Heres What Its Like To Work For Kanye West
Working for Kanye West ain’t so 'Yeezy'. Even Kim Kardashian West isn't always a fan of Kanye West! This controversial member of the real-life 'billionaire boys club' has a reputation for being dramatic and unpredictable.
We now know more about working for Kanye West than ever before. That's thanks to Steve Stanulis, a 42-year-old security worker who has a lot to say about Kanye's boss style. We've also gotten some key insights from Cassius Clay, a music industry pro who was hired by 'Ye, fresh out of college, to work as a Junior Creative Consultant.
They're just a few of the high flyers who either love or hate Kanye West. In Steve's tea-spilling interview on the podcast, 'Hollywood Raw with Dax Holt and Adam Glyn', he called Kanye the "neediest, moodiest, and worst tipper" he had ever worked for - and Steve's past client list includes the international party boy, Leonardo DiCaprio.
Cassius has a more positive outlook on his time with the rapper. "Kanye is the type of person who needs more than 24 hours in a day," he told Complex. "It was amazing to interact with him."
Read on and take a side!
15 You Can’t Talk to Kim
Steve was fired when Kanye caught him having a conversation with Kim Kardashian in a hallway in May 2016. According to Cosmopolitan, Steve claimed that he was asking Kim what car she was traveling in to get to the Met Gala (useful information for a bodyguard to know!) but since talking to Kim was strictly off-limits, Kanye fired him on the spot.
14 You Can’t Ever Touch Kanye
According to NME, Steve remembers a time that proves Kanye’s 'no-touch' rule is real: "There was a new security guard… and he touched Kanye’s shoulder while guiding him through paparazzi into his car. Even though the bodyguard was just doing his job, Kanye turned around and snapped, 'Don’t you ever touch me.'" Steve says that two days later, the man was given the boot.
13 You Must Wear All-Black
Steve told Hollywood Raw that there’s a strict, all-black dress code in place for Kanye’s staff. Pics like this one prove it! It's rare to see Kanye's assistants or security team wearing anything else. The reason? "Patterns distract him," Steve explained. He added that he saw one new hire get fired for wearing red sneakers (more on Kanye's shoe obsession later).
12 You Need To Be The Best in Your Field
"I absorb information," Kanye explained in an interview with Details in 2009. "I only surround myself with geniuses." Cassius Clay confirmed that Kanye’s working environment leaves no space for amateurs: "He needs to work with people who are as committed to understanding their field, to excelling at it, to producing things and to sharing them with other people,” he told Complex in 2016.
11 Reading His Mind Helps
Metro reports that Kanye expected Steve to know his way around without ever being told where things were. Steve recounted a strange situation with Kanye, while they were in a random elevator: "he says 'Aren’t you going to push what floor we are going to?'
Steve said he had no idea. "So he starts ranting, 'So you mean you didn’t call ahead to find out where I’m supposed to be going?'"
10 You Have to Walk 10 Steps Behind Him
We know Kanye considers himself to be untouchable. According to Steve, he was also downright unreachable. "He wanted you to stay 10 paces behind him on a city street," Steve told Hollywood Raw. "So obviously if someone is going to come up and do something, by the time I try to run up and prevent it, it would have already happened."
9 You Have to Love Sneakers, But Hate Nike
Like Beyoncé, Kanye is an Adidas fan. He is so much of an Adidas sneakerhead that he's gone as far as trashing Adidas' biggest competitor, saying: "Nike treat employees just like slaves" in his 2013 song, Facts.
In 2013, he launched his own line of Adidas shoes called Yeezys, solidifying his loyalty to the brand. Most of Kanye's employees work in Yeezy production, so shoe know-how is a must.
8 You Need to Be Silent When He’s Around
Once, Steve watched as Kanye walked past two of his staff while they were chatting. According to what he told Hollywood Raw, Kanye "turned and demanded, 'Can you two not talk when I walk by you?'" Not speaking unless you're spoken to is a level of respect usually reserved for royalty.
Of course, Kanye would put himself on the royal level! He's "the number one most impactful artist of our generation," according to himself.
7 His Models Get Micromanaged
After Kanye’s 'Yeezy 3' fashion show, his 38 rules for the models were leaked on Twitter. They included: "Quiet please. No whisper. No smile. No dancing. No sing, unless instructed. No eye contact. No acting. No fast movements. No slow movements. Do not act cool. You are a picture. Be calm, be strong, be neutral. Behave as if no one was in the room…"
Congrats to his models for making it through!
6 He Might Ignore You
"I don't think he ever said two words to me [in public]," Steve explained, as reported on Mail Online. "Not once was I offered a glass of water…You could be working with him for 17 hours and sitting in a restaurant with him. You would think he would say, ‘Hey you want something to drink?’ but it was nothing. It just blew my mind."
5 He Never Apologizes
"Kanye never, ever apologizes", Steve revealed to Hollywood Raw. This isn't actually that surprising if you look at Kanye's public persona, though. Has he ever apologized to Taylor Swift for stealing her spotlight at the 2009 VMAs? Not really. If the queen of pop can't get a sorry out of him, his employees certainly won't.
4 You Have to Deal With ‘Outbursts’ and ‘Tantrums’
Kanye has a famous habit of flipping out and that goes along with an unpredictable temper. Part of Steve's job was to wrangle an emotional Kanye. He told Hollywood Raw he'd get calls when Kanye "stormed out of the studio after yet another row," and would have to track the diva down. Once he "discovered him walking down the side of a busy highway." Kanye? Dramatic? Sounds about right to us.
3 Paparazzi Are Everywhere
As reported by Metro, "There’s no way [paparazzi] doesn’t get called upfront," Steve shared. "Every time they are leaving, all these people know about it. There’s definitely somebody calling ahead…wherever we are, they’re always there."
He added that employees would often get in trouble with Kanye if they accidentally appeared with their face behind his in paparazzi shots. "He absolutely adores the attention."
2 You Might Have To Become Abstinent (!)
"There were times where I was asking people not to have premarital s** while they were working on the album." Kanye told Billboard in 2019. He added, "[sexuality] just presents itself in the open like it's okay. I stand up and say, 'You know, it's not okay.'" That seems like a very personal opinion to force on your employees, but he did it.
1 You Probably Won’t Last Long
When Steve showed up on his first day, he told Hollywood Raw he was warned by the other staff that working for Kanye doesn't mean job security. The turnover is huge! "'Don’t expect to last long,'" Steve claims his coworker said, "'He goes through a lot of guys and some don’t even last the first hour.'" If you want a long-term gig, working for Kanye probably isn't for you.
Sources: NME.com, Billboard.com, MailOnline.co.uk, UsMagazine.com, Metro.co.uk, Complex.com, GQ.com, Cosmopolitan.com
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