There’s no doubt Kim Kardashian is an American sex symbol. Her brand is synonymous with the consumerism that has dominated the millennial era, but the famed socialite is going through what she has called an “awakening.”
As her husband, entertainment mogul Kanye West, has openly and boldly converted to Christianity, the “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” star has slowly and quietly shifted some of her own behaviors. Most significantly, the often-scantily-clad TV personality said this week she plans to show less skin next year.
Those who watch the Kardashians on TV remember when West confronted his wife over the sensual dress she wore to the Met Gala earlier this year.
While West’s wishes might have played a role in her decision to be a little less revealing, she told The Cut the change was ultimately her decision alone.
“I don’t know if it’s the fact that my husband has voiced that sometimes too sexy is just overkill, and he’s not comfortable with that,” she explained. “I listen to him and understand him. Still, at the end of the day, he always gives me the freedom to be and do what I want. But I have kind of had this awakening myself. I realized I could not even scroll through Instagram in front of my kids without full nudity coming up on my feed pretty much all the time.”
A quick scroll through Kardashian’s Instagram page today shows less skin than it did even a month ago.
Acknowledging the pull she’s felt in the past to stay true to her revealing image, Kardashian said she no longer feels that urge to continue flaunting her body in the way she has in the past.
“I guess I just don’t care as much anymore to want to take tons of photos in a thong bikini,” she told the magazine. “I actually just want to lay out.”
She has also realized her sexualized persona doesn’t blend well with her desire to lead the charge for social justice reform — an effort that has resulted in her attending meetings in the White House with President Donald Trump and speaking with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
“I also did think, like, ‘OK, I’m here in the White House and then the next day I was posting, like, a crazy bikini selfie,’” Kardashian reflected. “And I was thinking, ‘I hope they don’t see this. I have to go back there next week.’”
This shift also follows a recent spiritual decision by Kardashian, who traveled to her family’s homeland of Armenia in October to be baptized in what is believed to be one of the oldest churches in the world.
Kardashian’s baptism — which her four children participated in — took place on the heels of her husband’s announcement he would no longer be performing secular music but would instead be dedicating the remainder of his career to performing, writing, and recording Gospel-themed music.
Say what you will about the Kardashians, but there sure is a lot to keep up with.