‘I Said Counsel Kanye Not Cancel Kanye’: Trevor Noah Defends Ye After He’s Booted from Grammys and Instagram

Sarah RumpfMar 20th, 2022, 3:57 pm
 
Kanye West Hits Back at Trevor Noah with Racial Slur Following Comedian's Defense of Kim Kardashian

Brad Barket, Rich Fury/Getty Images

Trevor Noah is defending Kanye West — legally now known as Ye — after the controversial rapper was booted from Instagram and performing at the Grammys, even though Noah was a target of one of West’s posts that contained a racial slur.

Instagram temporarily suspended West this week after his latest round of pugnacious posts, frequently complaining about his divorce from Kim Kardashian, the custody battles over their four children, and insults aimed at Kardashian’s boyfriend, Saturday Night Live’s Pete Davidson.

One of West’s latest music videos rang alarm bells for many viewers when it portrayed him kidnapping and burying alive a claymation version of Davidson.

Noah, whose stepfather abused and attempted to kill his mother, warned that the online spat between West and Kardashian could turn violent and expressed concerns about West’s mental health.

West responded with an Instagram post that used a racial slur to refer to Noah.

On Saturday, it was announced that the Grammys were removing West from the performance lineup this year, reportedly for “concerning online behavior.”

Several musicians and other celebrities came to West’s defense, perhaps most notable among them Noah, who will be the host of the 64th annual awards ceremony.

“I said counsel Kanye not cancel Kanye,” Noah defended West in a tweet posted Sunday.

CNN reported that a source close to Noah said that The Daily Show host was not responsible for West’s performance being cancelled. “Trevor never asked the Grammys to ban Kanye from performing. He was not offended by Kanye’s Instagram post and Trevor responded on Instagram. The notion that Trevor or his team asked the Grammys to ban Kanye is ridiculous,” said the source.

The Grammys will air April 3 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. West may not be performing but could still make it up on stage; he is nominated for five awards including Album of the Year.

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Sarah Rumpf - Contributing Editor

Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law&Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe. Follow Sarah on Threads, Twitter, and Bluesky.