YEEZY MAFIA, a group of sneaker resellers and a trusted source for all things adidas YEEZY, recently returned to Twitter after a five-month hiatus. The group gained recognition from Jon Wexler, the former General Manager of Kanye West’s empire, and was closely tied to the YEEZY brand. However, Ye’s clashes with his corporate partners in the final quarter of 2022 led to adidas cutting ties with him, citing antisemitism as the reason. YEEZY MAFIA took a break from social media due to the close connection with Ye and the fallout from his controversies.
When asked for comment, the admin for YEEZY MAFIA’s Twitter account shared that the group was not in a position to comment on the events that led to the hiatus as they were close to Ye during that time. The admin also mentioned that they had to lay off most of the YM team. Rumors of a reunion between Ye and adidas have circulated since February, but neither institution has commented on the validity of the rumors. Adidas CEO Bjørn Gulden fueled the fire by praising Ye as “one of the most creative people that have ever been on the planet” in March. However, adidas still holds $500 million worth of unsold YEEZY inventory, and it is unclear what effect teaming up with Ye again would have on the brand’s public perception.
YEEZY MAFIA is optimistic about the future, but its return message refers to “community activities” rather than a reunion between Ye and adidas. Countless netizens have boycotted adidas for terminating its deal with Ye, and rumors of Beyoncé severing ties with the Three Stripes on her IVY PARK label have also surfaced. Creative differences were cited as the reason behind the rumored breakup, but the IVY PARK x adidas catalog lost over 50% in revenue in 2022, according to the Wall Street Journal. If adidas YEEZY restarts, the partnership’s original terms are likely to have been renegotiated ad nauseam.
Whatever happens, the world will be watching. The future of YEEZY and adidas is uncertain, but YEEZY MAFIA and the rest of the sneaker community will continue to speculate and await further developments.
