Tag Archives: Kanye West

Kanye West Faces Lawsuit Over ‘Donda’ Song

Kanye West Reportedly Earned $7 Million From 'DONDA' Merch

Kanye West, the iconic rapper and producer known for his boundary-pushing music and controversial public persona, is embroiled in legal turmoil yet again. This time, it’s over his album, Donda, specifically regarding one of its tracks. The song has sparked a lawsuit that raises significant questions about creativity, ownership, and legal responsibilities in the music industry.

The lawsuit alleges that Kanye West used a sample without proper clearance or permission. This is common in music, where the lines between inspiration and infringement can be blurry. However, in this case, the stakes are high due to the prominence of the artist and the alleged infringement.

The plaintiff, typically another artist or a music publishing company, claims their original work was used in “Donda” without compensation or credit. This raises copyright issues, which are fundamental to protecting intellectual property in the music industry. Copyright law ensures that creators are fairly compensated for their work and their creative rights are respected.

For Kanye West, who has been both praised and criticized for his innovative sampling and production techniques, this lawsuit highlights a recurring issue in his career. His approach to music often involves blending and reinterpreting existing sounds and styles, which can lead to disputes over ownership and originality.

Beyond the legal implications, this controversy also touches on broader questions about artistic integrity and the evolving nature of creativity in the digital age. Sampling, once a niche technique in hip-hop and electronic music, has become a mainstream practice with its own ethical and legal considerations.

Fans and critics alike are watching closely as the lawsuit unfolds, curious about its potential impact on Kanye West’s career and the music industry as a whole. While some view sampling as a form of homage and a way to innovate, others argue that it can exploit lesser-known artists and diminish the value of their original creations.

In response to the lawsuit, Kanye West’s legal team has likely been tasked with navigating complex copyright laws and negotiating a resolution that satisfies all parties involved. The outcome could set a precedent for future cases involving high-profile artists and sampling disputes, influencing how musicians approach creativity and collaboration.

As the “Donda” lawsuit progresses, it serves as a reminder of the intricate balance between artistic freedom and legal responsibility in the music industry. Regardless of the outcome, one thing is sure: the controversy surrounding Kanye West’s latest album has once again sparked a heated debate about music, ownership, and the ever-changing landscape of creativity.

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Kanye West Says He’s “Justified” In Firing Of Security For Not Cutting His Locs

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Yeezy is defending his choice to fire an ex-employee, saying he was “justified” in canning a former security guard for not cutting off his locs as a term of employment.

Benjamin Deshon Provo, a former guard at the Donda Academy, filed a lawsuit against West for an unjust and racially motivated termination back in April. New documents obtained by In Touch Weekly yesterday(June 12) state that West and his legal team are looking to have the suit dismissed, denying all of Provo’s claims.

“Defendants are informed and believe, and based on such information and belief allege that Defendants were justified in doing any and/or all of the acts alleged in the Complaint,” the response reads.

“Ye contends that he had not “authorized, directed or ratified any alleged wrongful behavior” and that his decision to terminate the employee were “undertaken in the good-faith exercise of a legitimate business purpose.” West’s attorneys also allege that Provo “unreasonably failed to utilize, take advantage of, and/or comply with Defendants’ complaint/accommodation procedures.”

Court docs filed in L.A. Superior Court back in April claim that Provo suffered “severe emotional distress” as a result of West’s behavior. Provo also claims that Yeezy would ridicule Black employees who sported locs and says that it was done because of his Muslim faith.

Kanye and members of his management team subjected Provo and other black employees to less favorable treatment than their white counterparts,” the lawsuit states. “Specifically, Kanye frequently screamed at and berated black employees, while in contrast, he never so much as raised his tone of voice toward white staff.”

West has requested that the lawsuit be thrown out and his attorney fees handled, but the judge has yet to make that ruling.

Provo has not listed any specific amount in damages in his lawsuit.

