Three minutes into the Celebrity Family Feud game, Steve Harvey looked at his producer and mouthed two words, “Help me.” Kanye West had just given an answer that was so Kanye, so completely off the rails that even Steve, who dealt with thousands of weird answers, didn’t know what to do.

 The audience was half laughing, half gasping. Kim Kardashian had her face in her hands and the answer board was about to reveal something that would make everything even more insane. It was a warm September evening in 2019 at the Celebrity Family Feud studios in Los Angeles. The energy was electric, not just because it was Celebrity Family Feud, but because of who was on stage.

On one side stood the Kardashian West family, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Khloe Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, and Chris Jenner. On the other side was the Legend family, John Legend, Chrissy Tegan, and three of their close friends filling out the team. Steve Harvey, dressed in a burgundy velvet suit that practically glowed under the studio lights, stood at his podium, grinning.

He knew this was going to be good television. The Kardashians brought drama. Kanye brought well Kanye. And with John Legend’s dry humor and Chrissy Tegan’s sharp wit on the other side, chaos was guaranteed. “All right, all right,” Steve said, rubbing his hands together. “We got the Kardashian West family versus the Legend family.

 This is about to be interesting.” The audience cheered. Kim waved elegantly. Kanye stood with his arms crossed, wearing an all black outfit and his signature stoic expression. Chris Jenner looked like she was ready to strategize every answer. Khloe and Courtney were laughing and hyping each other up.

 On the other side, Chrissy Tegan was already talking trash. “Steve, we’re about to smoke them,” she said confidently. “Oh, we’ll see about that,” Chris shot back immediately. Steve laughed. “I love it. Let’s play family feud. The first two rounds went surprisingly smoothly. Both families were competitive but having fun. Kim gave solid answers. Jon was strategic.

Chrissy made Steve laugh multiple times with her brutally honest responses. Even Kanye had participated mostly with one-word answers, but he participated. The Kardashian West family was leading by 40 points going into the third round. The question came up on the board and Steve read it with his signature delivery. We asked 100 married people.

Name something married couples argue about most. It was Kanye’s turn at the podium. He stood next to Steve looking at the question with an intensity usually reserved for album production. Kim standing at the family line had a look of nervous anticipation. She knew her husband. She knew how his brain worked.

 And she knew this could go anywhere. Kanye, Steve said, looking at him. Something married couples argue about most. What you got? Kanye was silent for a moment. The audience waited. Steve waited. Then Kanye spoke. Energy. Steve blinked. Energy? Yeah, Kanye said, nodding. Seriously. Married couples argue about energy. Creative energy specifically.

 Like when one person is in their creative zone and the other person doesn’t understand the frequency they’re operating on. It’s about respecting the artistic process and understanding that creation requires isolation sometimes, but marriage requires presence. So, there’s this constant tension between the need to create and the obligation to be emotionally available.

 He paused, then continued, “It’s like a dragon. You know, the creative process is a dragon, and you can’t tame a dragon. You can only ride it. But marriage is about partnership and you can’t have a partnership with a dragon. So the argument is really about whether you’re trying to tame something that shouldn’t be tamed or whether Kanye Steve interrupted gently.

 I’m going to stop you right there, brother. The audience was already laughing. Kim had her face in her hands, shaking her head but smiling. Khloe was doubled over laughing. Chris looked like she was trying to figure out if this was good or bad for the brand. Steve looked at the camera, then at his producer offstage, he mouthed, “Help me.

” The producer shrugged helplessly, also trying not to laugh. “So, your answer is energy?” Steve asked, trying to regain control. “Creative energy?” Kanye corrected. “It’s different.” “Creative energy?” Steve repeated slowly. He looked at the board. “All right, show me creative energy.” The audience held its breath. The board made its familiar buzzing sound. B Z T. Not there. Oh.

 The audience groaned sympathetically, but then Steve looked at the board more carefully and his expression changed. He pointed. Wait, hold up. What’s that say? The camera zoomed in on answer number six. It read, “Personal space/time alone.” Steve’s eyes widened. He looked at Kanye.

 Did you Did you just get this answer? That’s what I said, Kanye replied calmly. Creative energy is time alone. Personal space for the creative process. The board dinged and personal space/time alone flipped over. Eight points. The Kardashian family exploded in celebration. Kim jumped up and down. Khloe was screaming. Even Courtney, usually the most reserved, was clapping enthusiastically. Steve was stunned.

 He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. I cannot believe that just happened. John Legend, standing at the opposing family’s podium, shook his head with a smile. That’s the most Kanye thing I’ve ever seen. Chrissy Tegan shouted across the stage. That doesn’t count. He gave a TED talk, not an answer. Steve pointed at Chrissy.

 But it’s on the board. Barely, Chrissy shot back. Eight points. Eight people out of a hundred said that. Eight is more than zero. Kanye said simply. The audience roared with laughter. Steve had to walk away from his podium for a moment, overcome with the absurdity of what had just happened.

 He stood at the side of the stage, hands on his hips, looking at the ceiling as if asking God for strength. When he came back, Kim was waiting. She had walked up to Steve’s podium, mic in hand, completely unauthorized, but nobody was stopping her. “Steve,” Kim said, “I need to explain something.” Please do,” Steve said, gesturing for her to go ahead because I’m lost.

 Kim turned to the camera. “When you’re married to Kanye, you learn to translate what he just said about creative energy and dragons and all of that. What he means is that he needs time to work on his music without interruption.” And yes, we argue about it because I’m like, “It’s 3:00 a.m. Come to bed.

