Kanye West has long been known for making controversial statements. Whether on social media or through his fashion or in a presidential campaign, people are used to him speaking his mind on a number of topics. But over the past few weeks, Ye has started to be held accountable for what he says, and after losing some business deals and now potentially facing a $250 million lawsuit from George Floyd’s family, the rapper might be in need of some serious legal help, and he’s reportedly found that in Johnny Depp’s now-famous attorney Camille Vasquez.
TMZ reports that Kanye West has hired Camille Vasquez and the Brown Rudnick firm to allegedly handle his business affairs. Vasquez gained fame by representing the Pirates of the Caribbean actor during the six-week spectacle that was the Amber Heard defamation trial. In September, a jury ruled in favor of Johnny Depp, and his ex-wife was ordered to pay $10 million in damages. As of this writing, a representative for Vasquez had not responded to TMZ for comment.
In September, the “True Love” singer hired his sixth lawyer — Melinda Gates’ former attorney Robert Stephan Cohen — in his ongoing divorce proceedings with Kim Kardashian, and it was reported that Camille Vasquez will not be involved in that.
Several controversies have caused trouble for the rapper in recent weeks. He caused drama at a Yeezy fashion show by wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt, which caused backlash from many, including Vogue editor Gabriella Karefa-Johnson and models Gigi Hadid and Hailey Bieber, and caused Adidas put its deal with Kanye West under review.
On October 7, the rapper made an appearance on Fox News’ Tucker Carlson Tonight in which he reportedly made anti-Semitic comments. Similar controversial statements on social media led to his Instagram account being restricted, and Howard Stern had some strong thoughts about Ye’s antics being excused due to his bipolar diagnosis.
Ye then appeared on the Drink Champs podcast, where he made claims about George Floyd’s 2020 murder, in which Floyd died after then-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nine-and-a-half minutes. Ye argued that the former officer “wasn't even on his neck like that,” and that fentanyl was the true cause of Floyd’s death.
Revolt TV has pulled the podcast episode from the air, but a lot of damage was already done. As well as possibly being sued for defamation to the tune of $250 million, Kanye West also lost his partnership with Balenciaga, with the brand’s parent company Kering releasing a statement saying (via WWD):
Balenciaga has no longer any relationship nor any plans for future projects related to this artist.
That is quite a lot of mess that Kanye West has gotten himself into, and while Kim Kardashian has helped her ex navigate tough situations in the past, it seems this time she’s keeping her distance, and is even getting support from ex-boyfriend Pete Davidson. Maybe Ye’s alleged hiring of Camille Vasquez is his new way of bringing in the big guns.
