Kanye West deleted his social media profiles because he “realized his rants were becoming unhealthy”.
The 41-year-old rapper deactivated both his Twitter and Instagram accounts over the weekend, and sources have now stated that his decision was influenced by the backlash from the controversial rants he has posted since reviving his Twitter in April, in which he has voiced his support for divisive US president Donald Trump.
An insider said: “Kanye got to the point where he realized his rants were becoming unhealthy. This is why he deleted his account. When he gets into these Twitter rants, it’s very difficult for him to stop. It’s like an obsession and it actually affects his life. He knows it’s not healthy, so he wants to take things down a notch.”
And it seems Kanye’s wife Kim Kardashian West – with whom he has North, five, Saint, two, and Chicago, eight months – is on board with the social media detox too.
The source added to People magazine: “Kim agreed it was time for him to take a social media break. She just wants him to focus on his family for a bit now. He can also focus better on his music and being creative when he avoids social media.”
Kanye’s deactivation comes after he came back to Twitter in April, after having stayed away from the micro-blogging site for nearly a year. But his return was fraught with controversy, as he posted rants about topics ranging from his Yeezy line to his former brother-in-law Lamar Odom, and to Donald Trump, whom he publicly declared his support for and called him “my brother”.
His comments caused the likes of Ariana Grande, Katy Perry, Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, and Rihanna to unfollow his Twitter account, whilst international stars including British musicians Harry Styles and Zayn Malik, Australian musician and YouTube star Troye Sivan, and Korean pop group BTS also followed suit in unfollowing him.