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Kanye West’s Former Assistant Claims He and His Wife Bragged About Having an Orgy

Kanye West Says He Asked About Threesome with Him, Nicki Minaj and Amber Rose

More details have emerged from Lauren Pisciotta’s lawsuit against Kanye West. In a legal document obtained by XXL, Ye and his wife Bianca Censori brag about a five-person orgy.

Additional claims include Ye masturbating in front of Pisciotta, and she was in charge of coordinating Ubers for women to meet with the rapper. The sexual bragging occurred in August 2022 while she was coordinating such rides.

Pisciotta also details she was asked to take off a cardigan that was “covering too much.” On the same day, Ye asked his wife and additional women to perform oral sex on him and the male guests in his office.

Previously Pisciotta stated she was an OnlyFans model before working for Ye, earning $1 million a year. She was hired in July 2021 while Ye was putting together the Donda album.

Pisciotta stated after the album, Ye requested she delete her OnlyFans account to become more “God Like” with the promise of a $1 million payday to do so, which she obliged.

After that agreement, Pisciotta sent her wild text messages, including:

“See my problem is I be wanting to f— but then after I f— I want a girl to tell me how hard they been f—ed while I’m f—ing them. Then I want her to cheat on me …”

Pisciotta also stated additional messages came with fantasies of women and another stating, “Is my dick racist?”

Pisciotta also stated Ye would masturbate with phone calls and also asked about her boyfriend’s penis size. The lawsuit also included a run of texts, sexual videos, and pictures, including 2 of Ye engaged in sexual acts with a model.

Pisciotta was fired in October 2022 but was offered a $3 million severance pay that was never paid. She is now suing for breach of contract, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, and a hostile work environment.

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Ye to Countersue Former Personal Assistant Who Accused Him of Sexual Harassment

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Kanye West is responding to a lawsuit that accuses him of various acts of sexual harassment toward former employee Lauren Pisciotta. In addition, he is planning to countersue.

In a statement to TMZ, a rep for Ye said: “In response to these baseless allegations, Ye will be filing a lawsuit against Ms. Pisciotta, who actively pursued him sexually to coerce employment and other material benefits, then engaged in blackmail and extortion when her advances were rejected.”

In addition, Pisciotta is accused of stealing Ye’s phone to destroy evidence that would dispel her claims. She is also charged with sending Ye nudes and attempting to have sex with the rap star. She also demanded items like Birkin Bags, Lamborghini, and more. After the denial, Pisciotta allegedly attempted to extort and blackmail Ye.

“It is evident that Ms. Pisciotta leveraged her association with Ye and his company, and her proximity to him, to seek material gains, clout, and employment through inappropriate means,” the rep added.

According to TMZ, the former assistant, Lauren Pisciotta, stated she was an OnlyFans model before working for Ye, earning $1 million a year. She was hired in July 2021 while Ye was putting together the Donda album.

Pisciotta stated after the album, Ye requested she delete her OnlyFans account to become more “God Like” with the promise of a $1 million payday to do so, which she obliged.

After that agreement, Pisciotta sent her wild text messages, including:

“See my problem is I be wanting to f— but then after I f— I want a girl to tell me how hard they been f—ed while I’m f—ing them. Then I want her to cheat on me …”

Pisciotta also stated additional messages came with fantasies of women and another stating, “Is my dick racist?”

Pisciotta also stated Ye would masturbate with phone calls and also asked about her boyfriend’s penis size. The lawsuit also included a run of texts, sexual videos, and pictures, including 2 of Ye engaged in sexual acts with a model.

Pisciotta was fired in October 2022 but was offered a $3 million severance pay that was never paid. She is now suing for breach of contract, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, and a hostile work environment.

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Kanye West Sued for Sexual Harassment by Former Personal Assistant

Kanye West Says He Asked About Threesome with Him, Nicki Minaj and Amber Rose

Kanye West is the subject of a sexual harassment lawsuit from his ex-personal assistant, who states Ye fired her after sending her sexual texts and videos.

According to TMZ, the former assistant, Lauren Pisciotta, stated she was an OnlyFans model before working for Ye, earning $1 million a year. She was hired in July 2021 while Ye was putting together the Donda album.

