“I prefer to sort of up the trolling,” the producer said.
Jack Antonoff is bringing his distaste for Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) to national television. Speaking to Jimmy Kimmel Tuesday night (April 16), the producer took shots at the rapper while indulging in a mock-therapy session with the late-night host, likening the “Donda” musician to a fussy baby with an overly full diaper.
“There’s two people that I think are too oversensitive to even function, and it’s men and members of the music industry,” the Bleachers frontman explained on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, lying back in his chair while role-playing a patient in therapy. “The amount of sensitivity — it’s sort of like watching Kanye. If I saw Kanye, I’d run up to him and be like, ‘Your diaper is so full, we have to change your diaper. Your diaper needs to be changed, it’s a huge problem.’”
“The truth is, I’m not that offended,” Antonoff added, touching on Ye’s history of antisemitism, which last year cost the rapper multiple brand partnerships and led to the loss of his billionaire status. “I’m offended, but I’m not that offended, so I don’t like to play this character of overly offended. I prefer to sort of up the trolling.”
It’s not the first time Antonoff, who is Jewish, has poked fun at Ye. In fact, it’s not even the first time he’s implied that the controversial figure is suffering from a loaded pull-up. In a February interview with the Los Angeles Times, the “Don’t Take the Money” singer quipped that the rapper “just needs his diaper changed so badly.”
“It’s been a long time since I would’ve taken Kanye’s call,” he added at the time when asked whether he’d ever work with Ye in the future. “I’m so incredibly bored when someone doesn’t have the sauce anymore, so they go elsewhere to shock. It’s just a remarkable waste of space.”
Aside from Ye’s hate speech, Antonoff has another big reason to oppose the hip-hop titan. The former Fun band member is a longtime friend and collaborator to Taylor Swift, whose tumultuous feud with Ye has been highly publicized over the years.
In January, Antonoff also called the “Gold Digger” artist a “little cry baby b—h“ in a tweet upon finding out that Ye’s album Vultures 2 was slated to arrive on March 8, the same day Bleachers dropped its self-titled record. Bleachers debuted at No. 62 on the Billboard 200, while the Yeezy founder’s project was delayed.
Antonoff is fresh off his performance with Bleachers at the opening weekend of Coachella 2024, which was attended by Swift and Travis Kelce. The guitarist will take the Mojave Stage once again Saturday (April 20), when the festival resumes for a second weekend.
Watch Antonoff’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! interview above.