American rapper Kanye West, known as Ye, and his Yeezy sneaker business have been sued for sexual harassment, wrongful termination and breach of contract by a former assistant of the celebrity, as per a report in the Guardian. She says she was purposely caused mental suffering and is now owed $3 million as compensation for breach of contract and hostile work environment.
Lauren Pisciotta said she lost her job in 2022 after she did not receive the $4 million bonus she had been promised for becoming West's "chief of staff." In addition, she claims that a multimillion-dollar severance payment was never made. According to Ms Pisciotta's filing, she began collaborating with the rapper in July 2021, when he was getting ready for the launch of his Yeezy fashion line and was offered $1 million. She agreed to the sole requirement, which was to make herself available seven days a week, 24 hours a day, as per Page Six.
The 35-year-old said in her lawsuit that she was also earning an extra $1 million from OnlyFans up until 2022 when West requested that she stop using the platform and become more "God Like." He allegedly increased the model's salary to $2 million a year in exchange, making up for the reduced income. However, he never made adjustments to her salary.
According to the former assistant, West masturbated in front of her on a flight to Paris and she subsequently received explicit messages from him. According to the filing, the rapper allegedly wrote, "See my problem is I be wanting to f*** but then after I f*** I want a girl to tell me how hard they been f***** while I'm f****** them. Then I want her to cheat on me."
She claimed that West ordered her to deliver him a sexual enhancement "honey" before his sexual encounters, was "fixated on the penis size" of her partners, and sent clips of himself having sex with a model. In another incident, he allegedly locked them in a room together and masturbated next to her before falling asleep. She further alleged that he got furious when she refused any advances to "date or have sex" with him.
Meanwhile, West's legal team accused the 35-year-old of blackmailing the rapper and slammed her complaint as "baseless" in a statement sent to Page Six on Tuesday. "In response to these baseless allegations, Ye will be filing a lawsuit against Ms Pisciotta, who actively pursued him sexually to coerce employment and other material benefits, then engaged in blackmail and extortion when her advances were rejected. Before her termination as an assistant, Ms. Pisciotta stole his cell phone in an attempt to destroy phone records that would contradict her claims, all of which have been preserved," the statement said.
"She was terminated for being unqualified, demanding unreasonable sums of money (including a $4 million annual salary) and numerous documented incidents of her lascivious, unhinged conduct," it added.
West's team further contended that Pisciotta "offered Ye sex on his birthday to which he declined, sent Ye unsolicited nude images, sexual narratives and was seen twerking in the office during business hours. "Pisciotta offered Ye sex on his birthday, to which he declined, sent Ye unsolicited nude images, sexual narratives, and was seen twerking in the office during business hours," according to a statement made by West's legal team.
Additionally, they referenced an incident in which Pisciotta spoke of being "ejaculated on by a soccer player while simultaneously texting her boss."
Ye's team also accused her of "using sexual coercion" to obtain more compensation and benefits, including money for plastic surgery, a Lamborghini, and Hermes Birkin handbags.
"Upon having her advances rebuked, Pisciotta's blackmail demands have gone from $60 million last year to $50 million in last week's frivolous filing," the lawyers stated adding that her "behavior is entirely inconsistent with someone who claims to have been sexually harassed or experienced a hostile work environment."
