Kanye West Imitator Attempting To Get Into L.A. Clubs

A man is impersonating rapper Kanye West in order to use his clout to get into clubs and events in Hollywood. According to a video posted by DJ R-Tistic, he found the fake Kanye outside one of his events with an entourage and asked him to play some of the actual Kanye's best songs.

“Yooooo there’s been a fake Kanye running around Hollywood,” R-Tistic wrote, sharing a photo of the alleged culprit. “He came to an event I did yesterday and brought an entourage who told the door man he was Kanye. He even came up n asked me to play ‘his’ music.”

TikTok user @Travque also spotted the fake Kanye walking around Hollywood and uploaded their interaction to social media. The social media creator kept shouting "Whose man’s is this?" at the fake Kanye who was casually drinking at an event at the time.

Kanye however is not the only rapper to have someone trying to capitalize off their clout. Last year, a Drake imitator named "Izzy Drake" appeared and clubs and events pretending to be the Toronto rapper. However, Drake ended up sending "Izzy Drake" a cease and desist order for his actions.

"Notice to cease and desist," the letter began. "Dear IzzyyDrake, this letter serves as a notice of your unauthorized use of the trademark, ‘OVO’ to promote your brand and likeness, as well as your unauthorized fabrication of media which is Per Se damaging and defamatory to our brand. Your conducted actions are unwarranted, unwelcome, and unacceptable."

It continued: "In addition, this shall serve as a pre-suit letter demanding that you provide us written assurance within 7 days that you will cease and desist from making any further factually untrue statements involving OVO Sound and/or Drake, and that you will no longer fabricate media that portrays the aforementioned Trademarks. Thank you for your cooperation."

Izzy Drake shared the letter on Drake's 36th birthday and told him he would follow through in changing his name as a birthday present.

"Happy birthday to the greatest artist in history and my biggest inspiration," he wrote. "I got this cease and desist letter from OVO couple days ago and as a respectful b day gift to @champagnepapi I changed my name from IzzyyDrake to Izzyyfamous. More life my OVO brother @preme @bakanotnice @tvgucci."

However, in Kanye's case, he has not responded to the fake Kanye's behavior.

Hip-Hop is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. While the genre is one of the youngest, it is not short on its impact on the culture.

The genre originated in the early '70s in New York in African-American communities in the Bronx. There are several aspects to hip-hop in regard to music making, such as rap, djing, and freestyling. Those created other avenues in the art form, such as breakdancing and graffiti art.

Hip-hop has been in the mainstream in ways that were never thought possible by its early adopters of the craft.

"When we started on this journey decades ago, we were often told, 'No'. No, you won't be able to leave New Jersey. No, if you rap, you can't sing. No, singers can't become actresses. No, actors can't also produce," Queen Latifah said to Entertainment Weekly in a statement as she is set to become the first female rap artist to be celebrated at the Kennedy Center Honors.

"To now be recognized amongst so many multi-hyphenates feels unbelievable, not for just me and my team, but for our community. The work the Kennedy Center does is immeasurable so I'm beyond grateful for this recognition."

Throughout this year, hip-hop has been celebrated in performances by some of the greats. At the 2023 BET Awards, there were performances by MC Lyte, Big Daddy Kane, The Sugarhill Gang, D-Nice, Warren G, Yo-Yo, Trick Daddy, Trina, Uncle Luke, Redman, Erick Sermon, and Keith Murray -- also known as "Def Squad," and more highlighted rap on Culture's Biggest Night.

Earlier this year, Questlove curated a hip-hop tribute at the 2023 Grammy Awards where Missy Elliott, Run DMC, Salt n Pepa, Public Enemy, Grandmaster Flash, Ice-T, Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes with Spliff Star, Nelly, GloRilla, Lil Baby, and more took to the stage.

If you have been a fan since the beginning or you've just begun listening, you'll learn more from these projects. Take a look at five documentaries on these hip-hop artists:

Biggie and Tupac is a full-length documentary on the lives and tragedies of the hip-hop greats. Besides footage of Biggie and Tupac, you will also see appearances from Snoop Dogg, Lil Cease, and more. You can stream Biggie and Tupac on Amazon Prime Video.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14867972/

Jay-Z is regarded as one of the best rappers to have touched a mic. The New York native's 2020 documentary titled The Story of Jay-Z shows fans how he got to where he is now. You can stream The Story of Jay-Z on Amazon Prime Video.

Jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy takes us back to where it all began for Kanye West: The Southside of Chicago. Kanye West's artistry has impacted hip-hop like no other as his diverse skills in producing and designing put him in a league of his own. You can stream Jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy on Netflix.

Nas: Time Is Illmatic takes a deep dive into Nas' iconic debut album Illmatic. In the New York native's documentary you will also hear accounts from Alicia Keys, Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes and Pharrell. You can stream Nas: Time Is Illmatic on Peacock.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt24514002/

Eminem has had quite a career in hip-hop and this documentary takes a look at many of his accolades. In 2022 he performed at the Super Bowl alongside Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, and 50 Cent. He was also inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame last year for his contributions to hip-hop. You can stream Eminem: Count Me In on Amazon Prime Video.