Kanye West said Elon Musk is advising him on his 2020 presidential bid and they've been talking about it for years

In an interview with Forbes published Wednesday, West said he is being advised by Tesla CEO and tech billionaire Elon Musk.
That seems to be backed up by recent remarks. On Twitter, Musk commented on West's July 4 announcement: "You have my full support!"
The two also appeared together in a photo published by West on July 1.
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Musician Kanye West says he's running for president, and apparently he's being advised by Tesla CEO and idiosyncratic tech billionaire Elon Musk.

In an interview with Forbes , West said Musk is one of only two people currently advising him on his presidential bid the other being his wife Kim Kardashian West.

"We've been talking about this for years," West said of his bid and Musk, adding: "I proposed to him to be the head of our space program."

West announced his intention to run for president on Twitter on July 4. Musk commented in response: "You have my full support!"

West and Musk have been friends since at least 2015, when Musk wrote a glowing appraisal of West for the Time 100 .

And on July 1, West shared a picture posing next to Elon Musk in what appeared to be one of Musk's homes. The photo appears to have been snapped by Musk's girlfriend, the singer Grimes.

Previously Musk supported Democratic candidate Andrew Yang , and it's not clear whether his support for Kanye West is sincere. Musk has not yet publicly commented confirming West's claim that he is an adviser on the campaign.

West has already missed the deadline to file as an independent candidate in four states, and nine more have July deadlines.

During his Forbes interview, West denied that his presidential bid is a PR stunt to promote his next album, saying "I give my album away for free."

Over the course of the interview West also said his party would be named The Birthday Party, giving the reason: "Because when we win, it's everybody's birthday."

He went on to say he is anti-abortion and anti-vaccination, and that he would "run as a Republican if Trump wasn't there."

The singer previously supported Trump, describing the US president in 2018 as a "brother."

"You don't have to agree with Trump but the mob can't make me not love him," he wrote on Twitter at the time. "We are both dragon energy. He is my brother. I love everyone. I don't agree with everything anyone does. That's what makes us individuals. And we have the right to independent thought."

That seems to have changed with West's presidential bid, with the musician telling Forbes: "I am taking the red hat off, with this interview."