Kanye West, known professionally as Ye, took the stand Wednesday in a Los Angeles federal court. He addressed allegations that early versions of two tracks from his 2021 album Donda used an uncleared sample. The testimony came during a narrow trial focused on demo recordings played at a pre-release listening party.
Ye told the jury that his team followed standard procedures to license the instrumental track “MSD PT2.” He described himself as generous with credits and royalties, saying, “I pride myself on giving people what they deserve.” The rapper also stated that many creators seek more compensation from him than they would from others, adding, “I feel like a lot of people try to take advantage of me.”
