Devil in a new bodysuit.
Kanye West announced he’s going back to his roots with a Yzy women’s collection that looks strikingly familiar.
The rapper, who legally changed his name to Ye in 2021, teased his new venture on his Instagram Story Tuesday by sharing a photo of a high-cut black bodysuit identical to those often worn by his wife, Bianca Censori.
“Yzy women’s coming next. SCALING INNOVATION. For anyone in clothing that doesn’t work at Yeezy be afraid Be very afraid,” West wrote, in part.
He also slammed former Yeezy partner Adidas, which ended its lucrative contract with Ye in 2022 following the rapper’s “White Lives Matter” T-shirt launch and antisemitic comments.
“No corporations leveraging my platform Using me to get to get to us Overcharging our community while ignoring my vision and direction,” West, 47, continued, referencing some of his gripes with the retailer.
“Now my vision is coming to life and I have a John Wick vendetta against every fashion company as my fellow Gemini Tupac said Die mutherf—ker Die.”
It would appear Censori’s been modeling her husband’s new creations for months, if not years; in 2023, Page Six exclusively reported that West’s atelier is responsible for her headline-making outfits, like the thong bodysuit she paired with glittering tights for New Year’s Eve recently.
West’s latest design also recalls those from his original Yeezy brand, which he launched in 2015 with a similar neutral-colored, hosiery-centric aesthetic.
Among his earliest Yeezy models? His now-ex-wife, Kim Kardashian.
Following several seasons’ worth of Yeezy releases, Ye helped Kim launch her Skims brand in 2019, starting with shapewear, bodysuits and underwear in the same familiar flesh-toned color palette.
It was reported at the time that the reality star made $2 million in Skims’ first few minutes online, and her brand has since grown into an empire valued at over $4 billion, branching into swimwear, loungewear and designer partnerships with the likes of Fendi and Dolce & Gabbana.
While Kim may be synonymous with Skims, it was West whom Kim credited as the brand’s “ghost creative director” in 2019 — and the controversial rapper’s molded Censori in his preferred aesthetic over the past several years, with fans now often comparing the two women’s outfits.
Though he’s been credited with drawing the Skims logo and hiring early models and photographers for the brand, Ye has since mostly stepped away from Kardashian’s business — and even condemned the company’s imagery as “oversexualized” in a 2022 interview with Tucker Carlson.
“Skims is so based on a lot of the Yeezy ideas,” West told Carlson at the time. “I had to use my relationships in fashion in order to establish Kim so fashionable people would say, ‘I’m down to wear Kim’s line.’”
While West’s latest launch certainly has the makings of a Skims competitor, it’s worth noting that per Forbes, the rapper still owns a 5% stake in his ex’s mammoth brand — so he’ll continue to benefit from Skims’ successes, too.
Read the full article here