Kanye West Files To Trademark "Ye" For COVID-19 Masks

BYAron A.Updated on September 26, 20221.8K Views

The artist formerly known as Kanye West appears to be readying some new merchandise following his name change.

A Los Angeles judge recently granted the artist formerly known as Kanye West permission to legally change his name to Ye. Now, the rapper is preparing for a whole merchandise rebrand, starting with facemasks. According to TMZ, Ye has filed a petition to trademark his new name for the purposes of COVID-19 masks. The DONDA artist filed to trademark Ye for the purpose of "sanitary masks for protection against viral infection." Additionally, he's seeking to make "fashion masks" with similar branding.

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Chances are, these face masks will sell fast, similar to anything the Yeezy logo is emblazoned on. Earlier this year, the rapper launched the Yeezy x Gap collaboration officially which reportedly did $7M overnight. The former CEO of GAP said that 35,000 orders were placed for a $200 jacket the evening the products launched. It wouldn't be surprising if the Ye face masks earns the rapper some huge bucks.

Ye initially filed documents to change his name back in August. The rapper filed a petition to the court, and thanks to California's rather relaxed laws, he managed to legally change his name in under 2 months. However, he's flirted with the idea in the past. Shortly before hitting the stage for his incredibly controversial SNL performance, he took to Twitter where he revealed that he would wrote, "the being formally known as Kanye West I am YE."

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About The Author

Aron A.

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.