
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Adidas is considering writing off its remaining inventory of Yeezy merchandise, valued at $320 million by the company, chief executive Bjorn Gulden said Wednesday—as the German footwear firm separates from the brand designed by Kanye West, who lost his partnership with Adidas following a string of antisemitic remarks.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Gulden said Wednesday that a scenario in which the company writes off its Yeezy inventory is “financially the worst case,” according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/adidas-ye-kanye-west-antisemitism-df2df5a6489beba1a23ffefa6acc98c3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Associated Press</a>.</p>



<p>The company has sold hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of leftover Yeezy shoes, and Gulden reportedly said “we of course hope we can do more drops next year and we can get more value out of it and donate the proceeds,” but no decision has been made.</p>



<p>Gulden also said the company had stored its Yeezy inventory in several locations and declined to say what the company would do if the inventory remained unsold.</p>



<p>Adidas included a possible write-off of the Yeezy inventory in its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adidas-group.com/en/media/news-archive/press-releases/2023/adidas-reports-revenue-increase-in-the-third-quarter-underlying-b/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">outlook</a>&nbsp;Wednesday for its earnings this year, suggesting in its full-year guidance that it expects about $106 million in operating losses this year after a previous prediction of a $481 million loss.</p>



<p>Shares for&nbsp;<a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/ADDYY" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Adidas</a>&nbsp;fell slightly (2%) to $90.46 after the company released its third-quarter earnings&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adidas-group.com/en/media/news-archive/press-releases/2023/adidas-reports-revenue-increase-in-the-third-quarter-underlying-b/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a>.</p>



<p>Adidas reported a 6% increase in footwear revenue year-over-year and a 6% decline in apparel sales, while the company’s revenue declined 6% to $6.4 billion.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>$374.7 million. That’s how much revenue Adidas generated from Yeezy sales through the third quarter. Yeezy merchandise generated about <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/08/03/adidas-sold-437-million-worth-of-yeezys-in-second-quarter-of-2023/?sh=36ab3bd526f4">$437 million</a> in revenue in the second quarter, which Adidas said was in line with Yeezy sales during the same quarter last year. The company generated $1.28 billion from Yeezy sales through all of last year.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Adidas ended its partnership with West last year after the rapper made a series of antisemitic comments on social media. The company announced earlier this year it would start selling some of its remaining Yeezy inventory—valued then at $1.28 billion—and donate a “significant amount” of sales to organizations combating racism and antisemitism. Adidas&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/08/03/adidas-sold-437-million-worth-of-yeezys-in-second-quarter-of-2023/?sh=1f97832526f4">previously</a>&nbsp;explored a write-off of its remaining Yeezy inventory in August, which the sportswear firm estimated the write-off would cost the company an additional $437 million. Adidas similarly estimated its “discontinuation of the regular Yeezy business” cost the company about $437 million in the first half of 2023. A write-off would reduce the value of the brand in Adidas’s financial statements.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoniopequenoiv/2023/10/17/adidas-cuts-projected-losses-by-over-300-million-after-selling-yeezy-shoes/?sh=1e34b8baab0a">Adidas Cuts Projected Losses By Over $300 Million After Selling Yeezy Shoes</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>


Street Style – Paris Fashion Week – Menswear Spring/Summer 2024 : Day Six

Adidas Could Write Off Value Of Unsold Yeezy Inventory—Worth $320 Million


<p><strong>Jay-Z reaped a massive windfall selling a piece of his champagne brand to luxury goods giant LVMH – but it doesn’t beat stars like Dr. Dre or Kylie Jenner when they sold their stakes in major companies.</strong></p>



<p class="has-text-align-center"><strong><em>By Abigail Freeman,Forbes Staff</em></strong></p>



<p>It turns out Jay-Z’s luxury champagne brand is worth more than “half a B.”</p>



<p>The partnership announced on Monday between Jay-Z and the wine and spirits division of LVMH makes the billionaire rapper the latest celebrity to pocket a windfall by selling part of a consumer brand to a major distributor. The deal appears to have valued the brand, Armand de Brignac, at more than $600 million, which would land him a cash payment of at least $300 million—about $50 million more than he would have made based on the $500 million value he rapped about in Meek Mill’s 2018 song “What’s Free.” &nbsp;</p>



<p>The founder of RocNation sold 50% of the champagne business to LVMH’s Moët Hennessy in a move aimed at “taking the business to new heights across the world,” according to Moet’s CEO Philippe Schaus.&nbsp; LVMH is known to bid competitively, and that certainly appears to have been true for this latest deal.&nbsp;</p>



<p><em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;values the deal for the bubbly wine, known by its nickname Ace of Spades thanks to its logo design and several of Jay-Z’s lyrics promoting it, at roughly $630 million, based on conversations with five beverage analysts and industry insiders. That’s double&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>’ previous valuation of the brand. The terms of the deal have not been publicly reported by LVMH or Jay-Z, whose company will still handle production. Neither side would comment, but based on analyst estimates, Jay-Z likely pocketed at least $315 million in the deal.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<p>“The multiples for Armand de Brignac—based on the category and volume size of the brand—far outreach brands that don’t have that celebrity ownership,” says beverage market analyst Eric Schmidt.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Still, it’s not the biggest celebrity cash out by a long shot: Kylie Jenner sold 51% of her cosmetics company to Coty in a deal that valued the brand at more than $1 billion; she got $540 million pre-tax. Rapper-Producer Dr. Dre sold his audio product company Beats to Apple in 2014 for $3 billion, pocketing $585 million himself before taxes.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Plenty of other pop stars have followed suit, not just selling out or selling stakes but often partnering with global giants. LVMH struck an earlier deal with Jay-Z protégé&nbsp; Rihanna in 2017 to launch Fenty Beauty, and most recently invested indirectly in her lingerie line Savage x Fenty earlier this month. The value of her stakes in both businesses totals $530 million.&nbsp;</p>



<p>“With celebrity association, particularly in the earlier years, the valuation of a company could be higher by three to seven times,” says food and beverage marketing consultant Arthur Gallego. “But I don’t think it works for every celebrity. There’s got to be something authentic about it.”</p>



<p>Jay-Z’s<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2014/11/06/why-jay-zs-champagne-news-isnt-so-new/?sh=17b1677528d3">journey with Ace of Spades</a>&nbsp;began in 2006, a year after he signed Rihanna to her first record deal. At the time, the Brooklyn-born mogul called for a boycott from Cristal champagne after CEO Frédéric Rouzaud said, &#8220;What can we do? We can&#8217;t forbid people from buying it,&#8221; in response to being asked about the brand’s popularity among rappers at the time. Later that year, Jay-Z debuted his champagne brand by featuring its signature gold bottle in his &#8220;Show Me What You Got&#8221; video.</p>



<p>The popularity and strong sales of Ace of Spades helped boost Jay-Z’s fortune to $1 billion by 2019, earning him&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;recognition as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/06/03/jay-z-billionaire-worth/?sh=28eea6cf3a5f">first hip-hop artist</a>&nbsp;toreach the 10-figure milestone. The latest deal will likely bump that figure up, while leaving him with other assets to monetize, including RocNation’s entertainment business, music streaming service Tidal, an athlete representation agency, his master recordings and music publishing rights, and a second liquor brand, D’usse.</p>



<p>Here is how his windfall stacks up against some of the most notable celebrity deals inked in the past five years.</p>



