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Ye, formerly Kanye West, has been hit with another lawsuit from former employees, this time accusing the music mogul of unpaid labor and racism.
The lawsuit was filed by a team of developers Ye hired to work on the creation of a streaming services app, YZYVSN, designed for the release of his music.
Milo Yiannopolous, Former Chief of Staff at Yeezy, is also named in the suit, which accuses the pair of “extreme racism and bullying” and “intolerable harassment and discrimination.”
The ex-employees who filed the suit formed Ye’s developer group, and are reportedly all teens and young adults, ranging from 14 to 17 years old, across the US, the UK, Hungary, and Nigeria.
According to TMZ, Ye and Yiannopoulos allegedly promised the workers $120,000 if they completed the app under agreed working conditions without complaining.
The conditions, according to the suit, included long 12-hour shifts running across the night, and long hours without breaks.
The lawsuit claims the workers were threatened into signing non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and were told they would receive no pay if they didn’t comply.
Meanwhile, the minors were reportedly asked to sign “volunteer” agreements which suggested they wouldn’t receive any pay.
The developers claim they were asked to work “insanely long hours,” keeping in touch remotely as they worked toward a deadline of May 1, 2024.
However, when they asked for their pay, the suit alleges Ye and Yiannopoulos ignored their messages. The filing demands for payment in full of their unpaid wages, as well as compensation for the overtime they worked to complete the app.
Lawsuit: Employees suffered “extreme racism”
Alongside the pay dispute, the filing also asks for damages to cover the emotional distress the employees claim they experienced.
The group alleges they were “mocked with racist jabs” and “regularly and viciously bullied” over their race, gender, age, and sexual orientation.
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The lawsuit claims some colleagues were called “slaves” in work group chats on Discord, with one channel reportedly called “New Slaves.”
A statement from Thigpen Legal, which is representing the group of employees, says "Black and African employees were segregated and given less favorable work assignments.”
Thigpen Legal also claimed “separate 'whites only' working groups were formed,” adding that minors were mocked for their age.
Workers allegedly sent pornography by Bianca Censori
The lawsuit further alleges that Ye’s wife, Bianca Censori, sent one employee “a file-sharing link containing hardcore sexual activity.”
The link was reportedly meant for the development of a porn app, which Ye announced plans for earlier in 2024.
Yiannopoulos resigned from his post at Yeezy several weeks ago because of the project.
The minors on Ye’s development team were allegedly not protected from seeing the X-rated videos during their work.
Ye has not responded to media requests for comment, but Yiannopoulos has released a social media statement calling the lawsuit a “joke,” and claiming is led by a “disgruntled, comically inept Black developer I call Hotep Susan who is mad he didn’t get chosen for a full-time Yeezy job."
Yiannopoulos says the company has signed release forms and contractor agreements with each worker, as well as from “parents or guardians where appropriate.”
