Disgraced rapper Kanye West has been dumped by almost his entire team, and is in exile in Japan – while his marriage hangs by a thread.
West moved back to a Tokyo hotel this week after causing global outrage with a string of statements on X (formerly Twitter) in support of fascism. Wife Bianca Censori is not thought to be with him.
Strains in the couple’s marriage were apparent last month after her ‘naked’ appearance – choreographed by her husband – on the red carpet at the Grammy awards. The pair later reconciled, although reports suggest that, over the past month, they have been living largely separately in two different Los Angeles hotels.
One source suggests Australian Censori, 30, wants to get away from West (who once claimed to have ‘dominion’ over her), but they remain ‘obsessed’ with each other. Plenty of others are getting away, though. I’m told that ‘almost all’ of his team has left, including his long-time manager John Monopoly. ‘Everyone has gone,’ says a source. ‘Either he’s fired them, or they have quit because of his behaviour.’
Disgraced rapper Kanye West has been dumped by almost his entire team, and is in exile in Japan
West moved back to a Tokyo hotel this week after causing global outrage with a string of statements on X (formerly Twitter ) in support of fascism. Pictured: Kanye West and wife Bianca Censori at Marni RTW Fall 2024 as part of Milan Ready to Wear Fashion Week held on February 23, 2024 in Milan, Italy
Monopoly returned to work with West late last year, having played a role in discovering him and propelling him to fame in the early 1990s. He introduced West to Jay-Z, once a key friend and collaborator. Others who have cut ties include talent agent Daniel McCartney of 33 & West, who wrote in a statement in February that his working relationship with West was over ‘effective immediately… due to his harmful and hateful remarks’. The bad news does not end there. It can be revealed the rapper is now blacklisted by China, meaning he will not be able to travel there for a performance in front of the famous Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in Lijiang next month – which could have netted him $7 million.
Perhaps West won’t care. In February he posted on X: ‘I tour for the money. I’d rather be playing (video games) Last Of Us part one and two, which was made by Jewish people, Good Job. Thank you.’ It was part of an anti-Semitic spree on social media, after Elon Musk let him back on the platform. In dozens of tweets to his 32 million followers, West praised Hitler, called himself a Nazi and described anti-Semitism as ‘just some bulls**t Jewish people made up’. Following the controversy, Shopify suspended his online shop for brand Yeezy, which was selling T-shirts sporting a swastika.