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-george-clooney">George Clooney</h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50129" width="403" height="268" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 403px) 100vw, 403px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>



<p>British liquor giant Diageo purchased the movie star’s tequila company Casamigos in 2017 in a transaction that valued the company at up to $1 billion including $700 million up front and another $300 million based on performance over the following 10 years. The A-list actor netted more than $200 million pretax, making him <em>Forbes</em>’ top paid actor of 2018. He cofounded the company with nightlife entrepreneur Rande Gerber (husband of supermodel Cindy Crawford) and real estate tycoon Mike Meldman in 2013. Clooney, Gerber and Meldman each invested $600,000 apiece as equal partners to start up Casamigos, which loosely means house of friends, and then reinvested profits, earning them an impressive ROI. The star and his pals are still involved in the business.</p>



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading"><strong>Kylie Jenner</strong></h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50131" width="378" height="566" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 378px) 100vw, 378px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Rich Fury/VF20/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)</figcaption></figure></div>



<p>Jenner used $250,000 of her earnings from modeling to pay an outside company to make her first 15,000 lip kits, which sold out in minutes in 2015. Kylie Cosmetics quickly became one of the fastest growing makeup brands, thanks to the reality TV star’s massive social media following—now at 265 million followers across Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. Cosmetics giant Coty Inc paid $600 million for a 51% stake of the brand in January 2020; she pocketed $540 million, pretax. She still has <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2020/05/29/inside-kylie-jennerss-web-of-lies-and-why-shes-no-longer-a-billionaire/?sh=520c80cc25f7">an estimated 44.1%</a> stake—with Kris Jenner owning a small stake—in the brand, and she and her team oversee all creative efforts.  </p>



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Kim Kardashian West</h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-1024x682.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50132" width="424" height="282" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-2048x1363.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-600x399.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 424px) 100vw, 424px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)</figcaption></figure></div>



<p>Kardashian West sold 20% of KKW Beauty to publicly traded Coty in a deal that closed in January, and took home $180 million pre-tax. Kardashian West still has a 72% stake, worth an estimated $500 million. The new partners plan to enter new beauty categories together and expand overseas. In the works: a skincare line set to launch in fiscal year 2022. Kardashian West filed for divorce from Kanye West, her husband of seven years, in February; the couple had signed a pre-nup. </p>



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Rihanna</h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-1024x705.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50133" width="491" height="338" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-1024x705.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-300x206.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-768x529.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-1536x1057.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-2048x1410.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-600x413.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 491px) 100vw, 491px" /><figcaption>. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for BET)</figcaption></figure></div>



<p>The pop star has made the bulk of her fortune from Fenty Beauty, the makeup brand she started with LVMH in September 2017. <em>Forbes</em> estimates that LVMH owns 50% and she owns 15%, or $450 million worth, of the $3 billion (est. value) brand. Fashion house Fenty, which she launched less than two years ago as a joint venture with LVMH, has been less successful. Following a decline in business at Rihanna’s Fenty clothing line, LVMH said it is halting the luxury fashion house after less than two years of operation. Rihanna also has a roughly $80 millionstake in lingerie line, Savage x Fenty, a joint venture launched in 2018 with TechStyle Fashion Group. Investors in the business include L Catterton and Jay-Z’s Marcy Venture Partners. </p>



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Kanye West </h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-47745" width="413" height="275" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-scaled-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-scaled-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 413px) 100vw, 413px" /><figcaption>. (Photo by Timothy Norris/Getty Images for Coachella)</figcaption></figure></div>



<p>In a deal perhaps more reminiscent of Michael Jordan’s partnership with Nike or rapper Diddy’s Ciroc vodka with liquor giant Diageo, West gets much of his money from a profit sharing agreement with Adidas.&nbsp; West owns 100% of his super popular sneaker brand Yeezy. But it’s a complicated deal in which Adidas handles all the production, marketing and distribution, and West receives a royalty of approximately 11% of Yeezy revenue. Based on estimated revenues of $1.3 billion in 2019, West likely received royalties of over $140 million.&nbsp; That was more than either Jordan, who earned $130 million from his cut of Air Jordan sales, or Diddy, who pocketed $50 million, the bulk of his earnings, in beverage partnerships, mostly from Ciroc. Based on the royalty stream,&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;valued West’s business at nearly $1.3 billion.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<p><em>Additional reporting by&nbsp;</em><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/madelineberg/"><em>Madeline Berg</em></a><em>.</em></p>


2020 Roc Nation THE BRUNCH – Inside

Here’s How Much Jay-Z Made On His Ace Of Spades Deal—And How It Stacks Up Against Other Celebrity Cashouts


<p>Hip hop heavyweight and unlikely presidential candidate <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/kanye-west/#99f4e0256f16">Kanye West</a> has released a religion-steeped campaign ad that calls for voters to write his name in on their ballots and urges Americans to “revive our nation’s commitment to faith,” as West says in the spot.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h4>



<p>With less than a month to go until Election Day, West dropped a new nearly one-minute-and-30-second advertisement that heavily featured the themes of prayer and religion.</p>



<p>“We as a people will revive our nation’s commitment to faith, to what our constitution calls the free exercise of religion, including, of course, prayer,” West says in the ad. “Through prayer, faith can be restored.”</p>



<p>West, a devout Christian, has been open about his beliefs throughout his relatively short run for president—he even reportedly asked political to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2020/09/16/kanye-west-reportedly-asked-campaign-staffers-to-refrain-from-fornicating-outside-marriage/#35d914334736">refrain from extramarital sex</a>&nbsp;while working on his campaign.</p>



<p>“By turning to faith, we will be the kind of nation, the kind of people, God intends us to be,” West said in the ad.</p>



<p>At the end of the ad, the written message to “<a href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1315766834046541825?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">write in Kanye West</a>” appears to be a concession to the fact that it is mathematically impossible for him to win the election because of his campaign’s late start in July, which has allowed him to qualify for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/elanagross/2020/09/08/kanye-west-now-on-ballot-in-12-states-after-qualifying-in-mississippi/#72023207712c">the ballot</a>&nbsp;in just a handful of states.</p>



<p>During an August interview with <em>Forbes</em>, when the fact was raised that it was virtually impossible for him to win, West replied, “I’m not going to argue with you. <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2020/08/06/exclusive-kanye-west-indicates-that-his-spoiler-campaign-is-indeed-designed-to-hurt-biden/#52b7744c6397">Jesus is King</a>.”</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1315766834046541825?s=20
</div></figure>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h4>



<p>“We as a people are called to a greater purpose than ourselves. We are not only a beacon to the world, but we should be servants to each other,” West said in the ad. “To encourage each other, to help each other, to lift up each other. Our fellow Americans, that we may all prosper together. We have to act on faith.”</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1314407219434196993?s=20
</div></figure>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h4>



<p><em>Forbes</em> estimates West is worth <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/kanye-west/#99f4e0256f16">$1.3 billion</a>, thanks largely to his profitable Yeezy brand deal with sportswear giant Adidas and his separate Yeezy clothing line.</p>



<p><em>-By Carlie Porterfield, Forbes Staff</em></p>


US-PEOPLE-politics-RACE-TRUMP-KANYE

Kanye West Angles For Write-In Presidential Votes With Campaign Ad Calling For Religious Revival


<p>Japanese designer Kenzo Takada has died at age 81 after battling Covid-19-related complications. The designer passed away on Sunday evening at the American Hospital, near Paris, France.</p>



