American rapper Kanye West has called on his fellow musicians in the United States to take a cue from Nigerians, as well as Jewish, Chinese, and Indian entrepreneurs, when it comes to business acumen.
Speaking in an interview with DJ Akademiks, West criticized many American artists for lacking financial and business intelligence, arguing that they overly rely on foreign investors and lawyers to manage their careers.
“None of these nas [rappers] are as smart as me. I can’t say for the tech dudes… But artists are dumb, bro. It’s like, they can’t even fing count, bro,” he said.
The controversial rapper further pointed out that most record labels and television networks in the U.S. are controlled by Jewish lawyers and investors. He challenged his fellow artists to build independent businesses without relying on external support.
“Go and ask them to run a whole record label without a Jewish person… Go and set up your whole TV network, make it run, no Jewish investor, let me see how that works,” he stated.
West went on to praise Nigerian creatives and entrepreneurs for their ability to take charge of their own businesses, urging American artists to adopt a similar approach.
“Until motherf*ers can really get their stuff together like the Nigerians, the Chinese, the Jewish, or like the tech Indian or some st, everything I’m saying counts,” he added.
His remarks have sparked conversations about financial literacy and independence in the music industry, particularly in contrast to how different communities manage their creative enterprises.
