Kanye West, you're better than this. On Monday night's Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, West delivered a surprise performance of "Bound 2," but this time the Yeezus track came with a vital lyrical change: Instead of reciting the original lyrics, which go "All them other ni**as lame and you know it now/ When a real ni**a hold you down, you supposed to drown," Kanye took the opportunity to name names.
In a bold swap, West rapped, "Brandy's little sister lame, man, he know it now/ When a real ni**a hold you down, you supposed to drown" as members of the Roots laughed in disbelief at this nationally televised dis directed at Kim Kardashian's ex and "I Hit It First" singer Ray J. It's long been assumed that "Bound 2" eluded to Kardashian's past boyfriends, but any remaining doubt is long gone.
Sure, West has every right and opportunity to take a swing at the classless crooner whose 5-month-old song attempts to make a piece of ass out of the mother of West's child, but is it necessary? Does Kim need to be made a trophy to wave over Ray J's head?
Hell, the only fame that guy has had in the past 10 years comes from being a person capable of having sex on camera, being related to '90s star Brandy Norwood, and being the crass dimwit who had the audacity to brag about having once slept with a celebrity who no longer wants anything to do with him. Kanye, you're officially trudging around in the muck for no reason.
West's relationship with Kardashian certainly shouldn't be some sort of competition, and even if it was something as medieval as a race to the finish line to be Kim's one and only, he would be the winner. A victory slap in the face of those who tried and failed is just unnecessary.
Then there's the aspect of Kardashian having her own voice. Whether or not you're a fan of her business model, the fact of the matter is that she's the face of a multi-billion dollar brand (that brand also happens to be her face, but more on that at another time). Kim is the money. Kim sits atop a throne of adoring fans, endorsement deals, and over-priced product lines. She's got over 18 million Twitter followers and almost 10 million loyal fans on Instagram. This is a woman who does not need defending.
And even if she did, West is supposed to be too classy for this. After publicly telling Kris Jenner about growing past being "a drunk guy" on stage (i.e. interrupting Taylor Swift at the VMAs) and explaining how dealing with Kimmie's constant flow of paparazzi followers has been tough on him, West has just thrown himself back into both of those issues.
He doesn't appear drunk on Fallon's show, but he's clearly a little drunk with power. And if he thought the media was too much for the past 10 months of Kardashian's pregnancy and North's first few weeks, bringing up this old news in such a classless, playground manner certainly isn't going to curb anything. If Kim can't dye her hair blonde without a tornado of news stories, then Kanye certainly can't call his girlfriend's ex a woman (and that's a viable insult how?) on national television without creating more fuel for that everlasting fire.
It's completely understandable that Kanye West: Father of a Precious Baby Girl Edition is wildly protective of his new family. It's understandable that he'd be angered by Ray J's awful song — when it came out in April. But it's not understandable why someone who's so relentlessly private and a man who's supposed to have come through an experience that helped him grow and mature would resort to such a low tactic. I repeat: Kanye, you're better than this.