<p>Tributes have poured in for the designer, who made his debut in 1970 and over the years grew Kenzo into a globally recognized brand and fashion house.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/bernard-arnault/#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20world's%20ultimate,biggest%20luxury%20brand%20acquisition%20ever.">Bernard Arnault</a>, LVMH chairman, said in a statement that he was “very sad to learn about his passing,” expressing sympathy for Takada’s family and friends, adding, “Kenzo Takada has, from the 1970s, infused into fashion a tone of poetic lightness and sweet freedom, which inspired many designers after him. In this fresh and spontaneous spirit, he also durably renewed the world of perfume.”</p>



<p>LVMH acquired Kenzo in an $80 million deal in August 1993, the year of its acquisition. Kenzo’s sales hit $144 million, according to United Press International. Takada left the group in 1999.</p>



<p>Jonathan Bouchet Manheim, CEO of K-3, Takada’s new lifestyle brand launched in 2020, said, “Kenzo Takada was incredibly creative; with a stroke of genius, he imagined a new artistic and colorful story combining East and West—his native Japan and his life in Paris,” he said in an emailed statement to<em> Forbes</em>.</p>



<p>Adding, “I had the chance to work alongside him for many years, always in awe, admiring his curiosity and his open-mindedness. He seemed quiet and shy at first, but he was full of humor.</p>



<p>“He was generous and always knew how to look after the people close to his heart. He had a zest for life . . . Kenzo Takada was the epitome of the art of living.”</p>



<h4 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading"><strong>The Rise of Kenzo</strong></h4>



<p>Born in Himeji, Japan, in 1939, Takada studied literature before dropping out and becoming one of the first male students at Bunka Fashion College, Tokyo, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/04/style/kenzo-takada-dead.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimes" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>New York Times</em></a>&nbsp;profile. He told the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/a5eea252-140e-11e9-a168-d45595ad076d" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Financial Times</em></a>&nbsp;in 2019, “I was once told that it was impossible for a Japanese man to work in the fashion industry in Paris . . . Men weren’t allowed into design schools. Being creative was not accepted in Japanese society in the 1950s. And more than anything, my parents opposed the idea of me working in fashion.”</p>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-1024x682.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-48251" width="303" height="202" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-600x399.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 303px) 100vw, 303px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Anthony Ghnassia/Getty Images For Roger Vivier)</figcaption></figure></div>



<p>His first fashion house was impishly named “Jungle Jap” and was formed after his flat was leveled to make way for the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, the compensation from which allowed him to travel to Paris. After first selling sketches to other designers, he launched his first Paris boutique, later rebranding the fashion label as Kenzo in New York in 1976.</p>



<p>Takada described his own early style as floral patterns, kimonos and textiles, and drawing on the “strong presence of nature in Japanese art,” he told the&nbsp;<em>FT</em>.</p>



<p>As the house grew and grew, Kenzo launched a men’s collection in 1983, followed by a fragrance line in 1988. Kenzo sold the business to LVMH in 1993 following shifts in the industry, and the death of his partner, Xavier de Castella, in 1990, “I decided to sell the company for various reasons . . . It was becoming more commercial. Fashion was changing, the pace was changing,” he told the&nbsp;<em>FT</em>, staying on as designer but stepping away amicably in 1999.</p>



<h4 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading"><strong>Tributes</strong></h4>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-1024x936.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-48252" width="412" height="376" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-1024x936.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-300x274.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-768x702.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-1536x1405.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-600x549.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776.jpg 1707w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 412px) 100vw, 412px" /><figcaption>Kenzo Takada and Naomi Campbell attend the &#8220;Azzedine Alaia : Je Suis Couturier&#8221; Exhibition as part of Paris Fashion Week.  (Photo by Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>



<p>Supermodel Naomi Campbell said on Instagram, “So sad to hear of your loss today . . . will always remember your smile and humble demeanor . . . and positivity you shined on us all.” </p>



<p>Billionaire <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/francois-pinault/#190b8d374d20">François-Henri Pinault</a>, described Takada as “one of the creative spirits who contributed to making Paris the capital of fashion. His fashion resembled him: at the crossroads of cultures, creative, joyful and generous,” <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://wwd.com/fashion-news/designer-luxury/kenzo-takada-dies-at-81-of-covid-related-complications-1234621609/" target="_blank"><em>WWD</em></a> reported yesterday.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1313594106942160896?s=20
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https://twitter.com/pam_boy/status/1312789669231366149?s=20
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<p>Felipe Oliveira Baptista, artistic director at Kenzo, said, “It is with great sadness that I have learned the passing away of Mr. Kenzo Takada. His amazing energy, kindness and talent were contagious. His kindred spirit will live forever. Rest in peace, Master.”&nbsp;</p>



<p>Takada’s death falls as Paris prepares for Fashion Week 2020 amid a tightening of lockdown measures as the number of Covid cases soars again in France.</p>



<p><em>-By David Dawkins, Forbes Staff</em></p>


FRANCE-JAPAN-FASHION-KENZO-PORTRAIT-BLACK AND WHITE

Kenzo Takada Dies After Covid-19 Battle–Bernard Arnault Mourns Designer’s ‘Fresh And Spontaneous Spirit’


<p>After deleting a tweet Monday declaring that he would not release new music until he is released from his contracts with Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Universal, Kanye West on Tuesday shared a screenshot of what appeared to be a text message conversation with an unnamed advisor who proposed potential game plans and claimed West’s masters are worth more than Taylor Swift’s. </p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h5>



<p>West, who has been open about his diagnosis as bipolar,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/9448889/kanye-west-not-releasing-music-sony-universal-contracts" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tweeted</a>&nbsp;he’s &#8220;not putting no more music out till I’m done with my contract with Sony and Universal.</p>



<p>&#8220;West demanded to see “everybody’s contracts” at Sony and Universal and said he would not “watch my people be enslaved” and would put his “life on the line” for them, comparing the music industry and the NBA to “modern day slave ships” and himself to Moses.&nbsp;</p>



<p>West&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1305865222473777152/photo/1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tweeted</a>&nbsp;Tuesday that he had not heard from Universal or Sony and that it was “go time,” including the apparent conversation with his advisor who shared three possible strategies.&nbsp;</p>



<p>West’s advisor claimed they could argue that Universal and Sony breached their contract by not supporting West “fully,” noting “this is the lawsuit/termination nuclear option” and would mean they would litigate and ask for his masters as part of a settlement agreement.&nbsp;</p>



<p>West, who&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;this year estimated had become a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2020/04/24/kanye-west-is-now-officially-a-billionaireand-he-really-wants-the-world-to-know/">billionaire</a>, could buy his masters or re-record them, “but if Taylor’s cost $300 million yours would cost a lot more I assume,” the advisor said referring to Scooter Braun’s 2019 acquisition of the label Big Machine Records from Scott Borchetta.</p>



<p>West could also propose a Yeezy Media and Universal joint venture that is “equal and not one sided,” but West replied he is “not open to any form of business with Universal or Sony.”</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1305671043097468928?s=20
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<h5 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h5>



