Are Kanye West's "Church Clothes" Capitalizing on Religious Idolatry?

In case you missed it, Kanye West has semi-rebranded as a pseudo-religious leader. Now, the rapper and entrepreneur is doing what any member of the Kardashian/Jenner clan would with a successful new project: trademarking it and using it to hawk merchandise.

Last week, West reportedly applied to trademark the phrase “Sunday Service,” in reference to the exclusive, sermon-like Sunday concerts the artist has been hosting since January. If approved, West will be able to produce and sell Sunday Service apparel, including bottoms, tops, dresses, headwear, footwear, jackets, loungewear, scarves, shirts and socks.

Again, spinning straw to merch isn’t anything new for the Kardashian-West clan. The potential controversy at play here, however, has its roots in the semi religious/pseudo-Christian undertones of West’s Sunday Service concerts. As the Daily Beast notes, West’s new merchandise runs the risk of attracting criticism accusing the rapper of exploiting religion for profit.

That all depends, however, on whether or not West’s new pseudo-sermons are actually religious in nature. This isn’t exactly a question anyone can quite seem to answer, least of all any of West’s own Kardashian kinsfolk. In an April appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, West’s wife, Kim Kardashian West, seemed to argue for a more secular reading of the service, calling it “more of a healing experience.” During the same appearance, however, Kim’s sister Kourtney maintained that the service “is Christian.”

Whatever it is, West’s maybe-Christian “healing services” have already sparked controversy among the religious minded, with the pseudo-religious “Church Clothes” the rapper hawked out of a tent at Coachella attracting accusations of religious exploitation.

Then again, exploiting religion for profit is a time-honored tradition as old as religion itself, so maybe West does have the makings of a spiritual leader after all.

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