Just hours after launching an unofficial guessing game related to the title of his upcoming album on Twitter, Kanye West has kicked off another exercise in thoughtful curiosity: What, exactly, was he thinking when he lobbed apparent support this afternoon in the direction of alleged rapist Bill Cosby?
BILL COSBY INNOCENT !!!!!!!!!!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 9, 2016
Containing more exclamation points than words, West’s tweet has already drawn healthy censure and speculation from fans and critics alike. Is it a reference to the latest turn in Cosby’s legal case, which saw actress Janice Dickinson’s defamation claims dismissed by a Los Angeles judge? (In which case, West seems to be ignoring both Dickinson’s still-standing assault claims, as well as those of the other 50 or so women making similar accusations.) Was it a naked ploy to build controversy in advance of the release of Talk Less, Oh Please, or whatever he ends up calling the new album? (If so, it seems like one likely to backfire.) An expression of sincere doubt from someone desperately in need of a question mark? A desire to not let R. Kelly get in the final word?
Or is it exactly what it looks like, and West has thrown his lot in behind another black superstar, one whose alleged crimes make West’s various stage-barging social sins look so trivial as to be utterly harmless? It might never be clear.
In other news, West also tweeted a sincere apology to Michael Jordan for accidentally saying something slightly mean about him in a song.
I’m sorry Michael Jordan I love and respect you. My beef was with Mark Parker. I respect you so much!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 9, 2016