<p>Braun’s Ithaca Holdings last year bought Big Machine Records, which had owned the rights to the master recordings of Swift’s first six albums, reportedly for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/scooter-braun-makes-300-million-deal-for-big-machine-records-11561893008?adobe_mc=MCMID%3D33853874586699366404617219261671207054%7CMCAID%3D%7CMCORGID%3DCB68E4BA55144CAA0A4C98A5%2540AdobeOrg%7CTS%3D1600190992" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$300 million</a>.&nbsp;</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">TANGENT</h5>



<p>Swift, who signed with Big Machine Records in 2005 when she was 15 years old, said she learned about the label’s sale when everyone else did. In a Tumblr&nbsp;<a href="https://taylorswift.tumblr.com/post/185958366550/for-years-i-asked-pleaded-for-a-chance-to-own-my?mod=article_inline" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">post</a>, she said she had “pleaded” for a chance to own her work for years and knew it was likely that Borchetta would sell the label. She said she felt betrayed that he sold it to Braun, who she said bullied her for years, sometimes alongside West. She often alludes to it in her new album&nbsp;<em>Folklore</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">BIG NUMBER</h5>



<p>$1.3 billion. That’s West’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/kanye-west/#37b650d056f1">net worth</a>, according to&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. West owns 100% of his fashion brand Yeezy which pulled in an estimated<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/kanye-west/#3986273556f1">&nbsp;$1.3 billion</a>&nbsp;in sales in 2019.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h5>



<p>Watch to see if West moves forward with any of the deals reportedly proposed by his advisor or if he is busy focusing on his&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/elanagross/2020/09/08/kanye-west-now-on-ballot-in-12-states-after-qualifying-in-mississippi/#3a2aacf8712c">presidential campaign</a>. West had previously tweeted that he would release a new album&nbsp;<em>Donda</em>&nbsp;in July.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h5>



<p><a href="https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/9448889/kanye-west-not-releasing-music-sony-universal-contracts" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kanye West Declares Himself ‘New Moses,’ Says He Won’t Release New Music Till Freed From Universal and Sony/ATV Deals</a>&nbsp;(<em>Billboard</em>) &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;</p>



<p><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/scooter-braun-makes-300-million-deal-for-big-machine-records-11561893008?adobe_mc=MCMID%3D33853874586699366404617219261671207054%7CMCAID%3D%7CMCORGID%3DCB68E4BA55144CAA0A4C98A5%2540AdobeOrg%7CTS%3D1600190992" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Scooter Braun Makes $300 Million Deal for Big Machine Records&nbsp;</a>(<em>Wall Street Journal</em>)</p>


2019 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival – Weekend 2 – Day 2

Kanye West Says He Won’t Release Music Until He’s Freed From Contracts, Claims His Masters Worth More Than Taylor Swift’s


<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



<p><strong>In an exclusive interview, the billionaire rapper says he’s “walking for president” as GOP operatives work to get him on state ballots.</strong></p>



<p>Amid&nbsp;various reports&nbsp;that Republican and Trump-affiliated political operatives are trying to get Kanye West onto various state ballots for November’s presidential election, the billionaire rap superstar indicated, in an interview by text today, that he was, in fact, running to siphon votes from the presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden.</p>



<p>Asked about that directly, West said that rather than running for president, he was “walking,” quickly adding that he was “walking . . . to win.”</p>



<p>When it was pointed out that he actually can’t win in 2020—that he won’t be on enough ballots to yield 270 electoral votes, and that a write-in campaign isn’t feasible—and thus was serving as a spoiler, West replied: “I’m not going to argue with you. Jesus is King.”</p>



<p>West rebuffed various attempts to clarify who was driving his ballot access or strategy and whether it’s being coordinated by or with Republican-affiliated officials. He does, however, appear to have a continuing relationship with the Trump White House. West says that he’s “designing a school within the next month” and that “I’m meeting with Betsy DeVos about the post-Covid curriculum.” (The Secretary of Education’s press office hadn’t responded to a request for comment by the time we published.)</p>



<p>“I like Kanye very much,”&nbsp;<a href="https://news.yahoo.com/trump-kanye-wests-presidential-run-224359051.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">President Trump told reporters</a>&nbsp;at the White House yesterday. “No, I have nothing to do with him getting on the ballot. We&#8217;ll have to see what happens.”</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"><p>West says that he’s “designing a school within the next month” and that “I’m meeting with Betsy DeVos about the post-Covid curriculum.”&nbsp;</p></blockquote>



<p>West’s intentions have come under increased scrutiny this week, following reports by CNN,&nbsp;<a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/08/two-people-linked-to-kanye-wests-campaign-have-ties-to-gop.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>New York</em></a>, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/04/us/politics/kanye-west-president-republicans.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>New York Times</em></a>&nbsp;and others, about efforts by GOP political operatives to get him onto several ballots, including states like Wisconsin that could be pivotal in deciding the next president. West has been a vocal Trump supporter, including visiting the president in the Oval Office. Texts from West to me earlier this summer repeatedly ended with the sign-off “Trump 2020,” and a fist raised high. West’s recent actions have also drawn public focus, given his bipolar disorder—and many, including his wife, Kim Kardashian-West, have expressed concern about his mental health.</p>



<p>West did not respond when asked whether he feels he’s being used. When I pointed out to West that the slapdash operation to get him on the ballot, which includes one operative previously arrested for voter fraud and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2020/08/05/rapper-kanye-west-files-ohio-run-president/3298475001/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">multiple West “electors” from the same address</a>, didn’t feel like a Kanye West production, West replied that it was a “God production.”</p>



<p>In a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2020/07/08/kanye-west-says-hes-done-with-trump-opens-up-about-white-house-bid-damaging-biden-and-everything-in-between/#209366cf47aa">wide-ranging interview with&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;last month</a>&nbsp;about his political aspirations, West, who has never voted before, laid out a platform for his “Birthday Party” that included a pro-life plank that alleged that Planned Parenthood was placed in cities by white supremacists, a management style patterned on the fictional country of Wakanda in&nbsp;<em>Black Panther</em>&nbsp;and anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. In that interview, West also claimed that he was dumping Trump. “I am taking the red hat off, with this interview.” His reason: “It looks like one big mess to me. I don’t like that I caught wind that he hid in the bunker.”</p>



<p>However, he was reticent to criticize Trump besides that. “Trump is the closest president we’ve had in years to allowing God to still be part of the conversation,” he said.</p>



<p>And West was eager to criticize Biden, and expressed comfort with the idea of doing damage to the former vice president’s White House chances. “I’m not denying it; I just told you.”</p>



<p><em>-Randall Lane</em>, <em>Forbes Staff</em></p>


Exclusive: Kanye West Indicates That His Spoiler Campaign Is Indeed Designed To Hurt Biden


<p><strong>After years of hints, Kanye West formally announced he is running for president this year in a challenge to Trump, who he once supported, and Democratic rival Joe Biden, winning support from his friend and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.</strong></p>



