Kanye West was allegedly antisemitic in front of employees, lawsuit claims

A new lawsuit filed by one of Kanye West‘s former employees has alleged that he was openly antisemitic in front of his staff.

West has been dogged with accusations of antisemitism since 2022, following a series of posts on Twitter/X and Instagram, which saw his accounts on both social media sites suspended. In one post West, now known as Ye, wrote: “I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE.” More recently, he blamed alcohol for the tweet. 

Following the tweet, West was dropped by his lawyer, talent agency and record label, while several fashion brands, including Balenciaga and Adidas, ended their partnerships with him, resulting in him losing billionaire status.

Celebrities and politicians around the world condemned his comments, while West said he didn’t “believe” in the term antisemitism in an interview with News Nation‘s Chris Cuomo.

Since those first claims were made, further allegations of antisemitism have also been levelled against West. In a BBC documentary, The Trouble With KanYe, the star’s former friend and business partner Alex Klein – who worked with him on ‘Donda 2’ – alleged West had said Klein was like “exactly like like the other Jews” and that the rapper believed Jewish people were “working together to hold him back”.

Now, the rapper’s former project manager Murphy Aficionado has filed a suit at Los Angeles County Superior Court for discrimination, a hostile work environment, retaliation, not paying wages, and wrongful termination. Aficionado was fired in 2023 and worked for West for nine months.

The lawsuit details allegations of West spouting “antisemitic tirades” around his employees, which was purportedly a “daily occurrence”.

“Often, these outbursts involved how Jews controlled the Kardashians. Other times, Ye recounted how Jews were going after him and his money. Those very same days, Ye would incessantly yell at his staff, including Aficionado,” the suit reads. It also alleges that he said: “The Jews are out to get me. They froze my bank account. The Jews got Kim [Kardashian] and my kids.”

LOS ANGELES, CA – MARCH 21: Kanye West is seen on March 21, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bellocqimages/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

The suit also makes allegations of lewd conduct, describing West walking out of a business meeting in a Beverly Hills hotel in November 2022 to have “loud” sex with wife Bianca Censori in the room next door. Aficionado also claims he once arrived for a meeting to find West “shirtless and out of breath” and Censori with him, topless. West allegedly ordered Aficionado to come inside though he was “overwhelmed with discomfort” to which he reluctantly complied fearing his boss’s “explosive anger and aggression.”

“Wait right here. Do not leave,” Aficionado was allegedly told before he heard “loud moaning and clapping” as the couple seemingly had sex.

“Disturbed, Aficionado wanted nothing more than to leave,” the lawsuit alleged, according to Rolling Stone. “However, Aficionado feared further retaliation by one of the most famous, powerful, and erratic artists in the world.”

West then allegedly returned wearing a swastika t-shirt and allegedly asked Aficionado, “Don’t you like my shirt?” Aficionado also claims that West showed him explicit photos of his ex-wife Kim Kardashian on his phone “randomly and without solicitation.”

A similar situation allegedly occurred at the same hotel later that week where West allegedly had sex with a masseuse.

The plaintiff claimed he was left “feeling violated and dehumanized.”

Elsewhere in the lawsuit, Aficionado claimed West agreed to pay him $125 per hour for working for him but “did not receive any pay for his work” despite putting in 70 hour work weeks.

Their working relationship officially ended after West “commanded Aficionado to begin construction of his school, Donda Academy,” allegedly “without building permits.” When Aficionado objected, insisting that going ahead with it could result in “hefty fines and potentially even put schoolchildren in danger,” he was allegedly “shunned and terminated.”

West has not yet responded to any of Aficionado’s allegations.

This is not the first time West has been sued by one of his ex-employees. In June, his ex-assistant Lauren Pisciotta sued him for sexual harassment and wrongful termination and alleged in an expanded lawsuit last month that he had sexually assaulted to her.

At the time, West responded to the claims in a statement made to Rolling Stone via his legal representative, calling Pisciotta’s accusations “baseless”, and announcing he planned to countersue.

News of the amended suit emerged only days after West was sued by another former employee, who claimed that the rapper hired him to spy on the Kardashians, follow his wife Bianca Censori and more.

In April, West was sued for racial discrimination by one of his former security guards. He was sued by another member of staff recently for allegedly threatening to “cage” his Donda Academy students. West has not responded to either lawsuit.