Shortly After Adidas Feud, Kanye West Raps on Gap

Ye, also known as Kanye West, recently took to Instagram, ruffling feathers with business partner Gap Inc. (San Francisco), following an upset with Adidas (Herzogenaurach, Germany) last month. The 45-year old music mogul accused the apparel company of copying a T-shirt design from his Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga Collection and lacking commitment to his “life mission” of growing his Yeezy brand, reports Hypebeast.

“Gap having meetings about me without me. Adidas releasing old shoes and coloring my shoes like I’m dead me not having a say on where my children go to school,” West wrote Friday on Instagram. Earlier this month, West expressed his displeasure with Gap for displaying his T-shirts on wire hangers.

On the social media site, the rap artist posted snippets of a heated address he made before Gap execs, during which he threatened to leave the company and complained they failed to launch promised brick-and-mortar Yeezy stores.

“I signed with both Adidas and Gap because it contractually stated they would build permanent stores which neither company has done even though I saved both of those companies at the same time,” West posted Aug. 30 on Instagram.

During its Q2 earnings call, Gap reported net sales of $881 million, down 10 percent compared to 2021.

In June, West launched a similar feud with retailer Adidas, claiming on Instagram that Adidas borrowed from his Yeezy Slides sandals to produce its Three Stripes’ Adilette 22 design.

“These shoes represent the disrespect that people in power have to the talent. This shoe is a fake Yeezy made by Adidas themselves,” West posted. Last year, sales from the Adidas Yeezy footwear line grew 31 percent last year to almost $1.7 billion.

After his posts on working with Gap, West’s lawyers contacted the music star, reports Radar Online. West then posted his lawyers’ entreatment online: “Dear Ye. Your legal team recommends that we refrain from posting anything on Gap for another 10 days.”

Yeezy, West’s sneaker and apparel business with Adidas and Gap is valued at $3.2-$4.7 billion, according to Bloomberg.