Kanye West, now known as Ye, is best known for hits such as Gold Digger and Stronger
Kanye West has never been afraid to upset people, but his recent tirades against Jewish people have been too much for many.
At the start of October, he was a billionaire music artist and businessman, and had deals with some of the world’s biggest brands.
Fast-forward just two months, and most of those no longer apply.
And it all started with a T-shirt.
Paris Fashion Week – 3 October 2022
At his Yeezy SZN 9 show, Kanye, now officially known as Ye, wears a t-shirt with a White Lives Matter slogan.
Anti-racism campaigners call it out as hate speech mocking the Black Lives Matter movement.
A picture of Kanye posing with conservative commentator Candace Owens, wearing a matching top, goes viral.
It doesn’t go down well, and fans and fellow hip-hop stars line up to call him out.
Instagram lockout – 7 October
Kanye gets involved in a row with rapper Diddy, who posts a video criticising the White Lives Matter shirts.
In an Instagram post, Kanye appears to suggest Diddy is being controlled by Jews. Ye is criticised for antisemitism, and his account is suspended.
Adidas says it’s reviewing its deal with Kanye.
48 hours on Twitter – 10 October
Kanye – who hasn’t posted on Twitter for almost two years – returns to the bird and takes aim at Mark Zuckerberg, the boss of Facebook and Instagram.
He then posts a tweet which appears to be a threat directed at Jewish people.
Twitter follows Instagram’s lead and kicks him off.
Tucker Carlson interview – 11 October
Website Vice obtains unaired footage from an interview with Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson.
It says these unused clips involve the rapper making various antisemitic claims and repeating myths about Jewish people.
An episode of YouTube talk show The Shop: Uninterrupted starring Kanye is pulled over ‘more hate speech’ due to his alleged use of hate speech.
Kanye was diagnosed with bipolar disorder years ago and has publicly spoken about his challenges with his mental health.
But at the time of this interview being pulled, people who share his condition told the BBC that mental health problems do not go hand-in-hand with antisemitism.
Brands turn their backs – Late October
A bad week for Kanye as major companies begin to announce they no longer want to work with him.
Fashion house Balenciaga and talent scouts Creative Artists Agency follow JP Morgan bank and clothing shop Gap in ditching the artist.
Adidas comes under increasing pressure to do the same.
Bye-bye Adidas, bye-bye billionaire status – 25 October
Adidas announces it’s parting ways with Kanye.
Cutting the partnership means Adidas will make a net loss of £217m in 2022.
But it’s a bigger loss for Kanye, who is estimated to make $1.5bn from his contract with the sportswear giant.
US money magazine Forbes says he is no longer a billionaire and puts his new net worth at $400m.
Skechy situation – 27 October
American shoe company Skechers says Kanye turned up at its headquarters “unannounced and uninvited” and had to be removed.
It says it has no plans to work with him and condemns his previous comments.
Adidas scandal – 22 November
US magazine Rolling Stone publishes a lengthy article claiming West engaged in “toxic” behaviour against employees at Adidas.
It declines to comment for the feature but two days later announces it’s launched an investigation into the claims.
Ye 24 Campaign – 25 November
Kanye announces he plans to run for US president in 2024.
Before this, reports circulate of him dining at Donald Trump’s Mar-A-Lago golf club in Florida with far-right political commentator Nick Fuentes.
Infowars and another Twitter ban – December
Kanye appears on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’s Infowars.
He wears a face covering through the whole interview, praises Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and rants about sin, pornography and the devil.
Hours after the broadcast, he’s suspended from Twitter again for “violating our rule against incitement to violence”.
What next?
Kanye’s known for being unpredictable, so it’s unlikely to be the end of the saga.
His music remains popular, and fans have been seeing him in their annual Spotify Wrapped and Apple Replay round-ups.
But there are reports of some users demanding streaming giants remove his music.
Fans have previously told Newsbeat they might consider skipping his tracks – so time will tell if he’ll still be in our top tracks next year.
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