“Hateful and dangerous” – Adidas ends collaboration with Kanye West
Adidas ends cooperation with Kanye West
Adidas has ended its collaboration with US rapper Kanye West. The company does not tolerate “anti-Semitism or any other type of hate speech,” wrote the sporting goods manufacturer from Herzogenaurach in a press release.
It’s getting lonely around Kanye West: his artist agency has separated from him, he’s losing more and more business partners. Now Adidas has also pulled the ripcord: The company is ending its collaboration with the designer.
Et’s a wave of rejection that rapper Kanye West (Ye for short) is facing. After a series of statements on social media and TV that critics consider anti-Semitic, the artist is losing more and more business partners and supporters.
On Tuesday, the sporting goods manufacturer Adidas also ended the cooperation. “Ye’s recent statements and actions are unacceptable, hateful and dangerous,” Adidas said in a statement on Tuesday. The company does not tolerate anti-Semitism or any other type of hate speech, it said.
After careful consideration, the company has made the decision to end its partnership with Ye effective immediately, to stop producing Yeezy-branded products, and to stop all payments to Ye and its companies. Adidas will cease business with Yeezy products with immediate effect, the company continued.
Central Council of Jews among the critics
Previously, voices from politics and business had already called for the controversial rapper to be thrown out, and the first threats of a boycott against Adidas were also made. The Central Council of Jews in Germany had also expressed itself. “The rapper’s daily new anti-Semitic derailments are unbearable for the Jews in Germany and all over the world,” said Josef Schuster. Adidas must “immediately stop working with Kanye West,” added the President of the Central Council to the editorial network Germany (RND).
Schuster demanded “a clear stance when it comes to anti-Semitism” from Adidas management. According to Schuster, entrepreneurial interests should not be in the foreground.
The musician, who is also successful as a fashion entrepreneur, had complained about the company’s good sales for years thanks to the immensely successful “Yeezy” collection and, in particular, the “street credibility” that is so valuable in the sporting goods industry. However, the collaboration was recently overshadowed because the musician accused Adidas of having exploited him.
The cooperation was profitable for Adidas, the dissolution is likely to affect the company economically. “Given the strong seasonality of the fourth quarter, this should have a short-term negative impact of up to EUR 250 million on the company’s net profit in 2022,” Adidas said.
Documentary is no longer broadcast
In addition to the economy, the cultural scene is also reacting. For example, a new documentary about West’s work as a rapper will no longer appear as planned. MRC Entertainment co-founders and bosses Modi Wiczyk and Asif Satchu said on Monday that it could not support content that would give it an even bigger platform. In their statement, they delved deep into the history of anti-Semitism.
“Kanye is a producer and sampler of music. Last week he sampled and remixed a classic song that’s been in the charts for more than 3,000 years – the lie that Jews are evil and conspired to control the world for their own gain. The song was performed a cappella in the times of the pharaohs, in Babylon and Rome, in an acoustic version during the Spanish Inquisition and Russia’s Pale of Colonization, and Hitler made the song electronic. Kanye has now helped make him mainstream in the modern era,” wrote the MRC Entertainment executive team.
Statement by Kim Kardashian
The talent agency CAA also ended its collaboration with West.
The fashion labels Balenciaga, The Gap and JP Morgan had previously suspended their collaboration with the entertainer, who was also a successful designer. According to the British “Guardian”, they also referred to the postings that were anti-Semitic. For example, in one video, West “repeatedly spoke about the supposed power of the ‘Jewish media’,” it said. The online services Twitter and Instagram recently blocked the rapper and entrepreneur for repeated alleged hate speech.
Meanwhile, West’s ex-wife, entrepreneur Kim Kardashian, also found critical words. “Hate speech is never okay or excusable. I stand with the Jewish community and call for an immediate end to the horrific violence and hateful rhetoric directed at them,” the TV and social media star said on twitter.