In the final months before Election Day, rapper Kanye West has decided to enter the campaign. He will hold a rally at USC on April 9.
West first announced his bid for candidacy in his 2015 MTV Music Video Award acceptance speech.
“It’s about ideas, bro. New ideas. People with ideas. People who believe in truth. And yes, as you probably could have guessed by this moment, I have decided in 2020 to run for president,” West announced.
Now, he has joined the race four years early. His fans were more than ready to rally behind him, but the question of whether he was serious became prominent.
West met the doubt surrounding his sincerity with his thoughts on American education, which he voiced through social media.
“I’d rather teachers get paid more and books cost less … #2016,” West tweeted on Feb. 16.
With "Listen to the kids, bro" as his campaign slogan, West begins his path to the White House. He has the support of college students, strengthening his education platform, as well as the support of President Barack Obama.
“Do you really think this country is going to elect a black guy from the South Side of Chicago with a funny name to be president of the U.S.? We’ll see what Kanye has to say when he gets out here,” Obama said to a crowd of Democratic donors in San Francisco.
University president Harris Pastides is just as excited for West's visit as the rest of campus.
“I believe he will go harder, better, faster and stronger than anyone else on the road to November," Pastides said.
Students are indeed responding strongly to the ‘Yeezy 2016’ campaign. Several students report seeing classmates sporting Adidas Yeezy Boosts, sneakers designed by West. Other students have reported their peers listening and rapping along to West’s newest album, in which West says, “2020, I’ma run the whole election, yah!”
West has not affiliated himself with a political party, and his newfound support poses a threat to the other candidates’ campaigns.
“I think he’s a great guy and I think he makes great music for great people,” Donald Trump said of West. “But I’ll tell you, what I really like about him? His wife. Have you seen the body on her?”
Sen. Bernie Sanders recognizes West’s success, but he does not believe it will be enough to win.
“I believe that the rich have done enough damage to this country. And I believe that the American people will no longer stand for it,” Sanders said. “I do, however, wish him luck in South Carolina as he rallies the students of USC, who should be going to school for free.”
West will be accompanied on campus by his wife and First Lady hopeful, businesswoman Kim Kardashian. She and her siblings are reality television stars on their show, "Keeping Up With the Kardashians."
“We’re excited to start filming the show in the White House, and I’m excited for our children to grow up there. But first, we’re excited to come and visit USC. Go Trojans!” Kardashian said.
Leading up to the rally, the bookstore in Russell House will be selling "Yeezy 2016" T-shirts, and Carolina After Dark has scheduled a Kanye-themed trip to a local roller rink Friday evening.
West plans to arrive on Greene Street in a Lamborghini Murcielago on Saturday at 9 a.m.
“Listen to the kids, bro,” West said. “I will go down as the voice of this generation, of this decade. I will be the loudest voice.”