Kanye West and promoters Live Nation are facing two lawsuits for poor treatment of crew and performers involved in last year’s opera, Nebuchadnezzar.
Kanye West has been uncharacteristically quiet after his failed bid at the US presidential election early last month. Yet, never one to stay out of the headlines for too long, it’s come to light that the rapper, along with production company Live Nation, are facing two lawsuits pertaining to last year’s Christian opera Nebuchadnezzar.
The opera, which took place in November 2019 at LA’s Hollywood Bowl, involved hundreds of performers, including Kanye’s Sunday Service choir and Kanye himself. Now, two separate class actions are alleging poor treatment of workers.
As reported by Vice, the first lawsuit, which was filed in July, comes from crew members including costume designers, hairdressers, and makeup artists, whilst the second, filed in August, comes from performers.
Both suits involve claims that workers were underpaid, refused breaks, and forced to wait months to receive payment. The suits also allege that workers were misclassified as independent contractors (rather than employees), allowing West to avoid paying thousands in taxes.
The opera was, by all accounts, not well received, and came less than a month after Kanye’s similarly critiqued ninth studio album, Jesus Is King.
Whilst some Twitter users have alleged that it’s Live Nation (rather than Kanye), who is at fault, others have disputed this.
no. like i said kanye west is included in the lawsuit because he personally oversaw several aspects
— Ani (@no_habloespanol) December 8, 2020
If the lawsuits are successful, Kanye could be liable to more than $1 million in damages.
