New Kanye West doc shows comedian Michael Che confronting the rapper backstage at SNL

The documentary “In Whose Name?” aims to show “unfiltered” moments from the rapper’s life over six years, including the fallout from his rant at SNL in 2018

A clip of “Saturday Night Live’s” Michael Che and Kanye West arguing in 2018 appears in a new documentary about West’s life and career. In the video, Che appears to be confronting West about comments he made on stage that targeted Che.

The documentary about West called “In Whose Name?” was released in theaters this Friday. Its director and producer, Nicolas Ballerteros, followed the polarizing artist for six years, promising to show an “unfiltered story” of the very unfiltered celebrity that is West. The documentary shows the 24-time Grammy winning rapper’s struggle with mental illness, his family, and marriage to ex-wife Kim Kardashian.

On the night of the argument with Che, West was the musical guest on “SNL”, and Adam Driver was the host. West closed out the show with a musical number, which turned into a rant where he spoke about President Donald Trump and said “SNL” cast members had “bullied” him for wearing a Make America Great Again hat.

The infamous rant was a surprise to the “SNL” cast and crew, which its musical director, Lenny Pickett, as well as comedians Ego Nwodim and Keenan Thompson, confirmed in the documentary mini-series “SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night.”

Kanye West Full SNL Rant pieced together @kanyewest pic.twitter.com/wFb4dnyzeZ

— Scott Skrt Skrt (@scott_skrt) May 25, 2025

In a clip showing West backstage with Che, the comedian confronts the rapper for “selling out” the SNL cast. During West’s tirade that night, he said, “You can’t always have every time you got a Black subject matter like Cosby, that you have to have a Black comedian talk about it,” referring to Che.

“I’m the Black comedian that made a joke about Cosby,” Che said to West backstage. “That’s f*cked up. Why would you do that to me?”

West responded to Che saying, “I love you though, bro.” Che said, “I love you too. I’m a fan. Why would you do that to me? I work here.”

Che then accused West of selling out the SNL cast.

“We treat everybody that come in like family, and you’re gonna sell us out? That’s f*cked up, man! We look up to you, we love you. What you got against us?”

West replied that he did have some issues with “SNL,” to which Che responded, “That’s cool, but airing it out like that without letting us be able to reply is kinda foul.” West conceded then, saying, “You right about that.”

This is just one of the many harsh moments the documentary shows of West’s interactions with other celebrities, friends, and loved ones. He lashes out at his ex-mother-in-law, Kris Jenner, at one point, and even explodes at Kardashian. “In Whose Name?” also shows some of his political aspirations at the time, with footage of West meeting with Candace Owens and Charlie Kirk back in 2018, and visiting Jared Kushner in Washington D.C.

In the moment backstage at “SNL,” Che wouldn’t let up.

“You’re a hero to us, man. We love you. Seriously, we love you. That’s wrong to do to us, man,” he said to West.