American producer, rapper, and fashion designer Kanye West who parlayed his production success in the late 1990s and early 2000s into a career as a popular, critically acclaimed solo artist Instagram account was restricted on Saturday, October 8 for violating the social media platform’s policies, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The Meta company not only put a restriction on the account — which prevents Kanye from posting, commenting or sending DMs — but they also deleted some of his recent posts, including a message criticized as using anti-Semitic language.
A Meta spokesperson confirms to THR that the company deleted content from the rapper’s Instagram account that uses the @kanyewest handle. Additionally, although the account is still visible, a restriction has been placed on it, according to the rep. Meta has a policy of putting restrictions on users after repeated violations, which could temporarily prevent the user from sharing posts, writing comments or sending direct messages.
Kanye has also been suspended from Twitter after posting anti-semitic remarks — meaning he can no longer tweet and the posts in question were removed. A rep for Twitter confirmed he “has been locked due to a violation of Twitter’s policies,” per the New York Post.
The Meta rep who spoke with the outlet didn’t specify which content was removed or how long the restriction would last. However, the decision came after Kanye shared a since-deleted post on Friday about an alleged exchange between him and Diddy that appeared to show Kanye claim Diddy was controlled by Jewish people, a reference to a long-standing anti-Semitic conspiracy theory. The message was captioned, “Jesus is Jew.”
Kanye appeared to hit back after the restriction was placed as he switched over to Twitter early Saturday — a platform he hasn’t used since 2020 — and dragged Meta’s owner, Mark Zuckerberg. Alongside a photo of Kanye hanging out with Mark, th
This follows West having recently posted to Instagram an exchange purportedly between himself and Diddy in which West used language criticized by other social media users as anti-Semitic. The post has since been deleted.
West also received backlash for comments he made about Jared Kushner during the rapper’s recent appearance on Fox News’ Tucker Carlson Tonight that were perceived as perpetuating Jewish stereotypes.
Advocacy group American Jewish Committee took to Instagram on Friday to condemn West for “rants laden with racist and antisemitic undertones” and “anti-Jewish posts.”
This is not the first time that the star has been under fire for his social media presence. In March, his Instagram account was suspended for 24 hours after he posted a slur targeting The Daily Show host Trevor Noah.
In February, West apologized for since-deleted Instagram posts that shared messages between himself and estranged wife Kim Kardashian about her then-boyfriend Pete Davidson. West wrote at the time that “sharing screenshots was jarring and came off as harassing Kim.”
Kanye “Ye” West’s Twitter account was locked by the social media platform for violating its policies, a spokesperson for the company has confirmed to Variety.
In its statement, Twitter did not indicate which specific posts by West led to the decision to restrict his account.
The restriction comes after West took to Twitter after facing a similar restriction on Instagram. The musician shared two tweets that have largely been criticized as antisemitic.
The first post has since been deleted by Twitter for “violating the Twitter rules.” In the post, West claimed that he couldn’t be antisemitic and said he had been “toyed with” by the Jewish people.
“I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death [sic] con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE,” West wrote in the now-deleted post. “The funny thing is I actually can’t be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew also. You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.”
A day earlier, a restriction was placed on West’s Instagram account after the platform deleted content from his account for a violation of its policies.
A Meta spokesperson confirmed the decision to Variety, sharing that temporary restrictions on posting, commenting and messaging are standard practice for accounts that regularly violate the social media platform’s policies. The company did not indicate which specific posts were the cause behind the restriction.
West, who uses the handle @kanyewest on the platform, had shared a now-deleted post featuring a screenshot of a message, allegedly sent to rapper Diddy, that had been criticized as antisemitic by Jewish advocacy groups like the American Jewish Committee.
Representatives for West were not immediately available for comment.
In the hours following his restriction on Instagram, West took to Twitter for the first moment in some time, seemingly calling out Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg for his restriction from the platform.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who has been engaged in a legal process regarding a potential purchase of Twitter, responded by welcoming West back to the social media platform.
The rapper also shared what seems to be a teaser for a 2024 political campaign, a prospect that he has flirted with in the past.
This does not mark the first time that West has faced restrictions on Instagram. In March, the rapper was suspended from the platform for 24 hours. Content from West’s account was also deleted in that incident for violations of policies for hate speech, bullying and harassment.
West also faced controversy earlier this week after wearing a shirt reading “White Lives Matter” during his surprise Yeezy Season 9 fashion show in Paris. The rapper also appeared for an interview on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight” on Thursday evening to discuss the decision.
Sources: Variety, Hollywood Life, The New York Post, The Hollywood Reporter