Kanye West

=== Legal problems ===
In December 2006, [[Evel Knievel|Robert "Evel" Knievel]] sued the rapper for trademark infringement of his name and likeness in West's video for "[[Touch the Sky (Kanye West song)|Touch the Sky]]". Knievel took issue with the "vulgar and offensive" and "sexually charged video" in which West takes on the persona of "Evel Kanyevel" that Knievel claimed damaged his reputation. The suit sought monetary damages and an injunction to stop distribution of the video.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1212061evel1.html|title=Evel Knievel Sues Kanye West|access-date=June 7, 2007|website=[[The Smoking Gun]]}}</ref> West's attorneys argued that the music video amounted to satire and therefore was covered under the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|First Amendment]]. Days before his death in November 2007, Knievel amicably settled the suit after being paid a visit by West, saying, "I thought he was a wonderful guy and quite a gentleman."<ref>{{cite news|title=Evel Knievel, Kanye West settle lawsuit|url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2007-11-27-kanye-knievel_N.htm|work=USA Today|date=November 27, 2007|access-date=November 27, 2007}}</ref>

In 2014, after an altercation with a paparazzo at the [[Los Angeles International Airport|Los Angeles Airport]], West was sentenced to serve two years' probation for a misdemeanor battery conviction, and was required to attend 24 anger management sessions, perform 250 hours of community service, and pay restitution to the photographer.<ref>{{cite news|last=Duke|first=Alan|title=Kanye West gets probation in paparazzi attack|publisher=CNN|date=March 17, 2014|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2014/03/17/showbiz/kanye-west-plea-deal/|access-date=March 17, 2015}}</ref> A separate civil lawsuit brought by the paparazzo was settled in 2015, a week before it was due for trial.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/apr/07/kanye-west-settles-lawsuit-paparazzo|title=Kanye West settles lawsuit with paparazzo over 2013 LA airport attack|date=April 7, 2015|website=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=January 24, 2023}}</ref> According to [[TMZ]], an appeal to have West's conviction [[expunged]] from his criminal record was granted by a judge in 2016.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/kanye-west-charge-paparazzi-cleared-from-record-7350471/|title=Kanye West's Charge in Paparazzi Scuffle Cleared From Record: Report|date=May 2, 2016|last=Stutz|first=Colin|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|access-date=January 24, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/kanye-west-has-clean-criminal-record-after-judge-erases-beating-conviction|title=Kanye West has clean criminal record after judge erases beating conviction|date=December 4, 2016|website=[[Fox News]]|access-date=January 24, 2023}}</ref><!--On June 29, 2022, a complaint was filed in U.S. District Court in New York claiming copyright infringement due to unauthorized use of a sample on the song "Flowers". The complaint claims that West sampled Marshall Jefferson's 1986 house track "[[Move Your Body (Marshall Jefferson song)|Move Your Body]]" without gaining permission or providing compensation.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Eggertsen|first=Chris|title=Ye Sued Over Sample Used on 'Donda 2' Track 'Flowers'|url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/kanye-west-sued-donda-2-sample-marshall-jefferson/|date=June 29, 2022|access-date=June 29, 2022|magazine=Billboard}}</ref> In July 2022, West was sued for $416,000 by the fashion rental company the [[The David Casavant Archive|David Casavant Archive]]. The lawsuit claimed that West had failed to make payments on and return 13 rented pieces.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kanye West sued for not returning 13 'rare pieces' to fashion rental company |url=https://www.geo.tv/latest/426743-kanye-west-sued-for-not-returning-13-rare-pieces-to-fashion-rental-company |access-date=July 8, 2022 |website=Geo.tv |language=en}}</ref>-->