Fashion

Kanye West blasted Adidas for 'blatantly copying' his Yeezy slide in Instagram rant

"These shoes represent the disrespect the people in power have to talent"

Kanye West has called out Adidas in a now-deleted Instagram post, claiming that the shoe giant is 'blatantly copying' him after the release of their latest slides. West, who has legally changed his name to Ye, believes that the new 'Adidas Adilette 22', which came out at the beginning of the month, "is a fake Yeezy" and that the "shoes represent the disrespect that people in power have to talent".

In classic Ye fashion, the rant isn't simply a disagreement he has with Adidas, rather it's a larger-than-life spiel. It starts with a mention of Kobe, it's a rallying cry for "every ball player/rapper" and even Adidas employees.

Here are the two shoes, with Kanye's on the top, so that you can form your own opinion.

We feel like Kanye does have a bit of a gripe, but you could argue there are enough differences between the two.

Kanye and the sportswear company have had an extremely mutually beneficial relationship. Kanye has become a billionaire during the time he's collaborated with Adidas, and Adidas has gained billions of dollars themselves from the sales of Kanye's clothing line. How could they be so heartless? The Chicago-born artists also posted and deleted another Adidas-related Instagram post. A screenshot of a text conversation which outlines Kanye's contractual obligations with Adidas.

Ye circled a section which states "There is a limited exception where he can do Yeezy branded casual and lifestyle apparel on his own but not with a competitor." Could this be hinting at the 'Donda' rapper/producer breaking off with Adidas and going solo?