Pisciotta stated after the album, Ye requested she delete her OnlyFans account to become more “God Like” with the promise of a $1 million payday to do so, which she obliged.

After that agreement, Pisciotta sent her wild text messages, including:

“See my problem is I be wanting to f— but then after I f— I want a girl to tell me how hard they been f—ed while I’m f—ing them. Then I want her to cheat on me …”

Pisciotta also stated additional messages came with fantasies of women and another stating, “Is my dick racist?”

Pisciotta also stated Ye would masturbate with phone calls and also asked about her boyfriend’s penis size. The lawsuit also included a run of texts, sexual videos, and pictures, including 2 of Ye engaged in sexual acts with a model.

Pisciotta was fired in October 2022 but was offered a $3 million severance pay that was never paid. She is now suing for breach of contract, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, and a hostile work environment.

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Lawsuit Over Kanye West’s 2010 Track ‘Power’ Sample Dispute Settles Ahead of Trial

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Bet you didn’t know Kanye West’s hit record “Power” was facing legal scrutiny for a sample. That happens. Often in the music industry, Declan Colgan Music Ltd just settled its lawsuit with Universal Music Group (UMG) over the sample of King Crimson’s “21st Century Schizoid Man.” See, Declan Colgan Music Ltd owns the mechanical rights to the song and alleged that UMG had been underpaying streaming royalties from “Power.” They filed the lawsuit in London’s High Court in March 2022. So this was a UK thing, and essentially – the plaintiff won. 

Get this: The case was scheduled for trial in the U.K. this week but was settled out of court. And they don’t do a whole lot of suing and settling in the UK. Like, it’s far from the sure everybody energy in America. Anyway, the settlement terms are undisclosed, but Variety reported that their understanding is that Declan Colgan Music Ltd received a payment as part of the agreement. Representatives for both Declan Colgan Music Ltd and UMG declined to comment.

For music heads, King Crimson first released “21st Century Schizoid Man” on their 1969 debut album “In the Court of the Crimson King.” According to the lawsuit, West originally sampled the track without a license for “Power,” whose video has over 140 million views on YouTube since its release in 2010. “Power” was also featured on West’s album “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”

Diving deeper, after the release of the song and album, UMG and West’s production company Rock the World signed a deal with Declan Colgan Music Ltd, entitling the company to royalties on the same terms as West. West’s deal with UMG ensured his royalties for both streaming and physical CDs would be comparable. However, Declan Colgan Music Ltd claimed that the streaming royalties they received were not comparable to those for CD sales. Declan Colgan Music Ltd was represented by the Clintons, while UMG was represented by Russells.

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Today in Hip-Hop History: Cam’Ron Released Third Solo Album ‘Come Home With Me’ 22 Years Ago

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On this date in 2002, Dipset General Cam’Ron kept the Harlem legacy rolling when he dropped his third solo album aptly entitled Come Home With Me on the Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam imprint.

This was the Harlem natives first release under the Roc-A-Fella banner and coincidentally, his most critically acclaimed full-length release to date, being Cam’s only certified platinum album to date. The album features include rap heavyweights such as The Diplomats, DJ Kay Slay, Daz Dillinger, label head Jay-Z as well as labelmates Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel.

This 15-track banger released a slew of hard-hitting singles including the infectious “Oh Boy”, which led the soulful voice-sampling revolution, the mainstream hit “Hey Ma” and the only song ever recorded with Jigga before their highly publicized fallout “Welcome To New York City”.

Thanks to Cam, Jim, Juelz, Freekey, Just Blaze and Kanye West for their production and everyone else involved in creating this timeless Hip Hop classic!

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Kanye West Decides To Call It Quits On Yeezy Porn

The Gap Sues Kanye West Following Failed Partnership

Kanye West has seemingly aborted his plan to open a pornography division of his Yeezy brand.

As pointed out by Kurrco on Tuesday (May 7), all posts related to the announcement of Yeezy Porn have now been scrubbed from Ye’s X (formerly Twitter) account and YouTube page.

