Kanye West Sued for $7 Million Over Unpaid Event Production Fees

Kanye West is being sued for $7.1 million by Los Angeles–based production and design firm Phantom Labs, TMZ and Variety report. According to Variety, lawsuit was filed today (July 14) in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. It reportedly alleges that West and his team owe Phantom Labs the large sum for work the firm contributed to West’s canceled Coachella set, his Free Larry Hoover concert with Drake, a Donda 2 listening event, and multiple Sunday Service performances. West is listed as a defendant alongside several of his companies, referred to in court documents as “the Yeezy Defendants.”

According to court documents, Phantom Labs are suing West for breach of contract in addition to the $7.1 million in unpaid fees. Phantom Labs reportedly states that it worked on the numerous large-scale projects with West between June 2021 and March 2022. The company, which is being represented by attorney Howard King, has acknowledged that it was initially paid for early services by West, Variety notes.

West allegedly hired Phantom Labs in the fall of 2021 to “run a renovation project” at a Los Angeles warehouse West was converting into an office and creative space. The rapper also allegedly hired the company to produce four consecutive Sunday Service events in November of that year. Phantom Labs allege that it has not been paid for either project.

Phantom Labs was also reportedly involved in the production of West’s Donda 2 livestream party in Miami this year, for which it claimed to be owed $2.2 million. Additionally, Phantom Labs was hit with over $1 million in cancellation fees after West pulled out of his headlining Coachella set in early April of this year, according to TMZ.

“We are incredibly proud of the work that we did with Ye and are disappointed that such a fruitful relationship has come to this,”  a spokesperson for Phantom Labs said in a statement to Variety. “A celebrity weaponizing fame and reputation to take advantage of eager collaborators is simply unacceptable.”

Pitchfork has reached out to Kanye West’s representatives and Howard King for further comment.

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