American rapper, record producer and cultural icon Kanye West, now legally known as Ye, has reportedly sent a cease and desist letter to Mark Elkhouri, the owner of College Dropout Burgers. According to NME, the letter is in response to the restaurant’s theme, Ye’s 2004 debut album The College Dropout, several menu items were inspired by the rapper’s music including “Golddigger”, “Good Morning” and “[No More] Parties In LA” burgers. 

Elkhouri is a fan of Ye and initially believed that the record producer was fond of the restaurant because he had interacted with the business’ Instagram page, following and viewing their posts. He has since announced in an Instagram post that the restaurant would be removing “all references to Ye” and that they would “no longer assert that we are directly inspired by Ye or his music.” 

 

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 Responding to the letter, Elkhouri commented, “It’s pretty hard being a Kanye West fan with this situation, we have to respect his wishes and move forward,” he continued, voicing his opinion of the artist, “Being a Kanye West fan has led me into this position where I have to still support him. I am extremely disappointed. There’s no doubt about that, but it doesn’t even come close to the impact that he’s had on my life.”

The restaurant will retain its rights to the name but will now be naming its burgers and other menu items after famous people who had dropped out of school such as Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Quentin Tarantino, Steven Spielberg and Brad Pitt. 

Photo Credit: Megan Clinard