Gap is removing all Yeezy Gap products from its stores and the retailer’s e-commerce site during the rising response over anti-Semitic comments by Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West.
September sunset cut off business with a shoe and clothing retailer, and his attorney told CBS MoneyWatch at the time that Gap had failed to meet certain contractual obligations. In a statement Tuesday, Gap cited Ye’s “recent comments and behavior” as the reason for pulling Yeezy Gap products from stores and shutting down YeezyGap.com.
“Anti-Semitism, racism and hatred in any form is inexcusable and in line with our values we do not tolerate it,” the clothing chain said in a statement. “On behalf of our customers, employees and shareholders, we work with organizations that fight against hate and discrimination.”
In 2020, Gap and the hip-hop star signed a purported 10-year deal under which he designed Yeezy-branded merchandise to be sold in Gap stores. West received royalties and Gap stock based on sales of Yeezy products.
Commercial outage
Gap’s move to distance itself from Ye highlights the commercial implications for the artist after several anti-Semitic comments. German sports giant Adidas, facing public pressure to cut ties with the West, announced on Tuesday that it had pulled the plug on her partnership with him over his remarks.
“Adidas does not tolerate anti-Semitism and any other hate speech,” the company said. “Ye’s recent comments and actions were unacceptable, hateful and dangerous and violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness.”
Earlier this month, Ye tweeted a threat to be “dead”. [sic] con 3″ about Jews, alluding to a defensive alert designation used by the US military. He also posted a screenshot of a text exchange with Sean “Diddy” Combs in which he suggested Combs was being controlled by Jews.
West recently suggested that slavery was a choice, calling the COVID-19 vaccine the “mark of the beast” among other controversial comments. He was also accused of carrying a White Lives Matter T-Shirt. to his Yeezy collection show in Paris. The phrase has been adopted and promoted by white supremacist groups and sympathizers, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
The impact on wealth is uncertain
In 2021, Bloomberg ranked West as one of the wealthiest black Americans and estimated his net worth at $6 billion. At the time, between $3.2 billion and $4.7 billion of that net worth came from West’s partnerships with Gap and Adidas, according to investment bank UBS.
But the impact on Ye’s fortunes is uncertain as other former business partners pull out. Ye’s talent agency, CAA, too he dropped it this week, and the MRC studio announced on Monday that it was shelving a documentary about him.
“This morning, after discussions with our filmmakers and distribution partners, we have decided not to proceed with the distribution of our recently completed Kanye West documentary. We cannot support any content that expands his platform,” MRC said in a statement.
