Kanye West has fallen from Forbes’ list of the world’s richest billionaires after Adidas cut ties with him over his anti-Semitic comments on social media.
The artist, who legally changed his name to Ye and was ranked 1,513th on the Forbes rich list earlier this year, signed a multi-year contract with the German sportswear company to design for his sneaker brand Yeezy.
However, the company announced Tuesday that it will stop making Yeezy-branded products and immediately stop all payments to him and his company due to the artist’s “unacceptable, hateful and dangerous” hate speech.
rapper with adidas According to Forbes, it accounts for $1.5 billion (£1.3 billion) of his net worth.
“With that thing gone, Ye is no longer a billionaire,” the American Business Journal said.
“It’s a stunning, spontaneous downfall for one of the most reckless and unstable characters that graced the Forbes page.”
Forbes estimates West’s current net worth is around $400 million (£346 million), down from $2 billion (£1.7 billion).
“The loss of Adidas was the final nail in Ye’s net worth coffin,” Forbes said, adding: “Now that road is over.”
Spotify joins the condemnation bandwagon
Spotify has become the latest company to publicly criticize West’s comments — but the music streaming platform won’t take action against him.
Company CEO Daniel Ek said the artist’s remarks were “just bad reviews” and that any mention in a podcast or recording that West violated its anti-hate policy would justify dismissing it. It was removed from Spotify.
Because the comments were made on social media, Spotify will only remove the rapper’s music if requested by his label, the company said.
Kanye West Anti-Semitism Controversy: What the Rapper Said and How People Reacted
Earlier this month, Yeh tweeted that he was “doing a death hoax 3 on Jews” before claiming he was not “anti-Semitic because black people are actually Jews too.”
Since then, West has seen his Instagram and Twitter accounts are restrictedend his banking relationship JPMorganterminate cooperation with him Balenciaga fashion houseand a completed Record Matters about him have been put on hold — the list of companies condemning his words goes on and on.
Kim Kardashian.Image: Associated Press
In an indirect tweet to her ex-husband on Monday, Kim Kardashian “Hate speech is never good or forgivable. I stand with the Jewish community and call for an immediate end to the horrific violence and hate speech directed against them,” it wrote.
Antonio Brown stands with West
Despite backlash, American football players Antonio BrownThe president of Donda Sports, West’s brand management agency, tweeted a statement announcing his “support” for the rapper, whom he considers his “brother” and against groups that have cut ties with the artist.
“Over the past few weeks, the world’s reactionary and selective outrage over my brother Ye’s comments in the media has angered and sparked rampant dialogue and reflection.
“I was also able to reflect on the lack of clarity that I and others in my circle have made in expressing my position.
“People and brands that have continually benefited from black thinking and black culture choose to distance themselves from themselves at a very specific time: a time that shows that they prioritize certain groups over others.
“No one in this world is immune from judgment, but we live in a time when censorship and pessimism push our conversations about cultural issues into abusive language.”
Brown added that he remained “committed to freedom of speech, thought and opinion” and that diversity of thought “propels humanity forward.”
However, he said: “Let me be clear, discrimination of any kind is an injustice to all, which is why I wish to make this statement”.
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Brown said he would continue as president of Dongda Sports, closing the statement by saying, “I still stand by Ye’s humanity.”
Sky News has contacted West’s representatives for comment.