System of a Down’s Shavo Odadjian Calls Kanye West a “Very Good Friend”
The members of System of a Down, I’d reckon, are the world’s second most famous clan of Armenians (after the Kardashians, of course). It’s this association through which SoaD bassist Shavo Odadjian became friendly with rapper Kanye West, who until recently was married to the most well-known of all of them, Kim Kardashian.
Speaking with Puraphy, Odadjian was asked whether he’d had any personal encounters with members of the Kardashian clan on account of their shared heritage. He responded:
“Oh, I know the Kardashians quite well. I used to be very good friends with Kanye. Though this was a few years ago now, I’ve been to their house a lot. They’re just like you’d imagine they’d be: very cool, personable people. In fact, when System of a Down was asked to play in Armenia in 2015, come to find out that Kanye had just played the same venue a week before we did. Yeah, I like the Kardashians a lot.”
System frontman Serj Tankian had similar affirmations about Kim — who boosted the band’s support for Armenians in the disputed region of Artsakh last fall and donated $1 million to the cause herself — telling Consequence of Sound in October:
“I’ll tell you something about Kim — I have a lot of respect for her. When it comes to issues of justice, she’s been really great. When it comes to spreading awareness about the need for recognition of the Armenian genocide, about what’s going on in Artsakh right now, the revolution that happened in Armenia that no one in the U.S. knew about, she’s been really amazing. I’ve met her a few times.”
So there you have it: System of a Down and the Kardashians united in metal forever. Huzzah!
Kardashian made headlines in the metal world in 2017 when she was spotted wearing a Morbid Angel shirt, prompting intense ire from a segment of metalheads — including Slayer/Exodus guitarist Gary Holt — and prompting the band to re-up their supplies to meet the increased demand. She also wore a Metallica shirt in 2015, and her sister Kourtney did the same a year later.
System of a Down released two new songs, “Genocidal Humanoidz” and “Protect the Land,” this past November to bring awareness to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the territory of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabagh). The tracks — the first time the band released new music in fifteen years — went on to raise more than $600,000 for Artsakh.
Tankian released his first solo album, Elasticity, last week, while Odadjian has been busy with North Kingsley.
