Kanye “Ye” West had a turbulent day on the witness stand on Friday, repeatedly appearing to struggle to stay awake as he testified in the trial over the disastrous renovation of his former Malibu mansion.
According to Rolling Stone, who was present in the Los Angeles courtroom, the rapper “repeatedly yawned, closed his eyes for long stretches and at times seemed to catch his head falling forward” during his appearance in the second week of the trial.
The moment reached a peak when the lawyer representing the plaintiff reportedly turned away from the stand and mouthed “Is he asleep?”, a question the presiding judge also appeared to clock, prompting them to ask the attorney to “make things a little snappier” with their questioning.
When asked about the work carried out on the property, Ye’s repeated answer was a simple “I don’t recall.”
The trial centres on a lawsuit brought by contractor Tony Saxon, who is suing Ye for unpaid wages, unsafe working conditions, and wrongful termination.
Saxon claims he was forced to live on the property, a striking four-bedroom, 4,000-square-foot estate in Malibu designed by celebrated Japanese architect Tadao Ando, as Ye attempted to transform it according to a series of unusual demands.
Those plans included making the property entirely self-sufficient and “off the grid,” and at one point replacing a staircase with a slide.
Saxon alleges he suffered an injury during the failed construction, was subsequently fired after raising safety concerns, and says Ye is liable for his medical bills.
The results of the renovation speak for themselves.
The Ando-designed property, which Ye purchased for $57 million in 2021, was stripped down to a bare “concrete shell”, left with no windows, doors, electricity, or plumbing.
He sold it at a staggering loss in 2024, offloading the estate for $21 million. The Saxon case is one of several legal matters Ye is set to face in court in the coming months.
