When Kim Kardashian first filed for divorce from Kanye West — who legally changed his name to Ye — in February 2021, the pair appeared to be incredibly amicable.
Kim even wore a wedding dress onstage as part of his Donda album launch in August, and the two were regularly pictured together.
However, their relationship soured toward the end of the year, with it all coming to a head at the start of 2022 when Ye began to target her and her new boyfriend, Pete Davidson, in a series of scathing song lyrics and social media posts.
Ye repeatedly lashed out at Kim and even released a music video that showed him kidnapping and decapitating Pete.
In fact, Ye’s posts were so concerning that Kim expressed her fear that somebody may hurt Pete as a direct result of them in private text messages that Ye shared on Instagram.
Looking at the timeline, it was widely believed that Kim’s appearance on Saturday Night Live in October marked the turning point in their separation.
Kim was spotted on her first date with Pete shortly afterward, and some argued that this is what triggered Ye’s change in behavior.
However, Kim has now revealed that while she and Ye did stop speaking after SNL, tension had developed between them before she and Pete started dating.
In this week’s episode of The Kardashians, the star opened up about the downfall of her and Ye’s relationship — telling her sister, Khloé Kardashian, that he’d stormed out of SNL during her opening monologue because he was offended by what she said.
Kim said that he was unhappy with her saying that she divorced him and was also upset that she referred to him as a rapper.
In scenes that were filmed shortly after Kim’s appearance on the comedy show, Khloé asked her how she and her ex-husband were getting along.
“He walked out on SNL mid-monologue so I haven’t talked to him since,” Kim replied. “He’s upset that I said the reason I ‘divorced him,’ I used the word ‘divorce.’ He wishes I said the word ‘filed’ for divorce.”
“And he was upset that I also said he was a rapper. He said: ‘I’m so much more than a rapper, I can’t believe you said rapper,’” she went on.
During her monologue, Kim had said: “I married the best rapper of all time. Not only that, he’s the richest black man in America. A talented legit genius who gave me four incredible kids. So, when I divorced him, you have to know it came down to just one thing: his personality.”
She also poked fun at herself with regard to her infamous sex tape as well as her mom Kris Jenner’s boyfriend, Corey Gamble, and her sisters.
Speaking in a confessional on her reality show, Kim said of Ye’s reaction: “I never want to offend anyone and I never want to hurt anyone, but also that’s what this monologue is for — it was to make a joke.”
“I made fun of myself, I made fun of my mom, I made fun of everything that’s personal to me, and it’s all fun and games and apparently it wasn’t to him,” she added.
During their conversation, Kim and Khloé suggested that Ye’s response was hypocritical as they referenced comments he’d made in the past that Kim wasn’t “comfortable” with.
“I sat there through so many speeches and things that have not been the most comfortable for me,” she said. “That was my partner, and I stood by him. I would never embarrass him and walk out and leave.”
Khloé agreed: “Not even his speeches — strong public stances he’s taken in many different areas that may not be your stance but you were his wife and that’s what you do, but how was that fair for you?”
While the sisters didn’t specify, Ye has a long history of controversial comments, including saying that slavery was a “choice,” revealing that Kim considered aborting their oldest daughter, North, and criticizing her family on Twitter.
He also sparked backlash when he ran for US president in 2020, and he has publicly supported problematic people such as Bill Cosby, Donald Trump, Marilyn Manson, and DaBaby.
Trying to figure out the root of Ye’s reaction to her monologue, Kim told Khloé, “He’s so used to getting exactly what he wants,” to which her sister agreed: “From every person, in any category of life.”
Kim laughed as she said, “I’ve never seen anything like it… Good for him!” She then quickly added, “But hey, it’s not going to happen here.”
Shortly after Kim’s SNL appearance, Ye claimed in a podcast that he’d “never seen the divorce papers” and shared his belief that he and Kim would get back together.
But in December, Kim revealed that Ye had failed to respond to repeated requests to officially terminate their marriage as she filed to become legally single.
His team initially denied her request, but in March — over a year after she first filed for divorce — Kim was declared legally single in court.
Despite Ye’s behavior in recent months, Kim has been open about her desire to maintain a healthy relationship with him so that they can successfully co-parent their four children.
Speaking on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in March, Kim explained: “I always saw such a good example in my mom and dad and their relationship, so I’m always hopeful. And no matter what goes on, it’s the father of my kids — I’ll always be protective.”
She added: “I always want my kids to just see the best of the best so, as hard as it can be sometimes, I do try to ignore it and just try to do whatever is best for the kids. Take the high road.”
Meanwhile, Ye has been keeping a low profile since his Instagram account was temporarily suspended on March 17, for violating policies on hate speech, bullying, and harassment.
