Justin Bieber has publicly reached out to Kanye West with a message of support, after the rapper faced a heavy backlash for his comments suggesting 400 years of slavery “was a choice”.
The Biebs - who was one of a number of celebrities to unfollow Kanye on Twitter when he penned a string of tweets in support of Donald Trump - shared a post on his Instagram on Thursday night (3 May), sending “love” in Kanye’s direction.
He wrote: “Our job is to love not to always agree! Love you Kanye!”
Kanye took serious heat earlier this week when he made a string of controversial comments to TMZ, having already come under fire for his unrelenting praise for Trump.
The ‘All Day’ rapper said: “When you hear about slavery for 400 years. For 400 years?! That sounds like a choice. You was there for 400 years and it’s all of y’all. It’s like we’re mentally in prison.
“I like the word ‘prison’ because ‘slavery’ goes too direct to the idea of blacks. Slavery is to blacks as the Holocaust is to Jews. Prison is something that unites as one race, blacks and whites, that we’re the human race.”
One of his biggest critics was his former collaborator and friend will.i.am, who admitted he felt “heartbroken” by Kanye’s “ignorant and harmful” remarks.
The Black Eyed Peas star said: “That statement was one of the most ignorant statements that anybody who came from the hood could ever say about their ancestors, that slavery is a choice. What are you talking about?
“I hope it’s not to raise awareness so you could sell some records and some shoes, because that would be the worst thing to do, to stir up this very touchy race situation and you be the benefactor from it.
“So I encourage you, if you really believe this, give your shoes away for free, give your album away for free. And I don’t like talking about going against my community, but that is harmful. I will not throw my ancestors under the bus to profit.”
In the same interview, Kanye spoke for the first time about becoming hooked on opioids after undergoing liposuction in 2016, resulting in him being hospitalised.