Kanye West is currently taking legal action against the labels partnered with G.O.O.D. music in order to retrieve ownership of his masters, according to recent reports. This legal issue is now being deemed as the reason why his upcoming album, Yandhi, has yet to be released. Legal documents obtained by The Blast state that Roc-A-Fella Records, Def Jam and EMI have been exploiting “one of the world’s most iconic, multi-faceted, and productive talents.” Def Jam “has unjustly earned millions of dollars by binding Mr. West’s recording talents to [Island Def Jam] for an unlawful term.”
Due to this disagreement, Kanye West is keeping his 9th studio album out of the market until further notice. West, who has been a Def Jam signee for 17 years, demands freedom from the restrictive stipulations of his contracts. It is unclear how long the legal proceedings will last.
The document explains, “Even if the contracts were not unfair (they are), even if their terms valued Mr. West’s contributions in line with the breathtaking success he has achieved for these companies (they do not) and even if the companies had not unpaid Mr. West what they owe him (they have), he would be entitled to be set free from its bonds.”
“At no point since the commencement of Mr. West’s services under the recording agreement and extensions in 2002 has he enjoyed any ‘moment of freedom’ that is, any moment during which he was freed from his obligations under the contract and able to offer his services to anyone else, take a break from his recording career, or even retire from it altogether.”