Kanye West may dig an even deeper hole if he tries to sell his “White Lives Matter” t-shirts in the US, given that the slogan has already been trademarked.
It is interesting to note that two black men own it.
Ramses Ja and Quinton Ward, the hosts of the radio show Civic Cipher, legally acquired the term last month, as if they predicted Kanye West’s controversy, which began during Paris Fashion Week, would escalate to this point.
According to the two, it’s about keeping it out of the wrong hands.
According to TMZ, the trademark grants the right to sell clothing bearing the abovementioned words.
An anonymous listener of Ramses and Quinton’s racial justice show purchased the trademark and filed it the same day Ye wore his controversial dress at Paris Fashion Week.
The listener took over ownership of their show a few weeks ago. It was difficult for Ramses and Quinton to take the trademark, but once it was clear that someone stood to profit significantly from it, they made a quick decision.
According to them, although (Kanye) says some hurtful, divisive, and sometimes insane things, he has a cult following, and everything he releases sells out.
As previously stated, Kanye was stirring the pot before his antisemitic remarks by wearing a “White Lives Matter” hoodie at his Yeezy fashion show in early October. Candace Owens was also seen wearing a similar hoodie.
Is this to say that he won’t be able to profit from these clothes and avoid financial ruin? Probably.
Kanye West may be months away from financial ruin, according to Page Six. According to sources, while the rapper has a lot of money, he also has a lot of expenses and may soon be in financial trouble if he needs help figuring out how to fix the situation.
West has five sources of income, according to people familiar with his finances. Still, four of them have been completely shut down or severely hampered due to his anti-Semitic outburst and support for white nationalists.
West reportedly made money in recent years from his massive Adidas and Gap deals, his song catalog, the sale of new music, and shows. Adidas, the true source of his enormous fortune, announced earlier this week that it would stop paying him immediately after terminating its major Yeezy sneaker deal with him.