Kanye West Says He Wants a Percentage of Paparazzi Earnings

In what appears to be another attempt at controlling his image, the billionaire recently told photographers that he wanted a cut of any earning they made off of his image .

“Right now y’all get to shoot us without having to pay. I’mma change that,” the star said, as he was trailed by the paps outside of an airport in Miami.

“I’m not saying it in a negative way. It’s just like, right now, it’s just really one-sided," Ye said, mentioning that while it's currently legal to take photos of celebrities without permission in public, he was seeking to "change that."

"You guys can follow us, you guys can stand [outside] a hotel at any given time," he continued. "You don’t give us any percentage of what you’re making off of us, off of our kids."

The rapper then went on to say that "we all gotta make money together" and that "it can’t be a one-sided thing,” which is something "we gotta have a conversation" about, especially since "we can get that money together."

“I’m gonna make sure we get our rights. We’re real people, also," Ye said, while also seemingly referencing the LAPD's current criminal battery investigation following his alleged assault of a fan trying to get an autograph, who he insisted was just trying to cash in on his name.

“I respect your job. My dad was a photographer at a newspaper," he said, before adding that he "loves" the paparazzi.

“But as Americans, we gotta respect each other," he said. "We gotta bring the pride back to this country.”

Listen to Ye's comments below.

Ye (fka Kanye West) confronted paparazzi today about them profiting off of his image, says he wants a percentage of their earnings pic.twitter.com/ZfJiD6Ju8i

— Kurrco (fka Squirt Reynolds) (@Kurrco) January 23, 2022

Photo via Getty / Hollywood To You / Star Max