Kim Kardashian West on life as a brand and her political awakening.
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Maybe everyday celebrity, post-gatekeeper, would change the world for the better.
Some of that happened.
But we also ended up with the alt-right and Donald Trump, inequality, impeachment, and debilitating FOMO.
How did we get here?
Both would become juggernauts, setting the tone for much of the coming decade.
The island in the kitchen was resplendent with still-hanging-on floral arrangements sent for her birthday, October 21.
Did you just turn 40?Not yet.
I was born in 1980, so my decades are always so easy for me.
I never look at it politically.
I dont look at it like, The Obama years are the 2010s.
With Obama, our first black president, that was the first time that I voted.
That was such an exciting time, so different.
How did your 30s begin?I remember exactly where I was.
I was in New York City filmingKourtney and Kim Take New York.I was single.
We were going to go to Vegas to celebrate my 30th birthday.
In the beginning of the decade, I was always wearing Louboutin heels.
It was always about big, wavy hair, parted down the middle.
We were doing everything as sisters at that point.
The trio of Kourtney, Kim, and Khloe.
Always leopard dresses and skintight Herve Leger, shopping at Intermix.
And then I began kind of elevating from that.
I didnt know who Carine Roitfeld was.
Your first perfume came out in 2010.
When did you realize that you had become big business?
We had dreamed of fragrance since the day we ever dreamed of anything.Elizabeth Taylor.
Was there a moment when you realized that your endorsement was a powerful thing?Yeah.
My mom might know if you want me to call her just to get you a really specific thing.
Dont write, like, She had to call her mom.
I mean … You could, its funny, but
It is funny.
Like, it would blow up if I said I liked it.
Kind of like when Kylie said, Snapchat sucks.
And then it tanked.
I would honestly maybe say Dubai at the milkshake thing … Yeah.
We were at the Super Bowl in Miami in 2010.
Then we went to the field and it was the craziest thing.
We saw huge stars all around us, and nobody needed the kind of security we did.
And thats when we knew that our lives had really changed.
Kim Kardashian West:Im going to tell him about Dubai because thats what came to mind for me.
KK:Okay, bye.
So Id say 2010, 2011 was like, Ill do anything.
We had to sneak out the back.
What is going on?
How do you feel about being a sex symbol?
Is it complicated?It can be complicated.
I definitely see the things that I brought on myself, the biggest being the robbery.
Just being flashy and oversharing my every move on social media.
But I enjoy my life.
Someone said to me the other day, What is it like being you?
What else has changed since 2010?
But I think I have a little bit.
I listen to him and understand him.
But I have kind of had this awakening myself.
And I definitely contributed to that.
I think Im evolving to where I dont feel the need to want to keep up.
I actually just want to lay out.
Now this is a different setup.
Oh, this place has so many different setups.
If we happen to get a photo, great.
Its okay to not have the same exact feelings all the time.
You should see what hes working on now.
Im sure you saw that.No!
I had mentioned the genocide at the White House, trying to figure out what had been the issue.
Why havent past presidents wanted to call it a genocide?
Only Ronald Reagan did that.
Its super-important to the Armenian people.
I was raised really Armenian-American.
And the vote was a really high number in favor of.
[To the chef whos serving lunch] Thank you.
This is all vegan?
This is vegan, and this is real chicken.
I was like, that looks too lifelike …
Too delicious!
I opened it right after Id watched a movie that had me crying.
I have to say something.
I am going to go and visit him on Friday.
My attorneys are in communication with his attorneys and really helping out.
Ive never been to anything like that before.
Ive been to death row at San Quentin.
I am still very hopeful.
Usually, when they do a stay of execution, it happensright before the execution,sometimes hours before.
I want my children to have a fair life.
Statistically, one in three black men will be locked up in their lifetime.
So that does weigh heavy on my heart.
I dont know if thats being naive, if thats how I grew up.
And if I can plant a seed, great.
I dont care who it is.
Im just glad someone is listening and making a change.
I hope to have an amazing relationship with the next president.
Could you have imagined ten years ago that you would have political influence in this country?Absolutely not.
Im just as surprised as everyone else.
I do feel like I have really good values, but thats not what Im looking to do.
I hope that I will always be … advising in some way.
And if you want be looked at asx, y,andz,youve got to do this.
I was like,Wow, this is how it works?
They were like, Nope.
You gotta find a cause, and you gotta stick with it.
I felt like it was all so contrived.
I truly think once I got robbed,it took something out of me in the best way.
I still like all that stuff, but it doesnt matter.
It could go away.
For so long, people have tried to partner me with things.
But this was the first thing where I thought,You know what?
I want to go to law school.
I want to help people.
And now Ive come to a realization about what I care about.
