Mathew Knowles Responds to Kanye West's Offensive Remarks About Beyoncé and Jay-Z's Children
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/Kanye-West-Matthew-Knowles-Beyonce-Jay-032125-6866a5b78ecf4b7ab866dca8dee36ac2.jpg)
03/22/2025 10:37 AM
"People pay a price for being stupid, especially in the music industry," the family patriarch said
Bellocqimages/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images; Astrida Valigorsky/Getty; Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty; Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
(L-R) Kanye West; Mathew Knowles; Beyoncé; Jay-ZBeyoncé's father, Mathew Knowles, is standing up for her youngest, Rumi and Sir, after Kanye West's offensive remarks about them on X.
In his since-deleted post on Tuesday, March 18, West, 47, wrote, "WAIT HAS ANYONE EVER SEEN JAY Z AND BEYONCES YOUNGER KIDS," before questioning the 7½-year-olds twins' mental capacity using offensive language. Beyoncé, 43, and husband Jay-Z, 55, are also parents to 13-year-old Blue Ivy.
Three days later, Knowles, 73, spoke to TMZ, saying, "People pay a price for being stupid, especially in the music industry."
"I'm hopeful Kanye gets the type of help he needs, in terms of mental health," Knowles told the outlet.
His remarks come two days after his ex-wife Tina Knowles, 71, with whom he also shares daughter Solange, defended her family on Instagram.
Related: Beyoncé and Jay-Z's 3 Kids: All About Blue Ivy, Sir and Rumi
"So I'm on the set of a photoshoot today for my book and I wanted to tell you a corny joke cause I have on all this glamourous hair and makeup," she said in the Wednesday, March 19 upload.
"I got a corny joke, want to hear it, hear I go, before saying, "What happens when a snowman throws a tantrum? He has a meltdown. Y'all know that's funny."
In a since-edited caption on the post, the family matriarch spoke against "ignorance and evil" — seemingly in direct response to West's words about her grandchildren, as reported by TMZ and the New York Post's Page Six.
The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!
"It's hard to remain positive and classy in the face of ignorance and evil. But I know that no weapon formed against me or my family shall prosper," she reportedly wrote. It now reads, "Corny joke, time! ❤️."
In a September 2024 conversation with GQ, Beyoncé said that one of the main things she's worked on "extremely hard" throughout her career is "making sure my kids can have as much normalcy and privacy as possible, ensuring my personal life isn't turned into a brand."
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
"It's very easy for celebrities to turn our lives into performance art," she said. "I have made an extreme effort to stay true to my boundaries and protect myself and my family. No amount of money is worth my peace."
