Rapper Kanye West, known professionally as “Ye,” has agreed to buy conservative %SocialMedia Platform %Parler .
The privately held parent company of Parler announced the sale to Ye in a news release. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.
The move by Ye to buy Parler comes after the singer was locked out of his Twitter and Instagram accounts for making antisemitic remarks.
In one post, Ye reiterated a long-standing conspiracy theory that fellow rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs is being controlled by Jewish people.
Ye’s net worth has been estimated at $2 billion U.S. Much of his fortune comes from his Yeezy sneaker brand and previous endorsement deals with %Gap () and %Adidas .
However, Ye severed business ties with Gap recently, and Adidas said it’s also reviewing its business relationship with him. U.S. bank %JPMorganChase () cut ties with the rapper following his recent comments.
Parler is one of several right-wing social media platforms to emerge during the Donald Trump era, as the former president’s supporters claim unfair treatment by Twitter and other apps.
Parler launched in 2018 and was involved in controversy last year over the role it played in the January 6, 2021, riots on Capitol Hill.
Parler has sought to reduce its dependence on technologies from other firms by establishing its own internal cloud infrastructure. The company set up a new parent company in September of this year, called Parlement Technologies, aimed at providing its own cloud service for online businesses.
Parler’s parent company said it expects to finalize the deal with Ye before the end of this year.