Kanye West Thinks His Synesthesia Is His Mutant Handicap

Synesthesia is a neurological phenomenon where, for example, a person may feel he or she can taste color. In a new interview with Surface Magazine, Kanye West claims he can visualize sound. He also believes his synesthesia is similar to something you would see in a comic book.

"I have synesthesia—I see sound," he said. "And I actually have paintings and drawings from high school where I was trying to show what the sounds in front of me looked like."

Kanye compares his gift to the mutant powers of the X-Men. He says he didn't even know it was synesthesia until 2012, when he was making the Cruel Summer compilation.

"I think it’s my mutant handicap," he said. "All X-Men have a little handicap that helps them become X-Men. I didn’t know the term synesthesia until I was working on Cruel Summer. Halfway into writing that, I really understood that my entire life I had been trying to describe this condition of mine: through painting, through this seven-screen Surround Vision film we shot in Qatar, through all these things."

cancelled support ranted

🎥 What’s more important, design or art itself? https://t.co/pzd58i3TZa #ThinkLikeYe #KanyeWest
(Video: @jeffvespa) pic.twitter.com/3RhRAW8IkI
— Surface Magazine (@SurfaceMag) November 19, 2016