Kanye West deletes tweets about memecoin and blockchain launch
His latest pivot contradicts previous comments in which he denounced celebrity-backed cryptocurrencies as exploitative.
American rapper and producer Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, posted a series of tweets on February 22 claiming he would launch his own memecoin and blockchain. The tweets, which have since been deleted, suggested the creation of a cryptocurrency called “Swasticoin.”
Ye’s choice of branding continues his pattern of inflammatory rhetoric and use of Nazi-related imagery, a trend that has led to significant professional fallout. In 2022, Adidas and the Creative Artists Agency severed ties with him following a series of antisemitic remarks.
The deleted posts lend credibility to earlier reporting from CoinDesk, which stated that Ye was planning to launch a token named YZY, presumably after his Yeezy brand. It remains unclear whether Swasticoin and YZY are the same project, two separate initiatives, or merely another instance of Ye's erratic online behaviour.
Ye is the latest in a wave of celebrities jumping into the memecoin craze. Figures such as internet sensation Hawk Tuah, Argentine President Javier Milei, and the "Tinder Swindler" have all been linked to and promoted memecoins in recent months.
In January, former U.S. President Donald Trump and his wife Melania also entered the memecoin space, launching their own tokens ahead of Trump's inaugration.
Ye’s latest pivot contradicts his own stance earlier this month when he denounced celebrity-backed cryptocurrencies as exploitative. "I also turned down a fake coin tweet," he wrote at the time in an also deleted post, warning that such ventures "prey on the fans with hype."