A former employee of rapper , Kanye West , and his Yeezy clothes manufacturer is suing him for labor-code breaches and infliction of emotional stress, alleging that Ye threatened to kill him as “he spiraled into conspiracy theories and uneven, irresponsible and dangerous behavior”, the company’s attorney said Thursday.
The unnamed individual identified himself as a , Michigan , citizen who was hired by Ye as a deputy campaign chairman after the rapper ‘s , unsuccessful 2020 presidential charge, according to the civil complaint filed Thursday in , Los Angeles County Superior Court. The individual, a military veteran diagnosed with PTSD, also served as “director of knowledge” for Yeezy, charged with conducting several investigations, including those involving lawyers and parties that filed suit against Yeezy, Thou and relevant institutions, the complaint said.
Representatives for Ye did not immediately respond Friday to The , Times ‘ , requests for comment.
According to The , Times, John Doe, the employee listed in the filing, claimed he was hired by Ye in December 2022 and was tasked with investigating various conspiracy theories and coming up with “brainstorming ideas to keep Ye in the news.” That included a discussion of “getting involved with both national and international headlines, handling investigations and NDAs,” which the rapper and his company eventually transitioned to full-time employment, according to the complaint.
Doe also claimed he was a “fixer” and was asked to investigate the family of Ye ‘s , ex-wife , Kim Kardashian , and” supposed various criminal links Ye believed they had with criminal enterprises, including alleged sex trafficking”. The , Grammy-winning rapper also had Doe hire private investigators to follow , his wife,  , Bianca Censori, without her knowledge when she visited family in , Australia.
The employee alleged that when the” Heartless” rapper began to let go of much of Yeezy’s leadership team in or around  , May 2024, Ye also got , titanium teeth , and consumed nitrous oxide, which the employee” speculates led to some of the erratic behavior”, the complaint said.
Shortly after that, and upon learning of , alleged child abuse at Ye’s embattled , Donda Academy, Doe alleged that Ye called him” to yell, curse and threaten]him ] with great bodily injury, including death, if]he ] repeated what ]he ] learned” from a Donda employee. At one point, he told Doe,” You’re f— dead to me”! and played a recording of “scary voices that were threatening to harm” him. The employee claimed in the days and weeks that followed, he received threats from Ye’s associates who were known “enforcers”, exacerbating his PTSD.
” The stress and trauma caused by the threats, hostile work environment, and Plaintiff’s exposure to illegal and unethical activities severely impacted his mental and emotional well-being”, the complaint said. Plaintiff was placed in a facility to address his declining mental health after experiencing panic attacks, anxiety, and severe emotional distress.
He alleged that he was fired and retaliated against” through a campaign of threats, intimidation, and harassment” for reporting child-abuse claims, drug use and “his refusal to engage in unethical activities”.
The defendants also “intentionally and willfully” failed to provide him with complete and accurate wage statements and withheld all the wages he was owed in his final paycheck — violations of , California ‘s , labor code.
His legal team stated in a statement to The , Times that Doe is asking for a jury trial and an “exceeds of seven figures in punitive and compensatory damages, including unpaid wages. He included retaliation, careless emotional distress, numerous labor code violations, and other causes of action.
Doe’s lawsuit is the latest in a legal pile-up for the” Famous” rapper.
Last year, Ye was  , sued for alleged workplace abuses , by two former teachers at his , Donda Academy, a non-accredited private school in the , Los Angeles , area that shut down in 2022.
In April,  , Trevor Phillips, a former employee of , Yeezy and Donda Academy,  , also sued the megastar, his Yeezy apparel brand and the school. Phillips claimed discrimination, a hostile work environment, whistleblower retaliation and unsafe working conditions, among other allegations.
In June, Ye was accused in a separate , lawsuit of sexually harassing a personal assistant.
In July, he was sued by former employees of his Yeezy brand who accused him, Yeezy and the rapper’s former chief of staff,  , Milo Yiannopoulos, of fostering a toxic workplace characterized by racial discrimination, forced labor and a failure to pay employees for their work.
” Ye has only himself to blame for his mounting legal woes”, Doe’s attorney,  , Ron Zambrano, said Thursday in a statement to The , Times. He simply cannot continue hiring employees, treating them badly, refusing to pay them in violation of numerous employment laws, let alone threaten to kill them as he did in this case.
Zambrano claimed that his client “is so afraid of Ye and his unpredictable, uncontrollable behavior” that he wishes to remain anonymous for safety reasons.
It’s “unconscionable and illegal” for an employer to threaten any employee with bodily harm or death, he said.
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