George Floyd's brother will no longer go after Kanye West in court for the comments he made on Drink Champs. According to TMZ, Philonise Floyd's attorney Lee Merritt said that they've temporarily paused the lawsuit against Ye, Candace Owens, and other parties for pushing a false narrative that George died from a fentanyl overdose.
At the time the episode aired, Floyd's family urged Lee to explore possible lawsuits that they could bring against Ye. However, since Ye became silent on the matter since then, Philonise decided to stand down on his legal threats.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 06: Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, speaks during a Police Reform panel at the 2022 National Action Network's Annual Convention at the Times Square Sheraton hotel on April 06, 2022 in New York City. Rev. Al Sharpton and his National Action Network held its first annual in person conference in two years due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The conference brings together civil rights leaders and allies, government officials, and other leaders from around the country to discuss voting rights, police reform and public safety. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
REVOLT complied with the cease-and-desist letter issued on behalf of Floyd's daughter, Gianna. Ultimately, REVOLT yanked the episode from their platform, including their YouTube channel. N.O.R.E. also went on an apology tour for his lack of pushback against the false narrative. It should be noted that Philonise wasn't directly involved with the legal action but had support for Lee's efforts.
Still, Kanye isn't completely off the hook. There is still a potential lawsuit from Gianna's lawyers, who could potentially seek more than $250M in damages. However, they haven't provided any updates surrounding the lawsuit.
Lee also explained that it might be difficult to chase down Candace Owens with a legal case. Lee said Owens used her journalistic platform to explore her opinions on the BLM organization and Derek Chauvin's case. Meanwhile, Ye used his celebrity platform to regurgitate the narrative surrounding George Floyd's death.
While Kanye might be watching his empire crumble as more corporations distance themselves from him, it seems like he won't have to head to court over his Drink Champs comments.
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Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years.
Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021.
Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.
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