Block Club Chicago
Kanye West said he plans to spend more time in Chicago in the near future.Jason Persse/Flickr

Kanye West Says He’s Going To Teach At The Art Institute And American Academy … But That’s A Surprise To Them

No, there aren't (currently) plans for West to teach students at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

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Kelly Bauer

kelly@blockclubchi.org

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DOWNTOWN — Kanye West created a stir over the weekend when he said he plans to teach at the Art Institute and American Academy of Art.

Except … that’s news to those schools.

“I will teach a course at the Art Institute of Chicago and the American Academy of Art,” the Chicago-born rapper wrote during a Sunday night stream of tweets about his plans for the city.

West also wrote he’ll open a store for Yeezy, his fashion brand, in Chicago and will restore the Regal Theatre. The tweets garnered thousands of retweets and comments, with fans tweeting they’d like to sit in on West’s lessons — or even switch schools and majors to learn from him.

But both schools said they don’t (currently) have plans to work with West.

“We’re flattered that Mr. West would have an interest in teaching emerging artists and designers at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; however, Mr. West is not currently teaching at SAIC, and at this time, there are no plans for him to do so,” a School of the Art Institute spokeswoman wrote in an email.

The School of the Art Institute gave West an honorary doctorate in 2015.

A spokesman for the American Academy of Art, a private arts college based in Chicago, said that school also has no plans to have West speak or teach.

“That doesn’t mean they wouldn’t talk to him about the idea; but no discussions about the topic (or any) have transpired in the recent past,” the spokesman said Monday morning.

West grew up on the South Side but now lives in California with his wife, Kim Kardashian West. He recently said he’s back in Chicago to work on an album with Chatham native Chance the Rapper and that he plans to spend more time in Chicago.

For long a beloved figure in the city, West has been criticized more recently for his absence from Chicago, his work with President Donald Trump (who frequently targets the city) and his wife’s feud with local rapper and organizer Rhymefest.

Here’s West’s full tweetstorm:

Downtown Primary category in which blog post is published

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