Since 2015, US rapper Kanye West has been designing shoes and clothing for Adidas under the “Yeezy” brand. But his controversial and anti-Semitic statements have also caught the sporting goods manufacturer’s attention in the past. The group draws its conclusions.
According to a report by the Bloomberg news agency, the sporting goods company Adidas wants to end its collaboration with the controversial US rapper Kanye West. The decision could be announced as early as Tuesday, the agency reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Adidas could not immediately be reached for comment.
The company had already stated at the beginning of October: “After repeated attempts to clarify the situation outside of the public, we have decided to put the partnership to the test.” The rapper has been designing shoes and clothing for Adidas since 2015 under the “Yeezy” brand, but has repeatedly publicly attacked the company. Most recently, West explained in a podcast that was widely shared and commented on social media: “I can say anti-Semitic things and Adidas can’t drop me. So what?”
The fashion brand Balenciaga recently terminated its collaboration with the controversial rapper. “Balenciaga no longer has any relationship with this artist, nor are there any plans for future projects,” the fashion website “WWD” quoted the luxury group Kering, to which the Paris-based Balenciaga brand belongs.
West, who now calls himself Ye, modeled at Balenciaga’s Paris show last month. Pictures of him from the show have since disappeared from the Balenciaga website. The rapper has been collaborating with Balenciaga creative director Demna Gvasalia for a long time. Earlier this year, they launched a clothing line together.
Kanye West was recently restricted in his use of well-known online networks because of posts classified as anti-Semitic. The rapper and fashion entrepreneur also caused a stir with controversial campaigns. For example, the 45-year-old appeared at Paris Fashion Week in early October for his brand Yeezy with a shirt with the inscription “White Lives Matter” classified as racist. The slogan “Black Lives Matter” (the lives of black people count) had become famous during demonstrations against racism and police violence against black people in the USA.