<p><strong>KEY FACTS</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Rounding off his Fourth of July, West <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1279575273365594112?s=20" target="_blank">tweeted</a> on Saturday night: “We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future. I am running for president of the United States! #2020VISION.”</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Musk<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1279577069005897728?s=20" target="_blank"> tweeted</a> in response: “You have my full support!”</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Wife Kim Kardashian also publicly pledged her support, retweeting West’s statement and adding a U.S. flag <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/KimKardashian/status/1279597399380332544?s=20" target="_blank">emoji</a>.</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>West’s announcement follows years of hints that he would run for office this year which he later postponed to 2024, after publicly declaring at a Fast Company event in 2019: “When I run for president in 2024&#8230;We would create so many jobs! I’m not going to run, I’m going to walk.”</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>But the rapper, who recently <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/pamdanziger/2020/06/28/kanye-west-gives-gap-a-ten-year-lifeline-with-yeezy-partnership-and-gets-what-he-always-wanted/#3db3d12e3dde">inked</a> a 10-year deal with Gap through his Yeezy brand, is reportedly yet to file any paperwork to get on state election ballots, while he has missed the deadline for states including Texas, New York, and Indiana.</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>It is not known how serious West’s intentions are this time around, however, he still has time to <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://ballotpedia.org/Important_dates_in_the_2020_presidential_race" target="_blank">file</a> as an independent candidate across most states, according to Ballotpedia.</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>West’s declaration was met with skepticism on social media, while some commentators pointed out that it could work out in Trump’s favour.</li></ul>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kanye West went from endorsing Trump to claiming he’d run against him —an announcement that benefits the president to the degree it spotlights Biden’s need for black voters &amp; his potential weakness with young voters <a href="https://t.co/0m4PUO6s6a">https://t.co/0m4PUO6s6a</a></p>&mdash; Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcACaputo/status/1279589464491376642?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 5, 2020</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kanye West isn’t really gonna run for President, but his next album will be called Presidential Dropout</p>&mdash; David Gardner (@byDavidGardner) <a href="https://twitter.com/byDavidGardner/status/1279585706432659457?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 5, 2020</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p><strong>KEY BACKGROUND</strong></p>



<p>West’s declaration suggests the rapper is looking to cement political ambitions he has expressed throughout Trump’s presidency. West previously forged alliances with Trump, and was pictured in the Oval Office in 2018 wearing a signature Trump ‘Make America Great Again’ cap. He once called the president his “brother” and previously hit back at criticism towards his support for Trump, likening the backlash to racial discrimination. Although he says he didn’t vote in 2016, West later said he “would have voted for Trump”, and earlier this year doubled down, suggesting he would vote for him in November. But that could very well change given Saturday’s announcement.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="594" height="456" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/gettyimages-1059657306-594x594-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-46417" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/gettyimages-1059657306-594x594-1.jpg 594w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/gettyimages-1059657306-594x594-1-300x230.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 594px) 100vw, 594px" /><figcaption>American rapper and producer Kanye West embraces real estate developer and US President Donald Trump in the White House&#8217;s Oval Office, Washington DC, October 11, 2018. West wears a red baseball cap that reads &#8216;Make America Great Again,&#8217; Trump&#8217;s campaign slogan. (Photo by Ron Sachs/Consolidated News Pictures/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



<p><strong>TANGENT</strong></p>



<p>West and Musk were <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1278353774671802369?s=20" target="_blank">pictured together</a> on July 1st, with West tweeting: “When you go to your boys [sic] house and you’re both wearing orange.”</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1278353774671802369?s=20
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<p><em>&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/isabeltogoh/">Isabel Togoh</a>, Forbes Staff, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/business">Business</a></em></p>


gettyimages-475561248-594×594

Elon Musk, Kim Kardashian Endorse Kanye West Running For President


<p>In what will be the second major Kardashian cashout in a year, Kim Kardashian West is selling a 20% stake in her cosmetics company KKW Beauty to beauty giant Coty&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/companies/coty-inc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">COTY</a>&nbsp;for $200 million. The deal—<a href="https://www.coty.com/in-the-news/press-release/coty-and-kim-kardashian-west-announce-strategic-relationship-expand-beauty" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced today</a>—values KKW Beauty at $1 billion, making Kardashian West worth about $900 million, according to&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>’estimates.</p>



<p>The acquisition, which is set to close in early 2021, will leave Kardashian West the majority owner of KKW Beauty, with an estimated 72% stake in the company, which is known for its color cosmetics like contouring creams and highlighters.&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>estimates that her mother, Kris Jenner, owns 8% of the business. (Neither Kardashian West nor Kris Jenner have responded to a request for comment about their stakes.) According to Coty, she’ll remain responsible for creative efforts while Coty will focus on expanding product development outside the realm of color cosmetics.</p>



<p>Earlier this year, Kardashian West’s half-sister, Kylie Jenner, also inked a big deal with Coty, when she sold it 51% of her Kylie Cosmetics at a valuation of $1.2 billion. The deal left Jenner with a net worth of <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2020/05/29/inside-kylie-jennerss-web-of-lies-and-why-shes-no-longer-a-billionaire/#6e35ef4c25f7">just under $900 million.</a> Both Kylie Cosmetics and KKW Beauty are among a number of brands, including Anastasia Beverly Hills, Huda Beauty and Glossier, that have received sky-high valuations thanks to their social-media-friendly marketing. </p>



<p>“Kim is a true modern-day global icon,” said Coty chairman and CEO Peter Harf in a statement. “This influence, combined with Coty’s leadership and deep expertise in prestige beauty will allow us to achieve the full potential of her brands.”</p>



<p>The deal comes just days after Seed Beauty, which develops, manufactures and ships both KKW Beauty and Kylie Cosmetics, won a temporary injunction against KKW Beauty, hoping to prevent it from sharing trade secrets with Coty, which also owns brands like CoverGirl, Sally Hansen and Rimmel. On June 19, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2020/06/23/the-company-that-makes-kim-kardashians-cosmetics-is-suing-her-to-protect-its-trade-secrets/#1f7f0b0aaac0">Seed filed a lawsuit against KKW Beauty</a> seeking protection of its trade secrets ahead of an expected deal between Coty and KKW Beauty. The temporary order, granted on June 26, lasts until August 21 and forbids KKW Beauty from disclosing details related to the Seed-KKW relationship, including “the terms of those agreements, information about license use, marketing obligations, product launch and distribution, revenue sharing, intellectual property ownership, specifications, ingredients, formulas, plans and other information about Seed products.”</p>



<p>Coty has struggled in recent years, with Wall Street insisting it routinely overpays for acquisitions and has failed to keep up with contemporary beauty trends. The coronavirus pandemic has also hit the 116-year-old company hard. Since the beginning of the year, Coty’s stock price has fallen nearly 60%. The company, which had $8.6 billion in revenues in the year through June 2019, now sports a $3.3 billion market capitalization. By striking deals with companies like KKW Beauty and Kylie Cosmetics, Coty is hoping to refresh its image and appeal to younger consumers.</p>



<p>Kardashian West founded KKW Beauty in 2017, after successfully collaborating with Kylie Cosmetics on a set of lip kits. Like her half-sister, Kardashian West first launched online only, but later moved into Ulta stores in October 2019, helping her generate estimated revenues of $100 million last year. KKW Beauty is one of several business ventures for Kardashian West: She continues to appear on her family’s reality show,&nbsp;<em>Keeping Up with the Kardashians,&nbsp;</em>sells her own line of shapewear called Skims and promotes her mobile game,&nbsp;<em>Kim Kardashian Hollywood.</em>&nbsp;Her husband, Kanye West,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2020/06/26/gap-stock-surges-after-kanye-west-signs-deal-to-sell-a-new-yeezy-clothing-line-with-struggling-retailer/#2807b5361437">recently announced a deal</a>&nbsp;to sell a line of his Yeezy apparel in Gap stores.</p>



