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Don Lemon isn’t afraid of a little heat, even if it’s coming from Kanye West.
The former CNN correspondent found himself the target of Ye’s fury after the rapper accused him of being the source of rumors claiming he and his wife, Bianca Censori, were kicked out of the 2025 Grammy Awards following their jaw-dropping appearance on the red carpet.
On Sunday, Feb. 2, Censori donned a floor-length fur coat on the red carpet at Crypto Arena in Los Angeles. Standing behind her husband, who opted to wear a simple all-black T-shirt-and-slacks combo, Censori turned her back toward the paparazzi and dropped the coat, revealing a see-through mini-dress with nothing underneath, making her appear unclothed. Censori then turned around, exposing her front to the world.
After the startling appearance, West and Censori weren’t spotted inside and rumors began to swirl that couple were booted from the awards show due to Censori’s attire — or lack thereof.
The rumors stemmed from a now-deleted post on the “Entertainment Tonight” Instagram page, where the outlet revealed that they had learned from an unnamed source that West was not invited to the ceremony and crashed the carpet, resulting in him being escorted off the premises.
The outlet quickly scrubbed the post from their Instagram, but not before other outlets reported the news and spread the rumor.
On Monday, Feb. 3, the “Gold Digger” rapper responded to the rumors with an Instagram post of his own, accusing Don Lemon of starting the gossip about him and Censori being forcibly removed from the award show.
“This goofball that started the rumor that me and my wife got kicked out the Grammies [sic]. Three decades of innovating music and they always K–NS like this,” West wrote in the caption of the now-deleted post attached to an image of Lemon.
The former CNN host responded to Ye’s post with his own Instagram post, a video in which he let the 24-time Grammy winner know he had the wrong person.
“First of all, Kanye, Ye — whatever your name is — I did not start a rumor about you being kicked out of the Grammys. I actually corrected it. I saw someone on your team who asked me to correct it because it had been reported everywhere. So first of all, get your s—t straight. And you, of all people, calling me a c—n [laughs]. That Make America Great Again hat must be too tight on your head.”
Fans loved how Lemon took the professional and calm route when calling out West’s misdirected anger.
“One thing Don Lemon gone do is CALMLY read you, correct you, bring facts, and go live his best life! Lol,” said one Instagram follower.
Another person suggested this was all a failed attempt for West to stay relevant, “He is certifiable, and that whole stunt at the Grammy’s was such a desperate and vulgar cry for attention.”
A third fan reminded us that Lemon is not new to professionally dragging people. “Some of these people forget you got fired for talking s–t. And we’re here for it.”
Lemon’s receipts debunking the accusation were stored on his Instagram page as he conducted red-carpet interviews and updated social media about couples’ whereabouts throughout the night.
The first video showed Lemon responding to a fan who said they “heard” West and Censori were kicked out after their head-turning red carpet stunt.
“I’m hearing that Kanye wanted to do the red carpet, that he wasn’t invited — that’s what I’m hearing from the folks here at the Grammys. And then, uh, he left, maybe he was escorted out,” Lemon said in a video he uploaded while at the Grammys ceremony on Sunday. “That’s what folks are saying, but I’m not sure. I think maybe he just wanted to do the carpet, but he definitely is gone. I may be the only person who interviewed him, by the way.”
Lemon then provided footage of him attempting to interview West as he and his wife.
As Lemon asked West about the release of his upcoming project “Bully,” West dismissively replied, “this year” and then stated that he was “plotting” while eyeing the photo opp area.
The last clip was Lemon reporting the “tea” and clarifying that West was invited to the award show and according to a representative from his team was not kicked out.
In a separate video for “The Don Lemon Show,” the news journalist gave a breakdown of what took place in the previous videos with West at the Grammys, noting that he was a fan of the rapper before his “bizarre” rants.
Lemon also mentioned the provocative tweets Ye posted and deleted about former Vice President Kamala Harris, stating, “Kanye, I could have roasted you on the red carpet.”
After going over the rapper’s history of bizarre statements during his interview, he still did not take it lightly by being called out of his name.
“I appreciate you for taking it down, but I don’t appreciate you of all people calling me a coon,” Lemon said, directed at West. “You can talk to people any way you want, you can tweet or write about people any way you want but don’t come for me unless I send for you.”
He added, “Don’t even try it.”
While Lemon cleared his name, many still speculated that the couple was escorted out because of the ruckus caused by Censori’s fashion choice.
However, images on social media show the couple leaving the event peacefully. The Express claims West ditched the awards because they were “boring.” He was later seen at a Justin Laroy afterparty.
This was the first Grammy Awards that West has attended since 2015. He was nominated for Best Rap Song for “Carnival” featuring Ty Dolla $ign, Rick the Kid, and Playboi Carti. The track was the leading single from his latest album, “Vultures 2.” West lost what would have been his 25th Grammy to Kendrick Lamar’s single “Not Like Us.”
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