Kanye West has spoken for the first time about being called a “jackass” by President Barack Obama.

The US president made the remark following West's on stage outburst at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) last year.

It came during an off-the-record segment of an interview, but entered the public domain after it was relayed by an ABC journalist on Twitter.

Writing in XXL magazine, West said he believed Obama's comment wasn't meant to have been taped and that he had used the remark as a way to “lighten the mood”.

“Obama has way more important stuff to worry about than my public perception,” West said.

“He was trying to pass the healthcare bill. And if he said that to relate to the room or lighten the room up and the whole mood, then I’d be more than happy to be the butt of all of his jokes if it in the some way helps his overall mission. I’m a soldier of culture. I’m resilient.”

The rapper added: “I’m sure I’ll still beat him in basketball.”

As previously reported, West also remarked that the fallout from his VMAs outburst made him feel like “I had thrown a Molotov cocktail at my own career”.

Meanwhile, the rapper is due to release his new album 'Dark Twisted Fantasy' in November.

(by Jason Gregory)