<p>“This is fun for me. Now I’m coming up with Kimojis and the app and all these other ideas,” Kardashian West <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2016/07/11/kim-kardashian-mobile-mogul-the-forbes-cover-story/#46bf36907e4f">told <em>Forbes</em></a>of her various business ventures in 2016. “I don’t see myself stopping.”</p>



<p><em>&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/">Madeline Berg</a>, Forbes Staff, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/hollywood-entertainment">Hollywood &amp; Entertainment</a></em></p>


gettyimages-1094653148-594×594

Kim Kardashian West Is Worth $900 Million After Agreeing To Sell A Stake In Her Cosmetics Firm To Coty


<p>The Ye Effect may be the new Oprah Effect: This morning Kanye West’s fashion and shoe company Yeezy and clothing retailer Gap&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/companies/gap" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">GPS</a>&nbsp;announced a ten-year partnership for a Yeezy Gap clothing line.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Yeezy Gap will hit stores next year with a line of “modern, elevated basics for men, women and kids at accessible price points,” according to a statement from both partners announcing the news. West will receive an undisclosed percentage of royalties and, potentially, an equity stake, dependent on sales achievements.</p>



<p>Shares of Gap, which has struggled over the past five years to keep up with fast fashion retailers, surged nearly 40% when markets opened Friday morning in response to the news, but then tapered off. As of shortly after 1:50 pm ET, the stock was trading at $12.50, up 22% from Thursday’s close. The deal is welcome news for the retailer, whose namesake brand has lost its iconic status, and, <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/39911/000003991120000069/q1202010-qdocument.htm" target="_blank">as of earlier this month</a>, had cash flow of negative $1.1 billion compared to negative $136 million last year.</p>



<p>“Gap has been a challenge for us,” Gap CEO Sonia Syngal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/andriacheng/2020/06/04/another-sign-gap-brand-is-losing-its-relevance-and-dont-blame-it-on-coronavirus/#153b5fd12645">said on a conference call</a>&nbsp;earlier this month, adding that “years of inconsistent execution have depleted brand health.” Other brands under the Gap umbrella include Banana Republic, Old Navy and Athleta.</p>



<p>Years ago, West, who worked at a Gap store in Chicago as a teenager, expressed interest in partnering with the brand, whose product is quite different from his pricey Yeezy high-fashion line that sells shoes for more than $1,000 a pair and $925 cardigans.</p>



<p>“I’d like to be the Steve Jobs of the Gap,” he said in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thecut.com/2015/02/kanye-sees-himself-as-the-robin-hood-of-fashion.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2015 interview</a>&nbsp;on the now defunct Style.com. “I’m not talking about a capsule. I’m talking about full Hedi Slimane creative control of the Gap.”</p>



<p>But last year the rapper and designer, who is known to often change course,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/07/09/kanyes-second-coming-inside-the-billion-dollar-yeezy-empire/#273fd54d5ec3">told&nbsp;</a><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/07/09/kanyes-second-coming-inside-the-billion-dollar-yeezy-empire/#273fd54d5ec3"><em>Forbes</em></a>that&nbsp; “What makes celebrity products sell so well is scarcity. &#8230; So if they make it too broadly available, I think it crashes the business model.”</p>



<p>That said, the Yeezy clothing line wasn’t selling “so well.” While his deal with Adidas to sell Yeezy shoes makes up&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2020/04/24/kanye-west-is-now-officially-a-billionaireand-he-really-wants-the-world-to-know/#4111f4c87b9e">the bulk of his $1.3 billion fortune</a>—<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>estimates that his stake of the partnership is worth $1.26 billion—the Yeezy fashion line has struggled. His high-fashion line, meanwhile, is nothing more than a rounding error when it comes to his net worth.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Partnering with a celebrity has been good—at least initially—for the stock of other companies.&nbsp; When Oprah Winfrey announced she was partnering with and investing in WW (then Weight Watchers) in 2015, its stock&nbsp;<a href="http://forbes.com/sites/laurengensler/2015/10/19/weight-watchers-oprah-winfrey/#e5073c6c6c68" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">surged 92%</a>. Earlier this month, shares of the beauty giant Coty&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/companies/coty-inc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">COTY</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/coty-stock-jumps-after-possible-collaboration-with-kim-kardashian-announced-2020-06-03#:~:text=COTY%2C%20%2D6.88%25%20shares%20jumped,line%20is%20called%20Kylie%20Cosmetics." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">rose 7%</a>&nbsp;when it announced that it was potentially pursuing a partnership with West’s wife, Kim Kardashian West.</p>



<p>&nbsp;It’s too early to say whether West’s Yeezy line can&nbsp; help turn Gap around for good, but it will be another chance for him to do what he loves.</p>



<p>“I am a product guy at my core,” West told <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/07/09/kanyes-second-coming-inside-the-billion-dollar-yeezy-empire/#2d4d7a4b5ec3"><em>Forbes </em>last year</a>. “To make products that make people feel an immense amount of joy and solve issues and problems in their life, that’s the problem-solving that I love to do.”</p>



<p><em>&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/">Madeline Berg</a>, Forbes Staff, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/hollywood-entertainment">Hollywood &amp; Entertainment</a></em></p>


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Gap Stock Surges After Kanye West Signs Deal To Sell A New Yeezy Clothing Line With Struggling Retailer


<p><strong>After months of requests, the hip-hop superstar shared financial records, revealing details about his wildly popular Yeezy sneaker empire — and his fixation on outside validation.</strong></p>



<p>When last we checked in with Kanye West, the mercurial hip-hop superstar-turned-footwear magnate, I was tiptoeing through a parking lot crop circle composed of hundreds of pairs of his Yeezy sneakers. “I’m not a numbers guy,” he explained ten months ago. “To ask me to somehow translate this to numbers is to ask your grandmother exactly what the recipe of the cake was.”</p>



<p>There’s only one number that West cares about. A billion, as in dollars. And he cares&nbsp;<em>a lot</em>.</p>



<p>When we featured West on the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/07/09/kanyes-second-coming-inside-the-billion-dollar-yeezy-empire/">cover</a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;last summer, delving into his incredible success with Yeezy, he seemed pleased at first. His world-famous wife, Kim Kardashian West, even&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/KimKardashian/status/1148660167254274048?s=20" target="_blank">tweeted</a>&nbsp;her congratulations, to the positive affirmations of 32,300 of their closest Twitter friends.But without sufficient documentation on his unusual stake, versus just his word and industry guesstimates, we didn’t call him a billionaire. And that grated on him.&nbsp;As the year wore on, he protested&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/christian-genius-billionaire-kanye-west-talks-2024-presidential-candidacy-moving-yeezy-stateside-1253358" target="_blank">publicly</a>. (“I showed them a $890 million receipt, and they still didn’t say ‘billionaire,’” he told an industry panel, about something that no one at&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;remembers.) In private, he was more biting. (A “disrespectful article,” he texted this week, that was “purposely snubbing me.”)</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="783" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Kanye-on-forbes-783x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-44642" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Kanye-on-forbes-783x1024.jpg 783w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Kanye-on-forbes-300x392.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Kanye-on-forbes-600x784.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Kanye-on-forbes-229x300.jpg 229w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Kanye-on-forbes-768x1004.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Kanye-on-forbes.jpg 960w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 783px) 100vw, 783px" /><figcaption>After months of requests, the hip-hop superstar shared his financial records, revealing details on his wildly popular Yeezy sneakers empire—and his own net worth.<br>&nbsp;<small>JAMEL TOPPIN FOR FORBES</small></figcaption></figure>



