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Kanye West Gets the Dirt Off Obama's Shoulder

January 30, 2009 11:27 AM

Photo: Mazur/Wireimage

Since the Inauguration the S.S. has been scrambling around, interviewing the musicians who were down in D.C. for the speech and the surrounding parties.

Of course, the RS issue out next week will shed light on what happened on stages and behind the scenes, but we had to tell you about one of our favorite moments, as described to us by Fall Out Boy frontman Patrick Stump.

Location: Backstage at the Hilton Washington hotel, in a dressing room.

Take it away Patrick...

"Someone runs in and goes, 'You’re meeting the president, run right now, you have a minute to make it to the other side of the building.' So we’re running through the kitchen, and it’s the four of us and Kanye and so we’re just bounding down the hallways. Just in time, the Secret Service pushed us up against the walls and said, 'Here he comes!' Sure enough, there he is. It was very rushed and it was a very brief encounter, but it felt like it was a long time, like he gave us a lot of time and a lot of attention. Michelle gave us a lot of time and a lot of attention, so it was very cool. It was a very Chicago moment, because here was Fall Out Boy, Kanye and Obama. We were all joking about that, too, how Chicago it was.

"Kanye has known Obama casually for a few years, he’s met him a couple of times. Kanye was pretty awesome. They’re getting ready to take a picture -- we all took pictures together -- and Kanye looks at the president’s suit and there’s a little piece of lint, so Kanye grabs it off of him and brushes it off. Then Kanye's like, 'Now we’re ready.'

"I was like, 'Kanye’s one of the only people on earth who could pull lint off the president and probably not get shot for it.

"It was two forces of absolute cool getting together and working it out."