Kanye West has reportedly designed a line of apparel for a conservative campaign encouraging black Americans to quit the Democratic party. Spearheaded by the YouTube star and TV pundit Candace Owens, Blexit is described as “a frequency for those who have released themselves from the political orthodoxy”.

Owens told Page Six: “Blexit is a renaissance and I am blessed to say that this logo, these colours, were created by my dear friend and fellow superhero Kanye West.” West created two designs for the Blexit merchandise range: one spells out Blexit in lettering designed to resemble human forms, the other states, “We free”.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Kanye West’s designs for Blexit. Photograph: screengrab

Owens said West “has taken one of the boldest steps in America to open a conversation we have needed to have”. West has been a vocal supporter of Donald Trump since the 2016 election campaign. He recently visited Trump inside the Oval Office, ostensibly to discuss prison reform – an issue his wife, Kim Kardashian West, has previously discussed at the White House.

Surrounded by reporters and cameras, West launched into an impassioned stream of consciousness touching on race relations, tax breaks, criminal justice and mental health. He described the red “Make America Great Again” baseball cap on his head as “a superhero cape”.

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West’s Blexit designs were unveiled at the Young Black Leadership Summit held this weekend by Turning Point USA, the conservative advocacy group of which Owens is director of communications. West was not present at the event.

West recently donated $73,540 to Chicago mayoral candidate Amara Enyia as she launched a campaign to take over from the incumbent, Rahm Emanuel. Fellow Chicago artist Chance the Rapper has also publicly stated his support for Enyia, a relatively outsider candidate: a Chicago native and community organiser who has focused on economic development across some of the city’s most deprived areas.