Kanye West "took it back to high school" last week in his feud with Jimmy Kimmel, fortunately, the two stars were able to settle their dispute like grown ups on Wednesday night (Oct. 9). The Grammy Award-winning rapper appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! to bury the hatchet with the talk show host after a nasty Twitter back-and-forth over a Kimmel spoof mocking West.
West and Kimmel quickly put to rest speculation that the feud was all a big publicity stunt.
"Everyone out there in TV world, real word or wherever world you stay in needs to know I've never done a publicity stunt in my life," said a stone-faced West. "Any time I've went up and spoke my mind whether it put my career in jeopardy or whatever someone so called said it was always what I thought was the truth."
Though the authenticity of the feud may have been in question, Kimmel didn't pull any punches in his conversation with the "New Slaves" rapper. Especially after 'Ye referred to himself as a genius.
"I don't know if you know this, but a lot of people think you're a jerk," Kimmel said after West refused to view himself as "just a celebrity."
"When you said you think you're a genius, I think that upsets people," Kimmel continued. "But the truth is a lot of people think they're geniuses, but nobody says it because it's weird to say it. But it is most certainly more honest to say, 'I am a genius.'"
Not backing down from his claim, West issued a deadpan, but classic, response, "For me to say I wasn't a genius, I would just be lying to you and myself."
Once the misunderstanding over the spoof, which featured two kids re-enacting West's interview with the BBC's Zane Lowe, was smoothed over, Kanye addressed topics he was discussing in the BBC sit-down. He spoke passionately about the classism he now faces as a celebrity.
"It's not about racism anymore. It's classism," he said, and: "I'm not into all that snobbery because, you know what, we [hip hop] have the loudest voice. We have the loudest communication. All we want to do is make awesome stuff."
Making peace with Kimmel is one thing, but West stood his ground in his long-standing rivalry with the paparazzi.
"We bring something of joy to the world. When people listen to my music, they have a good time, and I should be respected as such when I walk down the street...Don't try and antagonize me because you know what? It’s not safe for you in this zoo. Never think that I'm not from Chicago for one second," but also: "You do help me get money, paparrazzi. You show people how fresh my outfit is."
Another highlight from the 24-minute long segment included Kimmel giving West a present for his daughter North West — leather jogging pants, of course. The interview ended with Kanye thanking Kimmel for giving him the platform.

BET.com is your #1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music.

Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

(Photo: ABC)