<p>When our annual&nbsp;<a href="http://www.forbes.com/billionaires">billionaires list</a>&nbsp;appeared earlier this month, again with West absent—still no documentation, and now a pandemic to boot—West again reacted with hurt and venom. “You know what you’re doing,” he texted. “You’re toying with me and I’m not finna lye [sic] down and take it anymore in Jesus name.” At one point, he texted that&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;was “purposely a part of a group of media” that was trying to suppress his self-made narrative because of his race.&nbsp;That sister-in-law Kylie Jenner did make the list also clearly stuck in his craw.</p>



<p>Then yesterday, a breakthrough: West directed his team to provide what we feel is an authentic numeric look into Kanye, Inc.</p>



<p>Three things became clear from this exercise. First, it reinforces why we put him on the cover in the first place—West, in just a few years, has created a brand that’s challenging Nike’s Air Jordan for sneaker world supremacy. It’s one of the great retail stories of the century.</p>



<p>Second, it reinforced that West, who claims both in words and in this paperwork that he’s worth more than $3 billion, is as overly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2015/09/29/inside-the-epic-fantasy-thats-driven-donald-trump-for-33-years/#225d05ca2037">boastful</a>&nbsp;as his political idol, President Donald Trump. Not a numbers guy? We agree.</p>



<p>Finally, and perhaps most critically to West, it does confirm, based on our estimates, that his stake in Yeezy indeed makes him a billionaire. A bit over $1 billion, actually.</p>



<p>In the process, we can now share more details about Yeezy than ever before revealed—as well as some insight into what drives this extremely creative, extremely enigmatic ten-digit artist.</p>



<p>Yeezy is a complicated asset. West owns 100% of it. But it’s functionally tied, at least for five-plus years based on the documents we saw, to Adidas, which produces, markets and distributes the shoes. There’s also a separate apparel division that we don’t believe makes money. Last year, our sources projected the shoes would finish 2019 with revenue north of $1.5 billion (Adidas would not comment then, or now)—per recent conversations and internal documents, we believe the final revenue number ended up closer to $1.3 billion.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<iframe loading="lazy" title="How Kanye West Became A Billionaire | Forbes" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JRc5VhdMiRk?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<p>Our sources told us last year that West’s agreement calls for him to receive a royalty around 15% of Yeezy revenue from Adidas. Upon closer inspection, it appears some expenses are carved out of that slice, bringing his actual cut closer to 11%. At that rate, he would have received royalties of over $140 million from Yeezy sales last year.&nbsp;</p>



<p>West’s aggressive $3 billion self-appraisal is clearly based on the idea that the business is infinitely portable. It’s not. Taking Yeezy away from Adidas seems almost prohibitively cumbersome, if not contractually impossible. A safer way to value it: as a royalty stream, like music publishing or film residuals. Multiples, based on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/05/08/royalty-exchange-cardi-b-jay-z-beyonce-timberlake/#6fd9ea346364">services</a>&nbsp;like Royalty Exchange or in large private transactions, can be as low as three for something faddish like Cardi B’s “Bodak Yellow” to 17 for an evergreen asset like the Eddie Murphy film&nbsp;<em>Trading Places</em>.&nbsp;</p>



<p>A handful of experts surveyed felt West’s interest would fetch a multiple somewhere in the middle of that range, were it ever made available to outside investors. The convenience of the Adidas setup trumps publishing catalogs, where owners must actively collect payments from a complex web of sources—or outsource that labor to someone else in exchange for an administration fee. “His place in the capital stack is a preferred place to be,” says Royalty Exchange chief Matt Smith, who pegged the multiple at between 10 and 12.</p>



<p>Conservatively, as we typically are with such figures, a 10x multiple, applied to West’s Yeezy cut of $140 million, makes his stake worth about $1.4 billion. But that’s a private, highly illiquid $1.4 billion—our rule-of-thumb for private assets like that is to lop off at least 10%.&nbsp;That’s $1.26 billion.</p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezy-1024x785.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-44643" width="678" height="519" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezy-1024x785.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezy-300x230.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezy-600x460.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezy-768x588.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezy-1536x1177.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezy.jpg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 678px) 100vw, 678px" /></figure></div>



<p>A handful of experts surveyed felt West’s interest would fetch a multiple somewhere in the middle of that range, were it ever made available to outside investors. The convenience of the Adidas setup trumps publishing catalogs, where owners must actively collect payments from a complex web of sources—or outsource that labor to someone else in exchange for an administration fee. “His place in the capital stack is a preferred place to be,” says Royalty Exchange chief Matt Smith, who pegged the multiple at between 10 and 12.</p>



<p>Conservatively, as we typically are with such figures, a 10x multiple, applied to West’s Yeezy cut of $140 million, makes his stake worth about $1.4 billion. But that’s a private, highly illiquid $1.4 billion—our rule-of-thumb for private assets like that is to lop off at least 10%.&nbsp;That’s $1.26 billion.</p>



<p>Customized real estate often sells for less than the money put in (buyers in that range tend to want their own features, versus Kanye’s Belgian plaster). If you want to start scraping, there’s $3,845,162 for “vehicles,” $297,050 for “livestocks.” Then there’s the matter of his music. Documents we reviewed show West’s G.O.O.D. label—and his own recorded music and publishing rights—to be worth at least $90 million.</p>



<p>We tend to look at self-appraisals somewhat skeptically.&nbsp;Aside from the music, half of all this presumably belongs to his wife, although she’s no slouch and that math goes two ways. Given the illiquidity of these myriad assets and the lack of independent backup, we’re giving all of this a 50% haircut, leaving about $125 million in assets outside of his Yeezy crown jewel.&nbsp;Then, there’s debt: Between mortgages, advances and other liabilities, we saw about $100 million that West is on the hook for.</p>



<p>All told, our current net worth estimate for Kanye West: $1.3 billion, which he’ll be pleased to note is $300 million more than little sister Kylie.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezys.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-44644" width="540" height="304" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezys.jpg 960w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezys-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezys-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/yeezys-768x432.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px" /></figure>



<p>The chip on West’s shoulder dates back to his early days growing up in Chicago, where teachers sometimes scolded him for sketching sneaker designs instead of doing his schoolwork. He later produced songs for Jay-Z but felt the elder mogul didn’t view him seriously as a solo act. Over the past decade, West instigated more than his share of narcissistic episodes, including a self-appointed nickname, tour and album,&nbsp;<em>Yeezus</em>, that never seemed to treat his savior complex with much irony. (Typical song: “I Am A God.”)</p>



<p>When viewed through that lens, his famous affinity for President Trump makes a lot of sense. (And it continues unabated—one text to&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>’ chief content officer this week ended with “Trump 2020” and a raised fist emoji.) As does West’s net worth lobbying—an art practiced, with gusto, for decades, by Trump.</p>



<p>“It’s not a billion,” West texted us last night. “It’s $3.3 billion since no one at&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;knows how to count.”</p>



<p>For years,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2018/04/20/the-5-things-to-know-about-president-trumps-36-year-relationship-with-the-forbes-400/"><em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;had an informal “Trump rule”</a>—take whatever the future president insisted he was worth, divide by 3, and start honing from there. Like mentor,&nbsp;like mentee. Welcome to the ten-digit club, Kanye. You may not like our number, but you’ve joined the highest company in that regard.&nbsp;</p>



