Kanye West and Donda Academy Sued Over Alleged Racial Discrimination, Numerous Code Violations
Kanye West
Kanye West Forced Donda Students To Eat Sushi Everyday: Lawsuit
Donda Academy shut down last year, though the school’s staff have taken action against Kanye West. Ye’s facing a new lawsuit that alleges he only fed students sushi and prohibited outside food from entering the school. Per TMZ, two teachers, who said they were the only Black faculty members hired, filed a lawsuit against the College Dropout creator for racial discrimination and a number of other infractions related to the school.
The teachers found a number of health and safety violations during their time at Donda Academy. However, they claimed they were released from the school when they raised concerns. The lawsuit states Ye only allowed students to each sushi for lunch every day. He reportedly spent $10K a week for the lunch. Additionally, students were allegedly banned from bringing outside food or drinks into the school. As odd as this might be, it’s just the tip of the iceberg of the alleged infractions.
Kanye Banned Jewelry, Utensils & Chairs
The teachers claimed Kanye created incredibly strange rules for students and teachers to abide by – some of which seem unethical. Ye banned crossword puzzles and coloring books, as well as forks and utensils from classrooms. Additionally, Ye banned students from wearing jewelry and prohibited artwork from being hung on the walls. The teachers claimed that there wasn’t any lesson plan or disciplinary system in place, leading to multiple instances of physical assault on staff with no consequences.
Students allegedly weren’t allowed to sit on chairs or use tables but instead, foam cushions or stand. Teachers, on the other hand, either had to stand or use a stool. Ultimately, Kanye faces allegations that his revolutionary ways bred hostility. The school was reportedly locked from the outside during school hours and the uniform consisted of all-black attire without logos, such as Nike or Adidas, showing. Students between pre-kindergarten to grade 12 would have to take long and recess together at the same time in an indoor setting.
Teachers Claim Their Paycheques Came Short
The two teachers said they tried to raise these issues in the past but faced immediate pushback. They claimed in the lawsuit that they were threatened not to reach out to Ye to have these issues addressed. The two teachers got fired from their positions, which they claim is the result of trying to amend these issues and racial discrimination. They also said that their paycheques also came short of the agreed-upon $2,700 for each pay period. We’ll keep you posted on more updates surrounding the lawsuit.
Kanye West’s Donda Academy Only Served Sushi To Students, A New Lawsuit Against The School Claims
Last year, it was reported that Kanye West‘s Donna Academy was shut down and then unexpectedly reopened shortly after. Now, TMZ reports that the school is allegedly being sued by two former teachers.
TMZ obtained a lawsuit by two female teachers — the only Black teachers working there — who were fired for calling out education, health, and safety violations. They claim their termination was due to retaliation and racial discrimination.
For starters, the only food being fed to students is apparently sushi, which has to be eaten off the floor, without any tables or chairs. Students are not permitted to bring any outside food or drink aside from water. West is allegedly spending $10,000 a week on sushi. They’re also not permitted any utensils. Also, no classes can take place on the second floor because West is “afraid of stairs.” Similarly, students aren’t allowed to wear jewelry because he “did not like jewelry.”
The dress code for students is that they must wear all black, which can be viewed in pictures on TMZ’s post. Nike and Adidas clothing is also forbidden. There’s also no janitor or a school nurse. The two teachers also alleged that their paychecks were often short up to $2,700.
Childish Gambino Admits “This Is America” Was Supposed To Be A Drake Diss + What Was The Beef?
Childish Gambino recently admitted his 2018 hit “This Is America” was supposed to be a Drake diss. However, this may come as a shock to many who weren’t aware of their beef. This is how it began. On April 4, Donald Glover, also known as rapper Childish Gambino, admitted in an interview with GQ that […]
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Drake’s Dad Says New Track Sampling Kim Kardashian Is Not a Kanye Troll: ‘It’s Just a Song’
Drake Is ‘Not Trolling’ Kanye West By Sampling Kim Kardashian’s Voice On A Song He Previewed
Last week, Drake previewed a new song, tentatively titled “Rescue Me,” during The Fry Yiy Show on his SiriusXM Radio station Sound 42. Between verses, the song samples Kim Kardashian, taking a clip of her expressing her tenacious nature during the 2021 season finale and juxtaposing it with Drake’s own persistence. “I didn’t come this far, just to come this far and not be happy, remember that,” she says in the sample.
