Kanye Shares Offers Adidas ’20 Percent Of Sales’ Amid Feud: ‘I Love War’
Kanye took to his Instagram Story Friday (Sept. 23) to attempt to bargain with Adidas. Ye started by sharing a text exchange between him and Torben, who is assumed to be…

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 07: Steven Smith and Kanye West speak on stage at the “Kanye West and Steven Smith in Conversation with Mark Wilson” at the on November 07, 2019 in New York City.
(Photo by Brad Barket/Getty Images for Fast Company)Kanye took to his Instagram Story Friday (Sept. 23) to attempt to bargain with Adidas. Ye started by sharing a text exchange between him and Torben, who is assumed to be Torben Schumacher the SVP, Global General Manager Adidas Originals, Basketball & Partnerships.
"What time will you be sending back Adidas comments?" the text read per Daily Mail. Adding that Torben was not the person he actually wanted to be speaking to, "I'd prefer to communicate directly with Paul." Ye is most likely referring to Paul Bowyer - VP of Adidas Originals, Culture Partnerships & Basketball in North America.
"I tried to call you earlier. Can we speak briefly?" Torben responded In the Story post, Ye wrote, "Adidas I'm not speaking with Torben again. I'm the king. I only speak to the decision-makers."
The rapper then went on to write he was "willing to give" Adidas "20% of net profit/sales." Clarifying that if they were to accept this deal that this will "not [be] ownership," but "a nonexclusive manufacturing and distribution partner."
The artist then declared, "I love war" in the following Instagram Story post. This is not the first time Ye has called out Adidas on social media.
Ye took several shots at Adidas executive Daniel Cherry earlier this month. In a since-deleted Instagram post, Ye had a photo of himself and Cherry over Marvel's Captain America: Civil War film poster. The faux poster read, "Daniel Cherry Pop I knew by the Jean jacket you was wearing when we first met that we could never truly be friends."
The rapper then shared several of his favorite comments posted by fans making fun of Cherry dubbing him "the new face of unemployment." Following that post, Ye uploaded a third photo on Monday (Sept. 5) with a headshot of the Adidas exec with the caption, "Hi guys it’s the face of unemployment aka the face Wishing everyone a happy day off 2mrw I’ll be in retirement Which is a nice way of saying I’ll be unemployed."
As of right now, Ye seems to still addressing internal issues with Adidas executives.
Before Kanye was the rapper, entrepreneur, and trendsetting mogul that he is today, he got his start as a producer most notably working with Jay-Z. Back in 2000, Ye was signed to Roc Nation’s team of in-house producers and from there the rest is history. With over 20 years of experience in the music business, Ye has continued to raise the industry standard.
Take a look at 15 songs you might not have known he produced for other artists:
1. Foxy Brown, "My Life" (1999)
Ye produced Foxy Brown's "My Life" which was released in 1999. The song was featured as part of the soundtrack in the 2003 hit film "Cradle 2 The Grave" starring the late DMX, Jet Li, Gabrielle Union, Anthony Anderson, and Paige Hurd.
2. Lil' Kim, "Don't Mess with Me" (2000)
Lil' Kim's "Don't Mess with Me" was released in 2000 from the rapper's second studio album The Notorious K.I.M. Ye is also credited as a co-writer along with Kimberly Denise Jones (Lil' Kim), Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie, Geoff Gill and Cliff Wade.
3. Mos Def feat. Faith Evans, "Brown Sugar (Fine)" (2002)
"Brown Sugar (Fine)" is from the soundtrack of the film Brown Sugar. Mos Def plays Chris “Cavi” Vichon, a cab driver and underground rapper, and he performs the song in the film and tags Faith Evans' angelic vocals later on the soundtrack. The song contains a sample of Norman Connor’s “Invitation” (1979).
4. Monica, "Knock Knock" (2003)
Monica released "Knock Knock" in 2003 on her fourth studio album 'Before The Storm.' The record peaked at No.75 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 24 on Billboard’s R&B chart."Knock Knock" samples The Masqueraders' 1976 song “It’s a Terrible Thing to Waste Your Love.”
