Trevor Noah expressed concern that Kanye West is on a path toward “peril and pain” after the rapper published a now-deleted Instagram post calling the “Daily Show” host a racial slur.
West, who has legally changed his name to Ye, attacked Noah in an Instagram post earlier this week after the comedian criticized West on his show for publicly harassing ex-wife Kim Kardashian.
The offensive post was deleted and West was suspended from Instagram for 24 hours for violating the platform’s policies on hate speech, bullying and harassment. But before the offensive content was scrubbed from the social media platform, Noah responded to West’s post, according to multiplemediaoutlets and social media screenshots.
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“There are few artists who have had more of an impact on me than you Ye. You took samples and turned them into symphonies,” Noah commented on West’s post before offering several other specific ways the rapper’s work has affected him.
“You’re an indelible part of my life Ye. Which is why it breaks my heart to see you like this,” Noah continued. “I don’t care if you support Trump and I don’t care if you roast Pete [Davidson]. I do however care when I see you on a path that’s dangerously close to peril and pain.”
Noah argued on his show Monday that the ongoing and increasingly disturbing behavior that West has displayed toward Kardashian and the reality star’s new boyfriend, Pete Davidson, is more nuanced than standard tabloid fare.
The comedian emphasized that although he could see all three parties’ positions within this very public story, he ultimately empathized the most with Kardashian. He noted that Kardashian has made it clear publicly that she feels she is being harassed by West, but is being dismissed by many due to the public’s opinions of her. Noah compared the situation to his own experiences growing up in an “abusive household” in which his mother was often told she was “overreacting” before being shot in the head by Noah’s stepfather.
Due to this, Noah had a warning for those who are regarding the potentially volatile situation as merely drama-fueled entertainment.
“As a society, we have to ask ourselves questions,” Noah said. “Do we wish to stand by and watch a car crash when we thought we saw it coming? Or do we want to at least say, ‘Hey, slow down, let’s all put our hazards on, because there’s a storm right now and some shit might go down?’”
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.