Kanye West has been dropped by Adidas following his antisemitic comments.
“Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech,” the company said in a statement on Tuesday. “Ye’s recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness.”
It continued: “After a thorough review, the company has taken the decision to terminate the partnership with Ye immediately, end production of Yeezy branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies. adidas will stop the Adidas Yeezy business with immediate effect.”
Adidas, West’s biggest corporate partner, started working with the rapper/designer in 2013 to make and distribute items from his Yeezy clothing line. The first product from the collaboration was released in 2015, and sales are estimated to be around $2 billion annually, or 10% of Adidas’s total sales, according to Fortune.
According to Forbes, with the Adidas deal no longer in place, West loses his spot on its billionaires’ list. West was estimated to be worth $2 billion — one of his favorite things to brag about — but $1.5 billion was attributed to his partnership with Adidas that is no more. As a result, he’s now estimated to be worth $400 million — from his music catalog, real estate, cash and his 5% stake in SKIMS, ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s shapewear brand. (A source close to SKIMS told the outlet West hasn’t been involvement with the business since it launched three years ago. Kardashian filed for divorce in 2021.)
West’s deal with Adidas was to be in place through 2026, but he has been critical of the German brand for months now, accusing CEO Kasper Rorsted of “copying my ideas” for other products.
Ye’s rants have escalated in recent weeks, and after his “White Live Matter” T-shirt stunt at the YZY show at Paris Fashion Week on Oct. 3, the company said in a statement that it was reviewing the relationship.
However, West went on to spew antisemitic remarks and taunt the company. On the Oct. 16 episode of Drink Champs podcast, he said, “I can say antisemitic things and Adidas can’t drop me. Now what? Now what?”
The video led to calls for the brand to drop him immediately. Those calls escalated in recent days after an antisemitic group showed support for West’s hate speech on Saturday, posting a sign above Los Angeles’s 405 freeway that said, “Kanye is right about the Jews.”
Adidas joins a list of others severing ties with West. Gap, which ended its partnership with West over the summer after he was critical of the brand, said on Tuesday that the company is actively working to remove Yeezy products from its stores and website.
“In September, Gap announced ending its Yeezy Gap partnership,” a rep told Yahoo Entertainment. “Our former partner’s recent remarks and behavior further underscore why. We are taking immediate steps to remove Yeezy Gap product from our stores and we have shut down YeezyGap.com. Antisemitism, racism and hate in any form are inexcusable and not tolerated in accordance with our values. On behalf of our customers, employees and shareholders, we are partnering with organizations that combat hate and discrimination.”
On Monday, talent agency CAA dropped West as a client. Late last week, Balenciaga cut ties with West. Further, West’s music streams and airplay have taken a nosedive. The educational consultant for West’s private school, Donda Academy, has resigned.
Personally, West’s ex Kardashian used social media to speak out against antisemitism on Monday — though she didn’t mention the father of her four children by name.
“Hate speech is never OK or excusable,” she tweeted. “I stand together with the Jewish community and call on the terrible violence and hateful rhetoric towards them to come to an immediate end.”
