ICYMI: Kanye West released the video for his song "Famous," and people are freaking out.
Mainly because it features a bunch of naked celebrities* all in bed with Kanye.
*And by “naked celebrities,” I mean that these are people or figurines who look like these celebs and are NOT actually them.
So let's go over what we know:
As Kanye acknowledged, the concept for "Famous" came from this piece, "Sleep," by Vincent Desiderio.
Desiderio is a New York-based artist whose work has been featured in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Hirshhorn Museum, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, among many others.
According to The Fader, "Sleep" was first shown in 2004 at Manhattan's Marlborough Gallery, and it was completed in 2008.
The celebrity likenesses featured in the video include his ex-lover Amber Rose, Kim Kardashian West's ex-lover Ray J, and Caitlyn Jenner, among others.
From left: A) George W. Bush, B) Anna Wintour, C) Donald Trump, D) Rihanna, E) Chris Brown, F) Taylor Swift, G) Kanye West, H) Kim Kardashian West, I) Ray J, J) Amber Rose, K) Caitlyn Jenner, L) Bill Cosby
Others featured, like Taylor Swift and George W. Bush, are people Kanye has openly feuded with.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, West said, "Maybe in some alternative universe me and George Bush could have been friends. I could have been his O.J. Simpson black friend on the golf course."
And in the "Famous" lyrics, there's this line: "I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex. Why? I made that bitch famous."
This is a nod to his epic 2009 MTV Awards moment where he interrupted Swift's acceptance speech.
Some people, though, think this lyric might also be a bigger reference to how he helped to shape Taylor's career in a more influential way.
My Kanye West Taylor Swift Famous theory lmao
The theory here being that this was the first moment when Taylor Swift learned how to manipulate the media in her favor, and that Yeezy taught her that.
Kanye, as well as Kim, has stated that Taylor Swift was fully aware that this lyric would be in the song. Though Swift claims she's asked the couple to "leave her alone."
3rd thing I called Taylor and had a hour long convo with her about the line and she thought it was funny and gave her blessings
Then there's the naked figure of Anna Wintour, who came under fire for calling Kanye West's fashion show "migrant chic" earlier this year. She later apologized for the comment.
"I apologize if my remark was offensive in any way," Wintour said in her apology. "The migrant crisis is real, and I didn’t intend to trivialize that issue."
Though, shortly after the comment was made, Kanye tweeted his thanks to Wintour:
Thank you Anna for the invite thank you to the whole Vogue team
As for Donald Trump's ties to Kanye — in 2015, Kanye announced he'd be running for president in 2020, and Trump commented that he looks forward to running against Kanye.
"He's a nice guy. I hope to run against him someday," Trump said.
Earlier this year, Kanye tweeted the below about Bill Cosby, which may be why he's featured in the video...
BILL COSBY INNOCENT !!!!!!!!!!
Though Kanye told Vanity Fair about the Cosby inclusion, "It’s not in support or anti any of [the people in the video]. It’s a comment on fame."
As for Rihanna and Chris Brown — they dated and had a very public separation after he physically assaulted her. They've also both independently worked with Kanye. Rihanna sings on "Famous" and "FourFiveSeconds," while Brown was featured on Kanye's "Waves," and Kanye was featured on Brown's "Down."
But in 2015, Brown posted an Instagram where he mocked Kanye's fashion line, and he posted another Instagram where he uploaded a meme mocking Caitlyn Jenner and calling her a "science project."
So maybe this is why Brown is included?!
Either way, fans are not happy about the inclusion of Rihanna and Brown lying next to each other in bed.
In his interview with Vanity Fair, Kanye revealed that the video took three months to film, and he worked with multiple collaborators until they got it to his liking.
“We were very careful with shots that had [something] sexual to take them out,” Kanye said of "Famous."
And it's not clear who in the video is actually posing and real, and who is a body double or figurine.
Kanye claims that when he's shown the video to his celebrity friends, they've said they want to be in the bed too.
And so far, no one has sued him...but he seems down for it.