5. Common – "Go!" (2005)
"Go!" is the third single from Common's 2005 album Be. Ye provides background vocals alongside John Mayer. Be was nominated for "Best Rap Album" at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards.
6. Alicia Keys, "You Don't Know My Name" (2003)
“You Don’t Know My Name” is the lead single of Alicia’s second studio album The Diary Of Alicia Keys , which was released in 2003. The song won a Grammy for "Best R&B Song" at the 47th Annual Grammys where the singer also picked up "Best R&B Album," for The Diary Of Alicia Keys , "Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" for "If Ain't Got You," and "Best R&B Performance By A Duo or Group With Vocals" for "My Boo" featuring Usher.
7. Twista, "Overnight Celebrity" (2004)
"Overnight Celebrity" is the second single from Twista's 2004 album Kamikaze. The song has uncredited vocals by West and violin by Miri Ben-Ari. The track samples Lenny Williams' 1978 song "Cause I Love You." The song received a nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards.
8. Mariah Carey, "Stay The Night" (2005)
"Stay The Night" is from Mariah Carey's The Emancipation of Mimi, the singer's 10th studio album, which was released in 2005.
9. Alicia Keys, "Unbreakable" (2005)
Alicia Keys and Ye teamed up again on the singer's "Unbreakable" which was released in 2005. The track was originally supposed to be a part of the R&B icon's second studio album The Diary Of Alicia Keys but it ultimately did not make the cut.
"The song was always one of my favorites, but I did not think it would fit well into my second album," the singer said per Genius. The record draws from Eddie Kendrick's 1977 "Intimate Friends." "Unbreakable" was nominated for "Best R&B Song" and "Best Female Vocal R&B Vocal Performance" at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards.
10. Lil Wayne, "Did It Before" (2007)
"Did It Before" is from Lil Wayne's The Drought Is Over 2: The Carter 3 Sessions. The Drought Is Over 2: The Carter 3 Sessions is an unofficial compilation of Lil Wayne songs that was released in 2007.
11. Drake, "Show Me A Good Time" (2010)
"Show Me A Good Time" is from Drake's 2010 album Thank Me Later. Not only did Ye produce this song but he also has a co-writing credit along with Drake, No I.D., and Jeff Bhasker. Ye also produced Drizzy's "Find Your Love" which is also on the album. Thank Me Later was nominated for "Best Rap Album" at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards.
12. Justin Bieber, "Runaway Love" Remix (2011)
The original "Runaway Love" is found on Justin Bieber's 2010 album My World 2.0. Bieber and Ye's collab came after Kanye tweeted his admiration of the song. He then added Wu-Tang's Raekwon onto the project for the remix. The remix samples the beat from Wu-Tang Clan's 1993 hit "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta F--- Wit."
13. Beyoncé, "Party" ft. André 3000 (2011)
"Party" is from Beyoncé's fourth studio album 4 and includes a guest appearance from André 3000. Ye also contributes background vocals to the track along with Consequence.
14. John Legend, "Let's Get Lifted" (2011)
"Let's Get Lifted" is from John Legend's debut studio album Get Lifted. Ye who was Legend's manager at the time, executive produced this album including "Let's Get Lifted." Get Lifted won "Best R&B Album", and earned Legend another two awards, for "Best New Artist" and "Best Male R&B Vocal Performance" for his single "Ordinary People" at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards.
15. Lil Nas X ft. Jack Harlow, "Industry Baby" (2021)
"Industry Baby" appears on Lil Nas X's debut album Montero which was released in 2021. The song features a guest appearance from rapper Jack Harlow. The song debuted at No. 2 in August of 2021 then went to No.1 on the chart on the week of October 23, 2021. The track became Lil Nas X's third No. 1 song and Harlow's first. The song received a nomination for Best Melodic Rap Performance at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.