When Kanye West Pushed The Interviewer to Not ‘Jimmy Kimmel the Situation’: “Give Me Time to Think”

Kanye West is well known for speaking his mind no matter what. Back in 2018, when he appeared in an interview with TMZ Live, the rapper made sure the interview would run on his terms and not the "Jimmy Kimmel" way. Expressing his support for Donald Trump for the then-presidential elections West left no stone unturned in declaring himself a Republican supporter. 

However, when asked about the former President's goals, West hilariously lashed back at the interviewer comparing him to Jimmy Kimmel. Wearing a Make America Great Again cap and a jacket, the Yeezy founder maintained a minute-long silence when asked by Harvey Levin, "[Donald Trump] has been on this path for years now where people have criticized it, and he’s just amped it up. At a point, don’t you say, He is who he is?" The question came in response to Ye's view on Trump where he stated, "Do you feel people can grow? For someone to grow, they need to know that they have love. That someone loves, and that someone is leading with love, or that a group of people is leading with love. There’s no way to start a dialogue with ‘Fuck you.’ That’s not how you lead with love," as reported by Vulture. 

After a long muted gap, when Levin reiterated, "Do you want me to repeat?" he responded with a, "No." To which the interviewer suggests, "Why don’t we do this, we can’t take a quick break — " The Gimme A Second 2 rapper lashed back at the TMZ journalist saying, "No. We’re not going to Jimmy Kimmel the situation. No, we’re not going to come right back. We’re not going to Jimmy Kimmel the situation."

Taking the interviewer by surprise he continued, "We’re going to give me time to think. You asked me a serious question and I’m going to take some time to think about my answer." As he said this, Ye then hilariously added, "I’m going to use the time to my advantage in this situation. Now repeat the question," as he put his hand on his chin sitting in the thinker's position. Moments later he looks at Levin saying, "You’re not giving a question, you’re giving opinions." To which Levin reframed his question saying, "The question is you had said that people have the ability to grow. What I’m saying is — "

Ye retaliated, "Yeah, what you’re saying. So now I’m waiting for a question for me." The interviewer reverted, "My point is, do you give up on them growing?" Ye stuck with his point saying, "We’re not making a point. You’re going to ask me a question." Levin finally asked, "Do you give up on somebody growing when they are unrelenting because they are who they are?" Ye answered, "And I love it. Now you asked me the perfect question, you set me up to win. We never give up on anyone." The interview went viral for its hilarious mention of Kimmel, who had questioned West on his late-night show for showing support for Trump.