Adidas has reached a settlement with American rapper Kanye West following his antisemitic comments that led Adidas to cut ties with the celebrity, the brand announced on Tuesday.
"There were tensions on many issues [but]... both parties said we don't need to fight anymore," Adidas chief executive Bjorn Gulden said and was quoted by BBC.
West's Antisemitic posts
In October 2022, Adidas announced an immediate end to its partnership with West following the performer and designer's offensive behavior and antisemitic comments.
“Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech,” the company wrote in a statement. “[West]’s recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness.”
Afterward, the rapper had his X/Twitter and Instagram accounts restricted, with the social media platforms saying they removed his posts that online users condemned as antisemitic.
Since then, Adidas discontinued West’s Yeezy collection, and BBC reported that the brand plans to finish selling the shoes at stock price by the end of 2024.
In December, West issued a written apology in Hebrew on Instagram regarding his past behavior, and earlier in 2024, he refused to comment on the Israel–Hamas war when asked by a fan on X.
“I don’t have enough information on that,” he said. "There’s love for everybody, but don’t pull me into that conversation.”