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Grammy-winning artist John Legend has opened up about his former collaborator Kanye West, calling the rapper and producer's transformation over the past two decades both "sad" and "sometimes shocking."
In an interview, Legend reflected on their creative partnership while making his debut album, 'Get Lifted', released in 2004. West served as executive producer on the record, contributing alongside names like Dave Tozer, will.i.am, and Devo Springsteen. Released under West's GOOD Music label, Get Lifted sold over three million copies, earned three Grammy Awards, and helped launch Legend into stardom. At the time, West was also riding high on his own success, with his debut album The College Dropout establishing him as a boundary-pushing artist with a unique voice. Legend described West from that era as "passionate, gifted, and full of optimism," noting, "He had big dreams for himself and the people around him," as quoted by Deadline. However, the musician acknowledged a stark contrast between the Kanye he knew then and the version seen today. "It does feel sad, sometimes shocking, to see where he is now," Legend said during the interview. In recent years, West has faced intense scrutiny and backlash over a series of inflammatory public statements and controversial appearances. "West has encountered widespread controversy in recent years, from selling T-shirts adorned with swastika logos to wearing a black Klu Klux Klan hood in public. He has previously been banned from the platform X for some of his offensive statements," reported Deadline. Legend expressed his distress over the direction West's behaviour has taken, and 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," as quoted by Deadline. He suggested that a significant turning point may have been the death of West's mother, Donda West, in 2007, which Legend believes marked the beginning of a noticeable shift in West's demeanour. "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," he said. The interview comes as John Legend celebrates the 20th anniversary of Get Lifted with a commemorative tour. Reflecting on the album's themes, he shared that many of its lyrics were drawn from real-life experiences, though often dramatised for artistic effect. "I was 25 when the album was made. I had cheated, and felt guilty about it," he said of tracks like She Don't Have to Know, which narrates infidelity with a flair for melodrama. "It's a soap opera. I don't think my life was ever that interesting," Legend added, as quoted by Deadline. (ANI)
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