Kanye West—Under Misconduct Investigation By Adidas—Launches 2024 Presidential Campaign. Here’s What To Know.

Topline

Kanye West announced his 2024 presidential campaign on Friday and claimed he asked former President Donald Trump to be his running mate, just as Adidas—which carried his Yeezy-brand clothing—launched an investigation into misconduct allegations against the controversial artist.

Kanye West announced his 2024 presidential bid and claimed he asked former President Donald Trump to … [+] be his running mate.

Getty Images for Vanity Fair

Key Facts

West, who legally changed his name to Ye, released a campaign video on Twitter early Friday morning with the caption “#YE24.”

In a video posted Thursday night, Ye said he asked Trump to be his vice-president, and that Trump allegedly “screamed” at him, telling him he “was going to lose.”

The meeting between Ye and Trump reportedly took place at the former president’s Mar-A-Lago estate in Florida, which also included far-right political commentator Nick Fuentes—who has come under fire and had his YouTube channel permanently suspended over white supremacist and antisemitic remarks.

Ye’s campaign launch follows Adidas’ announcement it’s launching an investigation into alleged misconduct against the controversial rapper, and one month after the clothing giant dropped Ye over antisemitic and racist comments—Adidas released a statement on Thursday saying it isn’t clear if the accusations—indcated by Rolling Stone report that the rapper allegedly made offensive comments and showed employees lude videos—are true.

It’s Ye’s second bid for the White House, following his failed 2020 campaign in which he earned just 70,000 votes—it also comes a week after Trump announced his highly-anticipated 2024 presidential campaign.

His 2020 platform included pledges around freedom of religion, reducing student loan debt and investment in education systems for at-risk people, although his political ambitions this time around are less clear—West hired far-right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos, a former editor at right-wing outlet Breitbart, as his campaign manager.

Contra

In response, Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that West asked him to have dinner at Mar-A-Lago and “unexpectedly showed up with three of his friends, whom I knew nothing about.” Trump called the dinner “quick and uneventful,” adding, “they then left for the airport.”

Key Background

Starting in October, multiple businesses, including Adidas, Balenciaga, Gap and Footlocker, as well as record label Def Jam, dropped Ye, following a series of hateful and offensive statements he made primarily on social media and in interviews. The controversies began on Oct. 3, when West wore a “White Lives Matter” shirt to a fashion show in Paris, prompting Adidas to put its longstanding partnership with him under review. His Instagram account was blocked days later after he made several antisemitic comments, only to follow up with a tweet, saying he would go “death con 3 on Jewish people.” His Twitter account was then locked, although he has since come back to the platform.

Tangent

One month after he was dropped by Adidas, Gap and Balenciaga, West said he is hoarding thousands of dollars worth of apparel from those companies, saying he would use the money from clothing sales to promote his 2024 presidential campaign. In a video posted Sunday, West displayed a warehouse of apparel with the “YE24” logo. Ye said he would sell the merchandise for $20—a massive markdown from the $100-plus price tag his apparel had sold for at Adidas, Balenciaga and Gap.

Forbes Valuation

$400.1 million. That’s how much Forbes estimates West is worth—a significant drop after the rapper was dropped by his major business partners, revoking his billionaire status.