Kanye West’s Erratic Behavior Scaring Off Investors? “He’s Getting Frustrated”

Written By S. Samuel

Grammy-winning rapper Kanye West may have millions to his name but reports claim the music icon has been having a less than breezy time securing investors for his multimedia agency DONDA.

Kanye West
2k Views Comments Off on Kanye West’s Erratic Behavior Scaring Off Investors? “He’s Getting Frustrated”

According to reports, Mr. West has tried courting a handful of potential California investors to dig in their pockets and support his company.

Sources have been gossiping for months that the reason West has been spotted lunching with Instagram founder Kevin Systrom at Park Tavern and inviting prominent venture capitalists and squirrely cofounders to his performance art-gagement in San Francisco is because he’s seeking funds for DONDA, his nebulous creative agency, pitching something beyond a fashion line. Two sources told Valleywag that West recently attended a dinner packed with venture capitalists at Laurene Powell Jobs‘ home where West supposedly had the temerity to trot out his tagline: “I’m the next Steve Jobs.” Both sources heard the story second-hand. Attempts to confirm details of the dinner through Island Def Jam, which is representing the Yeezus tour, and Blueprint Group, which has managed some previous business ventures, were not returned. (Valley Wag)

Sources suggest investors have been swayed away by Kanye’s attitude.

“I think he’s getting frustrated. People are enjoying meeting him because he’s Kanye and they want to take him around, but then they’re not actually investing,” said one source. Investors like the coolness by proxy, just not his pitch style. “If you see his behavior, it’s so erratic, he’s not focused and kind of all over the place,” the source added. West’s caustic public criticism of investors has also left VCs a little gunshy. Last week, he skewered Zappos founder and investor Tony Hsieh for advising West to be more focused while Zappos “sells all this shit product to everybody.” Zappos laughed it off. But “that’s a massive risk,” the same source noted. “If you meet him now and he does what he did with Zappos–he’s self-imploding.” (Valley Wag)

Last week, Yeezy publicly asked for support from Google head Eric Schmidt during a New York concert.

If the past few months are any indication, Kanye West is set on being as much of a technologist as he is a rapper. He’s recently been ingratiating himself to the tech world, going so far as to invite Silicon Valley luminaries like Ben Horowitz and Mark Pincus to witness to his proposal to Kim Kardashian. At last night’s Madison Square Garden stop on the Yeezus tour, Kanye interrupted his set to make a special plea to one of the most prominent technologists of all: after telling the audience that Google chairman Eric Schmidt was “in the house,” he asked approximately a dozen times “Do y’all want Eric Schmidt to invest in DONDA?” The answer was a resounding yes. (Complex)

While DONDA’s investors remain in limbo, details are scarce, reports claim Mr. West has landed a $10 million deal with ADIDAS.

Kanye West had a monumental falling-out with Nike over their marketing of his sneakers, and is about to get his revenge by signing a $10 million deal with rival Adidas. Kanye designed a range of sneakers for Nike, but sources tell us relations soured because he “only got 10 to 20 cents on the dollar for sales of his sneakers from Nike, and he only had a small personal stash to give out to his friends.” (Page Six)

Comments Off on Kanye West’s Erratic Behavior Scaring Off Investors? “He’s Getting Frustrated”

Written by S. Samuel

Steven Samuel is the co-founder of SOHH.com.

Young Buck Confirms Game Collabo, Thanks 50 Cent & Ex-Business Associates For “Dealing With” Him [Video]

The Game

After Bloody Twerk Face-Off, Game Avoids Messy B-Day Celebration