” And he’s like, “I’m riding the dragon.” The audience absolutely lost it. Steve bent over laughing. Even Kanye smiled. A rare sight. “So, you’re telling me?” Steve said, trying to catch his breath. That when normal couples argue about alone time, Kanye argues about riding dragons. Essentially, yes, Kim confirmed.

 Kim, Steve said, “How do you do it? How do you wake up every day and deal with this level of creativity?” Kim shrugged. I mean, he’s a genius. Geniuses are complicated. Geniuses are exhausting, Steve corrected, which made everyone laugh again. The game continued, but nothing else could top the dragon moment. Every answer Kanye gave afterward, no matter how normal, Steve treated with extreme caution.

 When the next question came up, “Name something people do to relax,” Kanye said, listen to my own albums. Without a hint of irony, Steve just stared at him. Of course you do,” Steve said flatly. “Of course that’s your answer.” It wasn’t on the board, but the audience loved it. The Kardashian West family ended up winning the game, mostly due to strong answers from Kim, Chris, and Klo, but the viral moment belonged entirely to Kanye’s dragon speech.

 During the break before the final fast money round, Steve pulled Kanye aside. “Man, can I ask you something?” Steve said. Yeah, Kanye replied. Were you serious about all that? The dragon and the creative energy. Kanye looked at Steve with complete sincerity. Steve, I’m always serious. The creative process is not a joke. It’s a spiritual experience.

 And yes, it causes friction in relationships because most people don’t understand that level of dedication. Steve nodded slowly. All right, I respect that. I don’t fully understand it, but I respect it. That’s all I ask, Kanye said. When the episode aired three weeks later, the internet exploded.

 Kanye’s dragon speech was trending worldwide within an hour. Memes flooded every platform. People started using Riding the Dragon as slang for being in a creative zone. But the most viral moment wasn’t the speech itself. It was Steve’s face during it. Someone made a compilation of Steve’s expressions during Kanye’s explanation. Confusion, desperation, disbelief, resignation, and finally acceptance.

 It had 50 million views in 2 days. Kim tweeted, “Living with Kanye means every day is like celebrity family feud. # riding the dragon.” Steve responded, “Kim, you deserve a medal and hazard pay.” Even President Obama weighed in during a late night interview. I saw that Kanye clip. I’ve been in rooms with him. I understand Steve’s pain.

 The phrase help me became Steve’s unofficial response to any Kanye related content. Whenever someone mentioned Kanye doing something wild, Steve would post a GIF of himself from that episode, mouthing, “Help me.” 6 months later, Kanye released an album. One of the tracks was titled Dragon Energy. In the liner notes, he thanked Steve Harvey for understanding the creative process, even when you don’t.

 Steve, when asked about it on his talk show, laughed. I did not understand. I still don’t understand, but apparently I’m in the liner notes of a Kanye album, so that’s my legacy now. The episode became the most watched Celebrity Family Feud episode of all time. It won a Critics’s Choice Award for best reality competition moment. Steve won an Emmy for outstanding host.

In his acceptance speech, Steve said, “I want to thank Kanye West for making me work harder than I’ve ever worked to keep a show on track, and I want to thank Kim Kardashian for translating. Without her, I’d still be standing on that stage wondering what a creative dragon is.” A year later, Steve had both Kim and Kanye back on his talk show.

 He asked Kanye if he’d ever rewatch the Family Feud episode. I don’t need to, Kanye said. I lived it. I know what I said. Do you remember the dragon part? Steve asked carefully. Steve, Kanye said seriously, I remember everything. That dragon metaphor was accurate. People just weren’t ready for that level of transparency about the artistic process.

Steve looked at Kim. Is he always like this? Always? Kim confirmed with a smile. Do you ever just want a normal conversation? Steve asked. Sometimes, Kim admitted. But then I remember I married Kanye West. Normal isn’t part of the package. Steve nodded. Well, I’ll say this. That episode changed Celebrity Family Feud.

 Now every celebrity who comes on tries to out Kanye. Kanye. They try to give the weirdest, most elaborate answers. Nobody’s topped the dragon yet, though. They won’t, Kanye said confidently. Because they’re not speaking from the soul. I was. The audience applauded. Steve shook his head with affection. Kanye West, everybody still riding that dragon.

 The moment became more than just a viral clip. It became a cultural reference point. Whenever someone gave an overly complicated explanation for something simple, people would say, “Don’t go Kanye on me.” When couples argued about needing personal space, someone would joke, “Oh, you need to ride the dragon.” And whenever Steve Harvey encountered something bizarre on Family Feud, which was often, audiences would chant, “Help me. Help me.

” But perhaps the greatest legacy was what Kim said in an interview months later. That family feud moment showed people the real Kanye. Not the controversial figure, not the headline maker, just a guy who thinks differently and isn’t afraid to express it, even if it sounds crazy. And honestly, I love that about him.

 Life with Kanye is never boring. It’s exhausting sometimes, yes, but never boring. Steve Harvey kept a framed photo from that episode in his dressing room. It showed him standing next to Kanye, his hand on his face in exasperation, while Kanye gesticulated passionately. Below it, Steve had written, “The day I learned what creative energy means.

” Still confused. Because that’s what that September evening gave everyone. Confusion, laughter, and a reminder that sometimes the best television happens when you have no idea what’s coming next. When celebrities are truly themselves, unfiltered and unapologetic. Kanye West talked about dragons. Steve Harvey mouthed, “Help me.

” Kim Kardashian translated. And millions of people watched, laughed, and realized that maybe, just maybe, we’re all a little bit crazy in our own ways. And sometimes that’s exactly what makes us interesting.

a