Twitter, Now Called X, Reinstates Kanye West's Account

The social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, reinstated rapper Kanye West on Saturday, about eight months after his account was suspended for posting antisemitic comments.

Last December, West, who performs under the name Ye, posted an image that appeared to show a swastika interlaced with a Star of David, prompting X owner Elon Musk to suspend the artist from the platform.

Musk at the time labeled West's post an "incitement to violence."

The 46-year-old West was initially suspended from Twitter in October of 2022 for antisemitic posts. He was reinstated briefly by Musk in November, before being resuspended from the platform just a few weeks later.

Ryan Mac, a tech reporter for the New York Times, reported that he was informed by X that West's account "will be ineligible for a monetization and no ads will appear next to his posts."

X's press office did not immediately respond to a query about West's account. By late evening, West had yet to post anything new.

Antisemitic remarks by West last year cost him heavily in lost business deals. Adidas cut ties with him after a nearly decade-long partnership, abandoning his Yeezy-branded sneakers.

Gap and Balenciaga also cut ties with the rapper and designer.

Since Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion last October, he has fired thousands of employees and cut moderation of content.

In December, he reinstated former President Donald Trump's Twitter account, although Trump has yet to return to the platform.

A week ago, Musk and his newly hired chief executive, Linda Yaccarino, announced the rebranding of Twitter as X and said it would become an "everything app" that would allow users to handle all their finances as well as socializing.

Musk also killed off the Twitter logo, replacing the world-recognized blue bird with a white X.