Fans took this to mean that the Canadian star was once again baiting his old rival Kanye West, who was divorced from Kardashian in 2022, despite the two rappers ending their feud in late 2021. However, Drake’s father, Dennis Graham, shot down that fan theory in the comments of a TMZ Instagram post about it, admonishing fans to let the beef go as the rappers themselves have. “Drake is not trolling anyone, it’s just a song,” he wrote. “Why try and create a Kanye and Drake beef again???????????????”
Drakes father says it’s just a song and Drake is not trolling anyone. pic.twitter.com/Ts0NCIeOYW
— RH (@RiHar_) April 4, 2023
Drake and Kanye officially settled their dispute in 2021 with their Free Larry Concert in Los Angeles, with Kanye determining that he would “play all Drake music” during basketball games at his now-defunct Donda Academy. Of course, Drake’s also Jewish, so he probably didn’t enjoy West’s displays of rampant antisemitism last year — but he’s also probably too busy showing appreciation to J. Cole to be too worried about Kanye these days.
Drake’s Dad Says He’s Not Trolling Kanye West With Kim Kardashian Sample
Even after Drake and Kanye West settled their issues, fans believed that the Canadian rapper was still taking shots at his one-time idol. After a few years of taking shots at one another, the two finally came together for the Larry Hoover benefit concert in a public effort to subdue the tension. However, things took a turn this weekend when Drake debuted new music on Sound 42’s Fry Yiy Show. “Rescue Me,” produced by BNYX, includes a sample of Kim Kardashian discussing her divorce from Ye on Keeping Up With The Kardashians.
“I didn’t come this far just to come this far and not be happy. Remember that,” Kim says. Drake’s a bit too calculated to know that it wouldn’t have stirred up an uproar. Fans immediately felt like Drizzy was trolling Ye with that part from his latest record. Meanwhile, comment sections across Instagram bubbled up in the suspense. Now that Kanye returned to the ‘Gram, it felt like he was moments away from a lengthy Instagram caption.
Dennis Graham Shuts Down Rumors
(@nojumper)Though Drake hasn’t confirmed or denied that he was poking at Ye, his dad, Dennis Graham, slid through with a bit of commentary. He explained that his son isn’t actually trying to stir up any trouble with Ye. However, he feels like it’s the fans that fuel their issues. “Drake is not trolling anyone, it’s a song,” he commented on TMZ’s post. “Why try and create a Kanye and Drake beef again?” along with a handful of face palm emojis.
Perhaps, this wasn’t a particular dig at Ye. However, many, including the Donda artist, felt like a pair of bars on Her Loss intended to reignite their beef. On “Circo Loco,” Drake raps, “Linking with the opps, bitch, I did that shit for J. Prince / Bitch, I did it for the mob ties.” Ye, who was in the middle of contractual disputes, said that he wanted no smoke. “Enough already I done gave this man his flowers multiple times[.] Let’s really see who are real ops are in this music game,” he tweeted. “Imagine all the rappers on the same side and everyone cleaning up each others contracts It’s kingdom time[.] Love Drake #lovespeech.” Check out Dennis Graham’s response above.
Today In Hip Hop History: Nike Dropped Air Yeezys In Retail Stores 14 Years Ago
On this date in 2009, “Yeezy, Yeezy Yeezy just jumped over Jumpman.”
The above line comes from music and fashion mogul Kanye West’s “Facts” track from his The Life Of Pablo LP, which was actually released in 2016. West landed a new deal with Adidas for his Yeezy brand, but the original sneaker was released by Nike seven years prior.
Four years later, West switched brands, With his Yeezy sneaker gaining the lion’s share of its popularity under the Adidas umbrella. Despite the long-promised line of Kanye-Nike collaborative products like the Air Yeezy II Red Octobers, Kanye is severed ties with the company after producing just two shoes in five years.
“I said, ‘Well I need royalties.’ It’s not even like I have a joint venture. At least give me some royalties. Michael Jordan has 5 percent and that business is $2 billion. He makes a $100 million dollars a year off of 5 percent royalties,” West said. “Nike told me, ‘We can’t give you royalties because you’re not a professional athlete.’ I told them, ‘I go to the Garden and play one-on-no one. I’m a performance athlete.’”
