Kanye West has run into legal difficulties after mocking a Vogue editor with a photo he shared online.
Unending Troubles For Ye
According to court records acquired by TMZ, the photographer Michaela Efford, who claims West copied one of her photos without compensating her or obtaining her permission, is suing the 46-year-old rapper.
Gabriella Karefa-Johnson was captured in the picture, and West, who recently appeared to put his spat with Ice Cube to rest, uploaded the picture on his Instagram to make fun of her attire.
Karefa-Johnson is believed to have sparked the social media outburst by criticizing West for dressing himself and models in a T-shirt that said “White Lives Matter.”
She labeled the shirt and the program it appeared in at the time as “indefensible behavior” in her Instagram Stories.
She later acknowledged that the rapper might have wanted the shirts and his fashion presentation to be a Marcel Duchamp-inspired act of button-pushing, but she didn’t think it was at all successful.
So Many Crits Scattered Online
She subsequently wrote, “It didn’t land, and it was deeply offensive, violent, and dangerous.”
The measured criticism, however, didn’t sit well with West, who then tried to make fun of Karefa-Johnson’s looks, sense of style, and perhaps even her qualifications as a professional.
The Monster rapper captioned an Instagram photo of the author that Efford is said to own the copyright for, writing, “This is not a fashion person You speak on Ye Ima speak on you Ask Trevor Noah.”
According to her complaint, West posted the image of Karefa-Johnson about a week after she took it in September 2022.
His tweet was made in the midst of a flurry of provocative actions, such as the ‘White Lives Matter’ shirts, which many commenters deemed to be racist.
The right-wing icon Candace Owens, who also wore one of the shirts, was a part of the Paris Fashion Week exhibition that featured the shirts.
Eventual Downfall
The revocation of his contracts with Gap and Balenciaga as well as the abrupt termination of his extremely lucrative Yeezy partnership with Adidas happened as a result of him sharing numerous antisemitic sentiments.
According to Efford’s filing, West’s Instagram post made it challenging for her to sell or license the image of Karefa-Johnson.
She is requesting specific damages in the sum.
Although West had drawn criticism for many of the odd postings and comments he made in the days before his fashion show, his criticism on Karefa-Johnson was seen by many as going too far because of how much more influence and exposure he has than she does.
In a comment on one of Ye’s photos, her pal Gigi Hadid said, “You wish you had a percentage of her intellect.” She continued, calling him “a bully and a joke.”
In short, Kanye West faces a legal battle after mocking a Vogue editor, leading to a lawsuit by the photographer. His offensive behavior and subsequent actions have resulted in significant backlash and the termination of lucrative partnerships.
