Kanye West has never shied away from aligning himself with controversial figures, so it should come as no surprise that one of Donald Trump's most vocal evangelical supporters, Jerry Falwell Jr., claims he and the rapper have "struck up a little friendship," according to Slate. The pastor and Liberty University president claims West called him "out of the blue" in mid-September with a request to hold Sunday Service at the school. Ultimately, the idea lost out to logistics and short timelines.
The pair are both ardent supporters of President Trump, with West regularly saying so in interviews and at his Sunday Services in the long, performance art-like lead-up to the release of his first gospel offering, Jesus Is King.
Falwell has made recent headlines after a series of scandals, including online poll manipulation, the use of ableist and exclusionary language in student communications, and visits to Miami nightclubs despite rules banning Liberty students and staff from attending dances. The most damning of the revelations, uncovered by Politico, claims the university is simply a vehicle to fund real estate purchases using tuition money. “We’re not a school; we’re a real estate hedge fund,” claimed a senior university official. “We’re not educating; we’re buying real estate every year and taking students’ money to do it.”
According to Falwell, who insisted that West has "got a good heart," the rapper also came to him for advice on relief projects to benefit those affected by Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas, including building homes in the U.S. to house displaced Bahamians.
Falwell isn't the only religious figurehead West has reached out to, with reports that he may attend an upcoming service at Joel Osteen's church.
