Kanye’s Business Deals Facing ‘Far More Pain’ Unless He ‘Wakes Up’

Kanye West faces “far more pain” in the fallout from his antisemitic comments unless he “wakes up” and actively works to undo the damage, a reputation expert has warned.

The rapper, who has legally changed his name to Ye, has attracted a storm of criticism over repeated antisemitic comments, including writing on Twitter on October 3 that he was “going death con 3 on Jewish people.”

Ye, 45, added that he “actually can’t be Anti-Semitic because Black people are actually Jew also You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.”

Kanye West, pictured on October 2 in Paris, where he wore a “White Lives Matter” shirt at a Yeezy fashion show. He is also pictured inset on October 24, 2019, in New York City. A reputation expert said the rapper had “disemboweled his brand with his out-of-touch celebrity arrogance and elitism.” Stephane Cardinale – Corbis via Getty Images;/Taylor Hill/WireImage

The antisemitic statements led to him being locked out of his Instagram and Twitter accounts, but he made similar remarks in subsequent interviews, prompting a number of businesses to cut ties with him.

During an October 16 episode of the Drink Champs podcast, Ye asserted that Adidas would not drop him despite his behavior. He has worked with the sportswear giant on his Yeezy sneaker collections since 2015.

“The thing about me and Adidas is, like, I can literally say antisemitic s*** and they can’t drop me. I can say antisemitic things and Adidas can’t drop me. Now what?” Ye said during the interview.

Adidas proved him wrong on Tuesday when it announced the end of their business relationship.

The company told Newsweek in a statement that it “does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech. 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.

“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.”

Yeezy shoes made by Adidas are displayed at Laced Up, a sneaker resale store in Paramus, New Jersey, on October 25. Seth Wenig/AP Photo

Adidas had launched a review of its relationship with West even before the podcast interview. The audit began after he wore a “White Lives Matter” T-shirt to a Yeezy fashion show and publicly criticized the company.

“After repeated efforts to privately resolve the situation, we have taken the decision to place the partnership under review,” Adidas said in a statement in early October, according to CNN. “We will continue to co-manage the current product during this period.”

Eric Schiffer, chairman of Los Angeles-based Reputation Management Consultants, told Newsweek that Ye’s doubling down on his statements is making his path to any form of redemption extremely difficult.

“Part of celebrity power is the skill to master attention economics, which means turning digital and media attention into sales, opportunities and greater celebrity brand power,” he said. “But if your attention-getting turns into a racist disgrace that’s bad for the world, it’s like eating celebrity rat poison and near-irredeemable.”

Schiffer added: “Kanye disemboweled his brand with his out-of-touch celebrity arrogance and elitism, revealing his belief that human decency and empathy are meaningless to him. What started as Kanye West’s performance artistry turned lethally stupid with deadly consequences for his brand and net worth.”

Although Schiffer has spent decades steering the image of public figures and brands, he expressed doubt that he could work with the rapper.

“I wouldn’t take him on if Kanye asked to be my client,” he said. “Hypothetically, if someone had to win back favor with the public, it would need to be made clear that brand resurrection in a similar case requires an authentic belief change of the importance of respecting people and humanity.”

“But Ye faces far more pain before his massive ego wakes up. Waking up means self-awareness and the ability to get consistent control of yourself. Only then can someone begin to make amends with people and start trying to rebuild relationships blown up into bits.

“It’s a colossal personal challenge for any celebrity who thinks they are more genius than the masses.”

Newsweek has reached out to a representative of Ye for comment.