Unable to come to a compromise, Yeezus jumped ship and headed over to a competitor, Adidas. “The old me, without a daughter, would have taken the Nike deal because I just love Nikes so much,” Kanye said in his Angie Martinez Hot97 interview. “But the new me, with a daughter, takes the Adidas deal because I have royalties and I have to provide for my family.”
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Kanye West’s “College Dropout” Songs Ranked, Best to Worst
Kanye West has made legendary contributions to music and pop culture, whether you like him or not. His influence over the years has been evident. Before his anti-Semitic tirades and anti-Black remarks, he built an incredible discography. West’s debut album, 2004’s The College Dropout, is an all-time classic and arguably consists of some of the greatest hip hop songs ever made. The story behind the album can be seen in the jeen-yuhs documentary on Netflix about Kanye’s rise to fame.
The College Dropout’s tracklist boasts gorgeous soul samples, legendary features, and some of the best rapping from Kanye. The album was the first glimpse of West’s artistic greatness on a major level before he went on to push musical boundaries. HotNewHipHop has previously compiled lists about The College Dropout era Kanye, but this latest piece is about ranking the entire tracklist. While no bad songs are on the project, this list ranks The College Dropout tracks from best to worst, excluding the skits.
14. “The New Workout Plan”
“The New Workout Plan” is at the bottom of this list for obvious reasons. It is not meant to be taken seriously and is pretty funny to listen to. It is a fun song that uses a fitness regimen as its base, and the skits in the middle are entertaining. Although Kanye raps well on the song, it ranks at the bottom lyrically, in my opinion. The instrumental is well-produced, and the hook is catchy. However, I don’t believe it is better than other songs on The College Dropout because the production and rapping are not on par with the quality of the album’s superior tracks. The song is still legendary is carries on its legacy as J. Cole made great use of the ending on “Work Out.”
13. “Family Business”
Yet another great track, “Family Business” discusses fundamental interactions between relatives and the pain that struggling families often endure. Even when tackling such a difficult subject, Kanye melodically raps his lyrics over an ethereal beat. The chorus consists of fantastic contributions from many different vocalists. Though it is a good song, it doesn’t rank among the album’s best because the rapping and production from Kanye are better than other tracks. It should not go unnoticed, and Travis Scott incorporated “Family Business” on “90210.”
12. “Last Call”
West was among the first rappers to have an outro that acted like the closing credits on a film. The twelve-minute closer, “Last Call,” consists of Kanye telling the story of his come-up by speaking on his beginnings as an artist. The song has a great beat produced by both Kanye and Evidence, and although it is a standout, it is quite long. Kanye talks through most of it, which is why it is ranked toward the bottom. “Last Call” influenced artists such as J. Cole and Logic, as they have made their own “Last Calls,” taking inspiration from this song.
11. “Through the Wire”
The story behind Kanye West’s breakout single “Through the Wire” is iconic. West was in a car crash and broke his jaw. He ended up recording the song with his jaw wired shut, so the vocals sound strange compared to other tracks. The title is a clever play of its sample: Chaka Khan’s “Through the Fire.” Kanye’s flow on the song is nice and makes for an enjoyable track. The beat and lyrics are great, but I believe it is legendary more for the backstory than the song itself.
10. “We Don’t Care”
“We Don’t Care” sets the tone for the rest of The College Dropout. The song is the right amount of seriousness and sarcasm the group of children sings about “drug dealing just to get by” in the chorus. It is an excellent song with great verses, a catchy hook, and a gorgeous instrumental. It may not pack a punch like other tracks on the album that have significantly better rapping, but “We Don’t Care” is a phenomenal opener that prepares listeners for the album’s soulful sound, as well as Kanye’s signature rap style.
9. “Spaceship” (feat. GLC & Consequence)
“Spaceship” is a story about Kanye being tokenized while working at the Gap store, dreaming of moving on to greater things. The down-tempo, Marvin Gaye-sampling beat is nice and soulful. Kanye’s singing voice sounds great on the hook. The appearances from GLC and Consequence are exemplary verses but do not match the quality of Kanye’s songwriting and the album’s other features.
8. “School Spirit”
“School Spirit” fully embraces the theme of The College Dropout as Kanye raps about his dissatisfaction with school. In this song, Kanye playfully raps about dropping out to pursue his dreams as a musician. The song features a beautiful sample of Aretha Franklin’s “Spirit in the Dark” that only got cleared if the song was censored. Even with the censorship on the explicit version, “School Spirit” is a fantastic song with a catchy chorus that perfectly combines the album’s themes.
