‘jeen-yuhs’ directors denied Kanye demands: “It’s not good for the filmmaking”

"For it to resonate, people need to see certain things"

The directors of the new Kanye West documentary jeen-yuhs have opened up about denying the rapper and producer’s demands to have a say in the editing process.

The new three-part Netflix film event released its first part last week, with the series following the star’s music career and rise to fame.

West – who is now legally known as Ye – previously demanded that he “must get final edit and approval” on the documentary so that he can “be in charge of [his]own image”.

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Directors Clarence ‘Coodie’ Simmons and Chike Ozah have now spoken on denying the rapper’s request, noting that it is “not best for the filmmaking”.

“For us, as filmmakers, the name of our company is Creative Control, so, there are just certain rules in documentary filmmaking for it to be authentic,” Ozah told Business Insider. “And for it to resonate, people need to see certain things.

“So sometimes it’s just not best for the filmmaking for the subject, who the film is largely about, to have control over the direction the story goes in.”

However, he went on to note: “But, that being said, obviously, the input of Kanye’s team has always been welcome and we’re out to make the best documentary possible.

Kanye West
Kanye West at the ‘jeen-yuhs’ experience and special screening celebrating Netflix’s new documentary, “jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy” at Mother Wolf on February 11, 2022 in Los Angeles, California (Picture: Johnny Nunez/Getty Images for Netflix)

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“This documentary, like we said, is a period in creating Kanye’s larger message. That’s the message that we’re protecting. That’s the message that we want the people to feel.”

Despite his demands, West recently appeared at the LA premiere of jeen-yuhs, where he was reportedly seen hugging the directors on stage.

In NME‘s four-star review of the first part, we wrote: “Excitingly, there are still two more parts to come. Those will cover a number of the highs, lows, success and controversies in West’s life, including his 2002 car crash which inspired ‘Through The Wire’ and his support for Donald Trump.

“Coodie admits in this first instalment that he was willing West ‘to win’ during those early days. Given the rapper’s difficult recent behaviour, that may not continue in the final two episodes.”

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