Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has just revealed that he was once approached to endorse a fake cryptocurrency, $YE, with an offer of a whopping $2 million. This is not the only incident in which people are discussing fake celebrity account hacks advertising related scams.
Details of the Offer
Ye then posted the offer in a screenshot on social media on February 7, 2025. The offer included a $750,000 upfront payment with an additional $1.25 million to be paid 16 hours after the promotional post went live. The conditions required Ye to keep the post active for eight hours and then claim that his account had been hacked.
Ye said, “I was offered 2 million dollars to scam my community. I said no.” Such a refusal marks his attitude toward engaging in hoaxes, even in the face of huge financial temptation.
Celebrity Hacks and Scams
Ye’s revelation has thrown into question the legitimacy of other celebrity account hacks. In recent times, several high-profile accounts have been compromised to shill Solana-based meme coins. Last December, Drake’s account was hacked to promote a memecoin that went on to generate $5 million in trading volume before it was revealed as a scam.
The pattern of these hacks suggests a coordinated effort to leverage celebrity influence for financial gain. Ye’s revelation may spur greater scrutiny over such incidents, as many in the crypto community now question whether the hacks were genuine or orchestrated.
Ye’s Interest in Cryptocurrency
On top of refusing the scam offer, Ye also said he wants to meet with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. He wanted to have a word about cryptocurrency more directly and personally with regard to his life in the crypto space. This comes amid growing agitation over safety and security in transactions involving cryptocurrencies.
Ye’s reach-out to Armstrong comes after an October 2020 incident where Armstrong tweeted in support of Ye’s presidential run, but this is the first time that Ye has publicly attempted to have direct communication with the Coinbase chief exec.
Community Response
Crypto communities are reacting strongly to both the rejection of Ye’s scam and his attempts at reaching out to Armstrong. Much of the outrage on social media is expressing concern about celebrity-driven scams and a desire for better security measures. Some have pointed out the main role of self-custody in cryptocurrency cautioning people to always store their digital assets in cold wallets instead of keeping them on exchanges.
Another user said, “Ye, every time you buy Bitcoin on an exchange and leave it there, the exchange is the middleman. You don’t really own it until you take it off the exchange.” This has been a recurring theme in discussions around ownership and security in the cryptocurrency space.
In a series of important events this week, Kanye West refused an offer to profit from a worthless memecoin scam. His actions drew attention to the fact that scammers use fake celebrity accounts to fool followers and investors. Security, ownership, and the prevention of fraud are going to be key as the space of cryptocurrency continues on its new paths of development.
