30 Kanye West Quotes, From Wild To Inspiring
Sometimes it’s hard to remember that the Kanye West that we know today is the same Kanye West that was producing for JAY-Z two decades ago and rapped about splitting the KFC buffet with his girl on ‘Touch The Sky.’ The Ye of today seems so far removed from what we knew him as back then that it’s hard to remember that it’s the same person.
In his fifteen-plus years of fame, Kanye’s said a lot in songs, interviews, and even on social media. The good, the bad, and everything in between. We’ve compiled a list of 50 Kanye West quotes that were everything from wild to inspiring, but most of all, all-out memorable for better or for worse. None of them are from his music, either. Sit back and enjoy.
1. “Today I am voting for the first time in my life for the President of the United States, and it’s for someone I truly trust…me.”
The less said about this one, the better.
2. “Criticism can bother you, but you should be more bothered if there’s no criticism. That means you’re too safe.”
3. “I refuse to accept other peoples’ ideas of happiness for me. As if there’s a ‘one size fits all’ standard for happiness.”
4. “I’m the closest that Hip-Hop is getting to God. In some situations, I’m like a ghetto Pope.”
5. "When I think of competition it’s like I try to create against the past. I think about Michelangelo and Picasso, you know? The pyramids.”
6. “My greatest pain in life is that I will never be able to see myself perform live.”
Coming from someone who watched Kanye West perform his incredible catalog live in London alongside JAY-Z, this one might be a little bit arrogant, but I can also empathize. It truly is a great experience to watch Ye in concert.
7. “I am the number one being in music. That means any person that’s living or breathing is number two.”
8. “I am flawed as a human. I am flawed as a person. As a man I am flawed, but my music is perfect.”
9. “Would you believe in what you believe in if you were the only one who believed it?”
10. “I’m my favourite rapper.”
11. “I am not a fan of books. I would never want a book’s autograph. I am a proud non-reader of books.”
Yeah… we don’t know either. This isn’t even the only quote on this list where Kanye brags about not reading books. There are two more to go.
12. "I feel that I’m very blessed. But with great blessings come great responsibility.”
13. “I don’t think there’s a living celebrity with more weapons formed against him, but I don’t think there’s one more prosperous.”
14. “Visiting my mind is like visiting the Hermés factory. Shit is real.”
15. "People never change. They just become better at hiding who they really are.”
16. “You should only believe about 90% of what I say. As a matter of fact, don’t even believe anything that I’m saying at all. I could be completely fucking with you and the world the entire time.”
This one grows into more of a gem as time goes on. It also makes us hopeful that there’s a chance that Kanye West himself knows that some of what he says is absolute insanity.
17. "I’m not comfortable with comfort. I’m only comfortable when I’m in a place where I’m constantly learning and growing.”
18. “If you read books – which I don’t, none at all – about how to become a billionaire, they always say “you learn more from your mistakes.” So if you learn from your mistakes, then I’m a fucking genius.”
19. “I feel like I’m too busy writing history to read it.”
20. “I’m on the pursuit of awesomeness. Excellence is the bare minimum.”
21. “I’m a human being. I’ve got opinions, I’m not always right, I’m not always on time, I don’t always say things in the proper way, but my intentions are always extremely pure.”
This one is incredibly refreshing and is a necessary reminder that being in Kanye West’s position is something that probably none of us can ever come close to experiencing and it can be unimaginably difficult to endure.
22. “The Bible had 20, 30, 40, 50 characters in it. You don’t think that I would be one of the characters of today’s modern Bible?”
23. “I think the world can be saved through design, because what is the most disrespectful thing someone can do? Kill someone. So, good taste is the opposite of that.”
24. “For me, money is not my definition of success. Inspiring people is a definition of success.”
25. “Creative output, you know, is just pain. I’m going to be cliché for a minute and say that great art comes from pain.”
26. “I was never really good at anything except for the ability to learn.”
A rare moment of humility for Mr. West.
27. “People always say that you can’t please everybody. I think that’s a cop-out. Why not attempt it? ‘Cause think of all the people you will please if you try.”
28. “I’ll say things that are serious and put them in a joke form so people can enjoy them. We laugh to keep from crying.”
29. “If I don’t scream, if I don’t say something, then no-one’s going to say anything.”
30. "I love sleep. It's my favorite."