<p><em>&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/">Zack O&#8217;Malley Greenburg</a>, Forbes Staff, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/hollywood-entertainment">Hollywood &amp; Entertainment</a></em></p>



<p><em>Additional reporting by Randall Lane</em></p>


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Kanye West Is Now Officially A Billionaire—And He Really Wants The World To Know

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Kanye West’s Second Coming: Inside The Billion-Dollar Yeezy Empire


<p><strong>Back in 2007,</strong>&nbsp;Jay-Z made a bold statement&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2010/12/14/jay-z-50-cent-and-diddy-i-get-money-forbes-1-2-3-billion-dollar-remix/#283e75c86ec2" target="_blank">in song</a>&nbsp;about both his lyrical prowess and his future financial fortunes: “I’m already the G.O.A.T.–next stop is the billie.”</p>



<p>Sure enough,&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/06/03/jay-z-billionaire-worth/#70f0b90d3a5f" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">declared</a>&nbsp;him hip-hop’s first billionaire earlier this month. The news caught the attention of observers around the world—not only due to the breadth of Jay-Z’s financial achievement, but because of what it means for others looking to follow in his footsteps.</p>



<p>“Jay-Z’s entire life is the real blueprint,” says hip-hop pioneer Fab 5 Freddy, longtime host of the show&nbsp;<em>Yo! MTV Raps</em>. “He’s one of the best examples in our lifetime of one who’s truly achieved the American dream and billionaire status.”</p>



<p>Naturally, Jay-Z tops this year’s ranking of hip-hop’s richest stars. Who will be the next billionaire from the rap world? The answer is almost certainly one of the names below.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5d010d70142c50000a32b592/960x0.jpg?cropX1=1&amp;cropX2=4689&amp;cropY1=693&amp;cropY2=3126" alt="richest rappers Drake"/><figcaption>GETTY IMAGES</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>5. Drake</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>$150 million</strong></h3>



<p>The 32-year-old Canadian is the youngest on this list by a decade, but he’s quickly gaining ground on hip-hop’s elder statesmen. Drake’s fortune grew 50% over the past year, boosted by holdings ranging from real estate to his Virginia Black whiskey, as well as a lucrative tour and new residency at the XS Nightclub in Las Vegas.</p>



<p>“Every year, we just want to get more prepared and better at touring and better at things that make money,” he&nbsp;told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;in 2013 (his average gross has since surged from $500,000 to more than $2 million per stop). “That’s pretty much my objective every year, other than making good music.”</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5d010dbe4c687b0008596731/960x0.jpg?cropX1=4&amp;cropX2=4698&amp;cropY1=679&amp;cropY2=3122" alt="richest rappers Kanye"/><figcaption>GETTY IMAGES</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>4. Kanye West</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>$240 million</strong></h3>



<p>A onetime protégé of Jay-Z, the superproducer has been making headlines recently for his Sunday Service, an invitation-only get-together mostly in Southern California that is&nbsp;reportedly&nbsp;frequented by the likes of Courtney Love and Tyler, the Creator. He took the show on the road in April for a Coachella service on Easter Sunday featuring appearances by Chance the Rapper, DMX and a gospel choir—while&nbsp;hawking&nbsp;socks and “holy spirit” sweatshirts. But selling church clothes alone won’t be enough to push West into ten-figure territory.</p>



<p>Despite&nbsp;declaring&nbsp;himself $53 million in debt and beseeching Mark Zuckerberg for $1 billion to fund future creations in 2016, West makes his debut on this list thanks to a another patron: Adidas, which lured West and his Yeezy shoe line from Nike several years ago. Our accounting of West’s wealth is almost entirely predicated on a conservative estimate of that brand’s value. As it continues to scale up, he could one day join his sister-in-law, Kylie Jenner, as a billionaire.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5d010ee84c687b0008596780/960x0.jpg?cropX1=1&amp;cropX2=4697&amp;cropY1=804&amp;cropY2=3128" alt="richest rappers Diddy"/><figcaption>GETTY IMAGES</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>3. Diddy</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>$740 million</strong></h3>



<p>“I started my business career at age 12, delivering newspapers,” Diddy explained two years ago in our centennial issue, where we named him one of the world’s greatest living business minds. “Since then, I’ve always understood that if I give the customers my best and service them differently, whether music, clothing or vodka, I’ll get a return on my hard work.”</p>



<p>The artist formerly known as Puff Daddy dips to No. 3 on this list as industry trends weigh on some of his holdings, including cable network Revolt and clothing line Sean John (though Diddy has sold much of his stake in the latter, he retains a sizeable piece). But Ciroc, the main driver of his fortune, is growing again after case volumes fell from all-time highs in recent years—making the impresario perhaps the most likely candidate to join Jay-Z in the billion-dollar club.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5d010e3234a5c40008482a48/960x0.jpg?cropX1=0&amp;cropX2=4695&amp;cropY1=603&amp;cropY2=3131" alt="richest rappers dr dre"/><figcaption>GETTY IMAGES</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2. Dr. Dre</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>$800 million</strong></h3>



<p>It’s been five years since Dr. Dre proclaimed himself a billionaire, but&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>still doesn’t agree with the assessment made in the wake of Apple’s $3 billion 2014 purchase of his Beats By Dr. Dre headphone line. The superproducer owned an estimated 20%-25% of the company at the time; of the $2.6 billion Apple paid upfront in cash, another $295 million was&nbsp;earmarked&nbsp;to cover debt payments, leaving Dre with a little over $500 million.</p>



<p>Even with the vesting of his final slug of Apple stock last summer, Dre hasn’t quite made it into billionaire territory. He has spent heavily over the years on property (he&nbsp;paid&nbsp;$40 million for Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen’s Los Angeles estate) and charitable donations (along with Beats cofounder Jimmy Iovine, he&nbsp;gave&nbsp;$70 million to start a school at USC). And with his formal involvement at Apple seemingly wrapping up, Dre will likely need to get back on the festival circuit—or start a new company—if he’s to make good on his 2014 declaration.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5d010e694c687b0008596774/960x0.jpg?cropX1=10&amp;cropX2=4698&amp;cropY1=739&amp;cropY2=3130" alt="richest rappers jay-z"/><figcaption>GETTY IMAGES</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>1. Jay-Z</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>$1 billion</strong></h3>



<p>Though he’s hip-hop’s first billionaire, Jay-Z’s lead on the rest of the pack is even larger if his entire family fortune is taken into consideration: He and wife Beyoncé are now worth a combined $1.4 billion. So much for the notion that music is a dying business.</p>



<p>“To convince artists that you can’t be an artist and make money … was the greatest trick in music that people ever pulled off,” Jay-Z&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/1011/rich-list-10-omaha-warren-buffett-jay-z-steve-forbes-summit-interview.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>in 2010. “I think the people that were making the millions said that.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Methodology</strong></h3>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading"><em>In order to compile our ranking of the richest rappers, we use the same procedures employed in the calculation of our annual&nbsp;billionaires list: poring over financial documents, valuing major assets, and consulting with analysts, managers, attorneys and other industry insiders.</em></h5>



<p><em>Cover photographs: Getty Images (Dr. Dre: AP Images)</em></p>



<p><em>-Zack O&#8217;Malley Greenburg; Forbes Staff</em> </p>


Tag: kanye west

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