It has been reported that Apple have pulled the plug on a sponsorship deal worth $2 million with Kanye West.
This move comes after the rapper announced last week that the only way to listen to his upcoming “Donda 2” album will be via his own Stem Player.
This is a device which was first released to coincide with “Donda” last year. It allows users to remix the album’s tracks using stems of drums, bass, vocals, samples and more.
Kanye West also changed his official name to Ye last year.
Kanye West “he won’t be putting Donda 2 on Apple Music”
Following this, it has been reported by DJ Akademiks via Twitter, that Apple have pulled their sponsorship deal with Kanye West.
Akademiks have also reported that the deal which is worth $2 million, has been pulled as they are going to stream his DONDA listening party event on February 22 instead.
“Apple pulls $2 million + sponsorship deal from Kanye West after he announced he won’t be putting Donda 2 on Apple Music”, Akademiks tweeted. “They were going to stream the 2/22/22 event”.
Apple pulls $2 million + sponsorship deal from Kanye West after he announced he won’t be putting Donda 2 on Apple Music. They were going to stream the 2/22/22 event.
— DJ Akademiks (@Akademiks) February 18, 2022
Last week, Ye had taken to Instagram to share footage of his unreleased track playing on his Stem Player device.
The rapper also added that “Donda 2” would be available exclusively through the platform. He also confirmed that it would appear on Apple, Spotify, Amazon or YouTube.
He wrote, “Today artists get just 12% of the money the industry makes. It’s time to free music from this oppressive system. It’s time to take control and build our own”.
Kanye West also pointed fans in the direction of his Stem Player page.
On top of this, Kanye West’s album also reportedly features the much maligned Marilyn Manson. The rockstar had made headlines having been accused of sexual assault and abuse from several women.
“Marilyn is in there working on Donda 2”, West’s collaborator Digital Nas had said of the album.
Kanye West himself drew criticism from the grandparents of the youngest victim of the Astroworld tragedy over his comments regarding Billie Eilish. More on this report here.