7. “Jesus Walks”
“Jesus Walks” is nothing short of legendary. The verses contain quotable bars and stellar production, sampling Curtis Mayfield and the ARC Choir. It is one of Kanye’s best lyrical moments, looking inward at his own faith but also outward to a world of struggles. It was the first song of its kind and featured the vocoder sound that Kanye would heavily incorporate in his following albums. West would also go on to make more music centered around his Christian faith, but those never fully captured the magic of “Jesus Walks.”
6. “Two Words” (feat. Mos Def, Freeway & The Harlem Boys Choir)
The College Dropout is a project full of moments, and “Two Words” is one of the album’s greatest. The sample combined with guitar and orchestral sounds on the instrumental brings intensity to the song. This is matched by the incredible verses from Mos Def, Kanye, and Freeway. The three stick to a “two-word” structure for their verses, but each delivers a unique style. The vocals from the Harlem Boys Choir toward the end make for the ideal ending to a flawless song.
5. “Breathe In Breathe Out” (feat. Ludacris)
Though he only performs on the hook, Ludacris is the perfect feature for this song as he matches Kanye’s clever wordplay over the anthemic horns. The beat is one of the more minimal instrumentals on the album. In his verse, Kanye raps with this confident attitude that is only really captured in his earlier albums. His flow and animated rap style seem so effortless. Of course, one cannot talk about this song without mentioning the iconic “Ph.D.” line, one of the funniest punchlines in rap history.
4. “Slow Jamz” (feat. Twista & Jamie Foxx)
“Slow Jamz” is one of the more relaxed songs on The College Dropout, but it is one of the best songs on the album. Jamie Foxx’s catchy hook sets things off right over the Luther Vandross sample, while Kanye’s verse is lighthearted. There is also the iconic “Michael Jackson” lyric that always entertains listeners. Twista’s rapid-fire flow is a unique approach to the relaxed soul of the song but is equally as captivating as Kanye’s verse and Jamie’s hook.
3. “Never Let Me Down” (feat. JAY-Z & J-Ivy)
Kanye’s ascent started with his production credits on JAY-Z’s The Blueprint. Aside from 2002’s “The Bounce,” “Never Let Me Down” was among the first tracks where the two shared verses. The natural chemistry between the rappers on this song paved the way for Watch The Throne. On undeniably one of the best beats on the album, Kanye spits one of his most emotional verses. Meanwhile, Jay raps two amazing verses, and J-Ivy steals the show with a spoken-word poem, making the song even more powerful. The soulful beat with the looped hook is plenty catchy but is brought to life by the choir at the song’s end.
2. “Get Em High” (feat. Talib Kweli & Common)
“Get Em High” consists of Kanye’s best flows on the entire album and some of his finest rhyming. Kanye’s flow is arguably his most skilled on this song as he effortlessly “catches the beat.” The instrumental has the signature Kanye bounce and is the perfect soundtrack for all three rappers to transition between verses seamlessly. Both Talib Kweli and Common showed up to rap and approached the track differently. Kweli’s verse, in particular, really steals the show.
1. “All Falls Down” (feat. Syleena Johnson)
“All Falls Down” is one of the greatest songs that Kanye West has ever made. The production is top-notch and includes amazing vocals from Syleena Johnson. It is a timeless song that includes some of Kanye’s most significant verses as he showcases some of his wittiest one-liners while also telling a sincere story about materialism and consumerism. He flows so smoothly over the beautiful acoustic guitar. Kanye’s initially performed the song on Def Poetry Jam before making it into a classic.
Overall, ranking songs on The College Dropout is not easy. There are no bad tracks, which speaks to its greatness as a hip hop classic. The “worst” songs on this album are still some of Kanye’s best work.
Drake Uses Kim Kardashian’s Audio In New Song; Is He Taunting Kanye West?
Drake released a new track, “Rescue Me,” where he used Kim Kardashian’s voice discussing her divorce from Kanye West. SOHH, is this a way for Drizzy to get under Ye’s skin? Capturing the conversation — between Ye’s ex-wife, Kim Kardashian, and “momager” Kris Jenner about her divorce from Kanye West — Drake used those same […]
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