Kanye West and Adidas once had a long-standing and successful partnership, with the Yeezy product line taking the market by storm. However, in recent times, this relationship has become strained and fractured. What led to the conflict between Kanye West and Adidas? Let’s dive into the details of this ongoing feud with Authentic Shoes.
Differences in Thinking and Creativity
The tension between Kanye West and Adidas began to rise when the rapper expressed dissatisfaction with how the company handled their creative collaborations. Kanye used Instagram to criticize Adidas for not consulting him on important decisions regarding new Yeezy designs. He also developed a habit of deleting his posts, a pattern he had followed in recent months.
One of the first major issues occurred in May when Adidas released the Adilette 22 slides, which featured a design strikingly similar to Kanye’s Yeezy slides. Kanye took to Instagram to strongly criticize Adidas, calling the slides “fake YEEZYs made by Adidas” and claiming that copying his design was disrespectful to those who had contributed to the original idea.
Feeling Excluded from Key Decisions
Every year, Adidas celebrates Yeezy Day to commemorate Kanye’s product line. However, in August of this year, Kanye revealed that he was not informed about the event. In a message to Complex, Kanye shared that Adidas had re-released older Yeezy models without his input, making him feel excluded from the creative process.
Continued Calls for Discussion
In early September, Kanye returned to Instagram to demand an explanation from Alasdhair Willis, the creative director at Adidas, about the company’s actions in copying his ideas without his consent. Although Kanye called for an end to the memes mocking Willis, his dissatisfaction with the company remained unchanged.
Accusations of Creative Rights Violation
Kanye accused Adidas of infringing on his creative rights, claiming that the company had changed the colors and names of Yeezy shoes without his approval. He revealed that Adidas had offered to buy out the Yeezy brand’s intellectual property for $1 billion, while his royalties from Yeezy products for the upcoming year were projected to be $500 million.
Appeals to Top Executives
In addition to his accusations against Adidas, Kanye also criticized the online attacks targeting executives at Adidas and JP Morgan & Chase. These ongoing criticisms have deepened the rift between Kanye and Adidas, making the conflict seem increasingly difficult to repair.
