It appears there’s been a big shakeup within the Kanye West team.
According to Billboard, the 40-year-old artist has parted ways with his longtime manager Izvor “Izzy” Zivkovic, who reportedly began working with Ye in 2010 around the My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy era.
Since then, Izzy’s company Split Second Management has made huge strides, adding acts like Arcade Fire, Kevin Garrett, and Banks to its roster of clients. Needless to say, the man will have no trouble keeping busy even after losing a mega star like Kanye.
The details of the split have not been revealed; however, Billboard reports the rapper will continue working with his other manager Scooter Braun, who also represents heavy-hitters like Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande. The publication reports Braun was not involved with Izzy's departure.
Shortly after he joined Kanye’s camp in 2016, Braun spoke to Charlie Rose about his new role and what he hoped to achieve for the rapper in the upcoming years.
“I can tell you the one thing that is my goal with working with him is I hope the world gets to see the guy that I’ve gotten to know,” he said. “A lot of people have an assumption that he might be selfish or arrogant. The guy who I’ve gotten to know—who I am learning to translate to others—is someone who literally got himself in financial trouble because he would give the shirt off his back to help someone […] I want to help take his journey to where he wants to go. Whether it be with apparel, whether it be with the idea of creativity and putting stuff into the world that changes and shapes culture for a positive way. That’s his goal.”
News of Izzy's exit arrives amid increasing anticipation for Kanye's next album. The multi-hyphenate was down in Wyoming earlier this month, where he was reportedly working on a mysterious project with names like Drake, Kid Cudi, Nas, and Mike Dean.
