USA 
United Kingdom
Ye, formerly Kanye West, is facing a fresh lawsuit from an ex-employee who accuses the music mogul of 'frequently screaming' and 'berating' him due to the color of his skin, and firing him for refusing to shave his dreadlocks.
In the suit, filed in Los Angeles on Friday, Benjamin Deshon Provo, a former security guard at the Donda Academy, levels several shocking allegations including discrimination, retaliation, wrongful termination, a hostile work environment, and other labor code violations.
Provo, who was hired in August 2021, says he experienced “severe emotional distress” following his experience working for Ye.
According to the lawsuit, Ye – and other members of his management team – allegedly treated Provo and other black workers less favorably than their white colleagues.
“Specifically, Kanye frequently screamed at and berated black employees, while in contrast, he never so much as raised his tone of voice toward white staff,” the suit states.
Provo claims that he was fired by Donda Academy’s management team for refusing to cut his dreadlocks, despite the hairstyle being a religious choice, with the lawsuit stating that Ye said “Tell the one with the dreads to shave his head or he is fired.”
Cases against Ye from former workers mount up
It follows another case lodged against Ye earlier this year, in which a former worker also claimed the rapper treated black staff “considerably worse than white employees,” as well as spreading antisemitism, and calling Adolf Hitler “great.”
The ex-employee, Trevor Phillips, says he was hired in November 2022 and worked for Yeezy before moving to Donda Academy, Ye’s (unaccredited) private school.
Phillips’ lawsuit included screenshots of text exchanges in which Ye, whilst criticizing Phillips’ work, stated “I am on some complete Hitler level stuff.”
Provo’s case, as well as claims from other former workers such as Cecilia Hailey, an ex-Donda Academy teacher, accuses Ye of banning black history books including those about Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.
“Kanye regularly expressed negative beliefs associated with prominent black leaders that advocated for or sought to advance the black community,” Provo’s suit alleges.
Ye has not addressed the lawsuits from Provo or Phillips yet. Sources close to him have also reportedly suggested that Phillips’ allegations are false, claiming that the ex-employee’s daughter still attends the Donda choir.
Donda Academy management reportedly instructed “acts of violence”
Beyond the accusations of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, Provo also says he was told to engage in physical attacks on behalf of Ye.
According to the suit, Donda Academy management ordered him to “prevent paparazzi from interacting with Kanye by any means necessary, including acts of violence.”
When he raised concerns with this practice to his manager, stating “I don’t want to do this, I could go to jail,” Provo says his worries were dismissed. “We will bail you out,” his manager reportedly told him.
The suit concludes by claiming that Provo was at the “epicenter of a campaign of discrimination, harassment and retaliation as a result of being an unapologetically black man, and a follower of the Muslim faith.”
Provo’s attorney has stated that “No matter how famous one is, no one is above the law. We look forward to holding Mr. West accountable for the discrimination alleged in the complaint.”