The news follows a letter from far-right political commentator Milo Yiannopoulos, who serves as Yeezy’s chief of staff, stating his opposition to the adult-film plans.

Yiannopoulos described the move as dangerous to his “spiritual and physical health,” citing his past homosexuality and addiction struggles.

“I cannot be complicit in the production or dissemination of pornographic films and literature, for moral and religious reasons,” he wrote.

“But also because such material and the kind of people invariably involved in its production represent an imminent danger to my life as a recovering addict and an unacceptable risk to my spiritual and physical health as a former homosexual.”

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Kim Kardashian is ‘Over’ Long-Standing Beef with Taylor Swift

Kim Kardashian Says She Protects Her Children From Any Negative Conversations About Ye

Kim Kardashian and Taylor Swift have a long-standing beef. Now, Kardashian wants it to be over.

Taylor Swift dissed Kardashian on “thanK you aIMee,” specifically capitalizing letters that spell out Kim. In the song she sings:

“All that time you were throwin’ punches, I was buildin’ somethin’
And I can’t forgive the way you made me feel
Screamed ‘F—k you, Aimee’ to the night sky, as the blood was gushin’
But I can’t forget the way you made me heal”

A source close to Kardashian is hoping that this can be done as she is “over” it. The insider said, Kardashian “doesn’t get why [Swift] keeps harping on it.” Adding, “It’s literally been years.”

Years back, the reality star wanted to set the record straight about the phone call between Kanye and Taylor that led to the bad blood.

Never-before-seen footage from a 2016 phone call leaked over the weekend. During the call, Kanye tells Taylor about a song he’s working on, that song would later become, “Famous”.

The pop star, who had been burned by West at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2009, is told lyrics about her are: “I feel like Taylor Swift might owe me sex.”

Ultimately though, on the final version, the lyrics were different.

“I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex. I made that b*tch famous.” It relit the blazing feud between West and Swift, over the derogatory word in the lyric.

On Monday, Swift broke her silence on the unseen footage, saying, “proving that I was telling the truth the whole time about that call”

However, she also said that it was edited tormenting her for 4 years.

Kardashian posted parts of the video back in 2016 but says she never edited the footage.

With all the drama unfolding in the world right now, coronavirus cabin fever is making this interesting.

However, in the end, Kardashian put the focus back on the pandemic and not the past.

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Ye and Ty Dolla $ign Eye Pyramid in Egypt for Next ‘Vultures’ Experience

Ye and Ty Dolla $ign Release Trailer for "Vultures" Video and Announces Three Release Dates

Ye and Ty Dolla $ign have eyed Egypt for their next Vultures experience. The two have announced an event for April 20 at the Step Pyramid of Djoser in the desert of Saqqara, Egypt. Tickets are currently on sale.

Ye’s friend and frequent collaborator Travis Scott attempted to perform a show in Egypt ahead of the release of UTOPIA. That didn’t go as planned. You can read more about it here.

We can get a glimpse of Ye’s recording process for Vultures. The closing verse on “CARNIVAL” was recorded while at least 25 people surrounded him.

Earlier this month, Ye and Ty Dolla $ign reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100. Their collaborative, stadium-sounding anthem, “Carnival,” featuring Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti, hit No. 1.

“Carnival” now makes Ye the first rap artist to have a No. 1 in three decades (the 2000s, ‘10s and ‘20s).

According to Luminate, “Carnival” secured the 1,165th No. 1 spot in the 65-year history of the Hot 100. It amassed 33.7 million streams (up 4%), garnered 3.9 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 85%), and sold 3,000 downloads (up 15%) during the tracking week of March 1-7.

With “Carnival,” Ye claims his fifth Hot 100 chart-topper, following hits like Katy Perry’s “E.T.” (featuring Ye), which spent five weeks at No. 1 starting in April 2011, among others. Ty Dolla $ign previously led the Hot 100 for a week in June 2018 as featured on Post Malone’s “Psycho.”

It is the first No. 1 record for Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti.

Additionally, “Carnival” maintains its reign for a second week atop both the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts, utilizing a similar multimetric methodology as the Hot 100.

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