When you make a documentary about your heroes, what happens? They say, "Never meet your heroes.".
It is, as Mobeen Azhar found out. complicated.
Since purchasing The College Dropout, the rapper's debut album, on the day it was released in 2004, the journalist has been a huge fan of Kanye West, also known as Ye.
He was enticed by Kanye's "audacious" outsider persona and his frequent, news-grabbing rants, just like many other fans were.
He recalls a creative person who didn't hesitate to "say things that many other people wouldn't say.".
However, you don't have to be a huge Kanye fan to understand that a lot has changed since then.
The rapper's antisemitic comments contributed significantly to the loss of his billionaire status and a number of lucrative brand deals in less than a year.
Fans began to wonder what was happening and look for explanations, including Mobeen.
New allegations that Kanye had subjected someone to antisemitic abuse emerged as he was searching for them for his BBC Two documentary The Trouble with KanYe.
After helping the rapper with the release of the Donda 2 album, Alex Klein, a former friend and business partner, claims the rapper told him, "You're exactly like the other Jews," when they parted ways.
Alex says to Mobeen, "I asked him if he really believed that Jews were conspiring to hold you back, and he replied, "Yes, I do.
The tech entrepreneur claims that according to Kanye, his remarks about Jews were "not even a statement that I need to take back because look at all the energy around me right now. Without that declaration, I wouldn't win the presidency.
According to Mobeen, he was particularly interested in "exploring how he's come to the point that he has to.".
"Like many others, I've been following his politics and views over the past few years. And a lot of what he's put out there has left me feeling annoyed, irate, and confused. ".
He assembled a film crew, flew to Los Angeles, and began his investigation into Kanye's beginnings and current situation.
His first step involved learning about his ascent by "speaking to people who had been in the room when a lot of the records that I know and have loved for a long time were made," according to him.
That included veteran Kanye producer Malik Yusef, who has contributed to numerous songs by the rapper.
He claimed that the rapper's initial goal was to "wake people up to the true plight of African people in this day and age." He said this to Mobeen.
However, Malik now thinks Kanye has "thrown himself on the pyre of white nationalism," the idea that people of a particular race or ethnicity are better than those of any other.
Although it is a strong statement, Mobeen found some support for it in a chapel outside of Los Angeles.
According to Mobeen, the Cornerstone Church is now the headquarters of Kanye West's "Kanye West Empire" and the starting point of his 2024 presidential campaign.
And according to Mobeen's documentary, the rapper's new collaborators are very different from those he worked with while he was moving up the hip-hop food chain.
People like Nick Fuentes, a well-known streamer who is frequently labeled a white nationalist with antisemitic views and is rumored to hold regular meetings at the church.
He disbelieves in the Holocaust. He disapproves of LGBT rights. He is also one of the key players in the 2024 presidential campaign, according to Mobeen.
Kanye "continues to have a huge amount of influence," according to Mobeen, and "his words really, really matter," so for him, this is particularly challenging.
"I think that influence and a lot of the philosophy that these people hold in common will come through in Ye's statements and words.
"And I was shocked to learn that. The idea shocked me. ".
According to Mobeen, he "will continue to love a lot of Kanye records.".
However, I've checked out of the persona of Ye, he adds.
"I don't believe we should disregard him. because I believe that having these discussions is very important.
"I believe that's how society advances. However, I believe we should reject those opinions. They are beyond reproach, so we should, in my opinion. ".
On Wednesday, June 28, at 21:00 BST, The Trouble with KanYe will be broadcast on BBC Two. afterward, iPlayer. a podcast that goes with it. The Story of Kanye. also accessible via BBC Sounds.
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