No publicist would have ever told me to get into prison reform.
It was always like,Get into Operation This and Children That.
The era of cancel culture?
Its not really a real thing.
They say it, and it doesnt happen.
Ive always believed in second chances and not canceling people.
Its really a weird time.
Oprah once said to me, People often ask, Who is the next Oprah?
And the truth is there wont be a next Oprah.
When I launch a product, Ill still go do television.
Its from that Hole song Doll Parts from the mid-90s.Oh, I loved Hole.
Do you remember your first tweet?I was in Mexico.
I mean, who knows what I said?
And I have the same two or three pajamas that I wear all the time.
They have holes in them, and I cant get rid of them.
So I was wearing a pink-and-white-striped robe from Victorias Secret.
My hair was in a ponytail.
I always know my glam.
It was when I had to design my perfume bottle, and I wanted a pink bottle.
Should it be, like, a bright pink or should it be a lighter pink?
I got responses and replies for days.
It was from people all over the world, and it was all hours of the night.
I would write down on a pad of paper a poll or, like, the tally.
Light pink won by so much.
These are the consumers that are going to be buying it, and they felt like they were involved.
I remember being annoyed that people were mad about it.
I thought,Thats a great name!Yeah.
I thought it was great, too.
We didnt think about it, you know?
Now people come to us and say, Oh, you guys planned that, didnt you?
That was too good of a buzz.
I was like,Yeah, I wish.Like, I have millions of garments Im stuck with.
I would never make a run at offend a culture or lose out on all this potential product.
And I was like, I just didnt even put two and two together.
Its always been about working hard and making money.
I never didnt work hard.
I never wanted an easy ride or a free ticket.
We always saw my grandma work, and my grandfather stayed home.
He was a stay-at-home grandpa.
My great-grandmother started a candle shop, and my mom used to work there.
And then my grandmother started a kids-clothing store, which she just gave that up last year.
And she became Bruces manager and agent.
I saw her work really hard at that.
We grew up with privilege, but it was never handed to us.
Did I tell you the Chanel story?
I cant believe Im telling this story.
So I go tomy first Met Ball.
Id love for you to be on the cover.
I want Karl Lagerfeld to shoot it andRiccardo will art-direct itand I will style it.
So me, who has never been accepted into fashion at this point, my jaw dropped.
I go to Paris.
My mom comes with me.
I sit there; I wait.
I do the fitting.
So the whole time Im in Paris, shes texting: Whats the bag?
Keep me posted, text me a picture.
Now its nine at night.
Is this a myth?
I remember this jacket!
I remember these gloves!
I did those earrings!
The two of them have this love affair like Ive never seen before.
And Im like,Hello?
Im sitting here posing.
So then the shoots over, and he comes out with something behind his back.
And Im like: THE BAAAAAG.
Thank you so much.
ButKris,here is abagforyou, and he gives the fucking bag to my mom.
And it was a LEGO clutch.
They were like ten grand, and you could never get one.
So I go into the bathroom and start crying.
I was like,Oh my God, she fully stole my life.
She stole my whole day today!
Beaded, this crazy, intricate stuff.
So there was a little bit of a silver lining.
To this day, she has the bag in her closet.
And Ive said to her: Just so were clear, in your will, this goes to North.
I dont need it.
That bag was formy daughter.
And Ill be like, Actually, Ive just researched this!
Whats the best way to do it?
I never even thought about that.
I guess that question is a bit tricky.
Obviously, I get the difference.
And I would talk about me.
But I dont know the right thing to say without making him feel like the biggest piece of shit.
But theres so many more things like that that have changed.
But even just finding love in the workplace … That used to be the only way, you know.
And now its like, Oh, howcouldyou?
The head of McDonaldsgetting firedfor having a consensual relationship with a co-worker.
That kind of threw me off a little bit, just thinking how times have changed.
Youve got two boys and two girls, and they must express their gender in surprising ways.
I havent shown them; I havent tried to sway any decision.
I would be extremely supportive of whatever my children wanted and felt they wanted to play with and wear.
Im very open like that.
Her transition, I think, was a huge moment in this decade.
We received so many letters and messages from people who have been through something similar.
We really showed all of it because thats naturally what you go through.
I was so nervous for Caitlyn just because I thought people were going to be nasty to her.
Like, come on.
People are going to be so awful.
My whole thing was just, like, People arent going to understand.
Why would you want to do that?
Having so much of your life filmed what is the cumulative result of all of that?
Have you ever regretted it?Ive never regretted it.
Ive always felt like Im so grateful to have all of those memories on-camera.
I will look back and think,Oh my God, what was I wearing?
I can laugh at it now:Oh my God, I was desperate!
Production Credits
Thank you to theRitz Carlton New York, Central Park.
