Kanye West may have been at Cannes to talk about music and celebrity endorsement deals — but he first demanded that all labels be removed from water bottles ahead of his session.
The outspoken rapper took to the stage with Steve Stoute and venture capitalist Ben Horowitz at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, but before he spoke, he insisted the labels be ripped off the water bottles that were placed on the table in front of him.
A festival source told us, “Kanye said he wasn’t going to be photographed promoting a brand if he’s not being paid for it. Organizers had to scramble to rip off the labels before his session started.”
Kanye made a series of references to how brands use celebrities and “water with no label” during his session at the Palais des Festivals on Tuesday in front of hundreds of delegates in the audience.
When the discussion turned to celebrity and branding deals, as well as Jay Z’s deal with Samsung, Kanye quipped, “I am not a fan of Samsung, by the way.”
He added, “The reason I said I didn’t like Samsung is because throughout my entire life … I have to work with the No. 1, I can’t work with anyone but Jay Z, I can’t be with any girl but Kim because that’s the girl that I look at her pictures the most and get turned on the most. I am not going to represent any company except Louis Vuitton because that’s the best.”
Kanye’s rep didn’t immediately get back to us.