Kanye West‘s Yeezy fashion brand has evolved over the years ever since he dropped his first collection in 2015. These days, West, 42, is expanding by the line by developing a Yeezy factory on acres of his property in Wyoming for his sneaker partnership with Adidas, last month he hosted his first Yeezy runway show in more than four years and now he’s opening up about what’s next for the label.

“We’ve been developing new products for two years now,” West said in a May 2020 cover story for GQ. “I love having the opportunity to iterate on a piece of apparel.”

The designer and rapper, who has been candid about his bipolar diagnosis, said he finds the design process to be “therapeutic.”

He added: “It brings me great joy. There’s times when people used to tell me, ‘You shouldn’t work on clothes.’ And I wouldn’t allow people to tear down my happiness.”

West doesn’t just consider the garments he creates to be items of clothing. He values them as works of art.

RELATED: North West Sings Solo on the Runway at Kanye West’s Yeezy Season 8 Fashion Show

“The Yeezy Slide feels different. The Foam Runner — you hadn’t seen that shoe before, either. And I like how all of these things now start to be spoken about as art pieces. A song, a Foam Runner, an interview,” the star said, explaining that now Yeezy is venturing into designing couture pieces too.

“Yes. At Yeezy. At Kanye West. Whatever you want to call it. At my office. We’re doing couture,” West said.

RELATED VIDEO: Kim Kardashian Addresses Claims That North West Copied Viral Star ZaZa in Yeezy Show Performance

He broke down what a typical design brainstorm session looks like inside the Yeezy office. “I get to talk about a color palette for one hour. A lot of people would have suggestions: ‘Go take a jog. Go get some fresh air.’ Colors are my fresh air,” West said. “And every piece that I make, it’s not only something that I would wear — I would never make anything that you wouldn’t catch me in — they’re also art pieces. Everything I’ve ever done has been an art piece, because I’m an artist.”

Leading up to West’s Yeezy Paris Fashion Week debut in March, fashion industry insiders called out the star for his very vocal support for President Donald Trump over the past few years.

While the star hasn’t explicitly stated who he endorses in the upcoming 2020 presidential election between presumptive Democratic candidate Joe Biden and President Donald Trump, he did tell GQ that he plans on exercising his right to vote.

“I will not be told who I’m gonna vote on because of my color,” West told the magazine, explaining that he would not be swayed to cast his ballot a certain way because of his race and social status. “I’m definitely voting this time. And we know who I’m voting on.”

“Both my parents were freedom fighters, and they used to drink from fountains they were told they couldn’t drink from, and they used to sit in restaurants where they were told they couldn’t eat from,” he added. “They didn’t fight for me to be told by white people which white person I can vote on.”



Source: People.com (https://people.com/style/kanye-west-calls-all-yeezy-clothing-art-pieces/)