Musician Sues Ye Over Claims He Was Locked in a Wyoming Band Room to Write an Opera

A musician has filed a federal lawsuit against Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, alleging that he was locked inside a Wyoming high school band room and forced to write the opera Nebuchadnezzar. The lawsuit was filed on Wednesday, 11 November, and Billboard reported it on Friday, 13 November.

The plaintiff, Chase Taylor, is suing in a civil case. That means he is asking a court for compensation and other remedies, not bringing criminal charges. The case does not accuse Ye of a crime. These are allegations in a filing, and no court has ruled on them.

According to the lawsuit, Taylor was hired to perform in Nebuchadnezzar. He was later told he would need to compose the entire opera from scratch. He says that when he arrived there was no opera music, score, lyrics or plan, and that he was told to compose, orchestrate and rehearse a full opera to be performed in four days.

The filing alleges that the defendants locked the band room door and ordered Taylor to keep working until the opera was finished. It says he was prevented from leaving the school. Taylor says he asked, through a staffer, for the doors to be unlocked, for enough food and water, and for time off so musicians could sleep. He says those requests were ignored.

The room was not suited to the job, the lawsuit claims. It says the band room could not support the more than 150 performers involved. Musicians sat and slept on the floor when they needed a break, because there was no space to rest, and the defendants did not provide enough food, according to the filing.

Taylor also says he was promised generous pay, producer credit and future work on the project. Nearly seven years later, he says, he has not been properly paid. He further claims that West built his arrangements into albums and concerts, and continues to earn millions from that work while withholding pay and credit from him.

The opera has its own history in court. Nebuchadnezzar, based on the biblical story of the ancient king, premiered in November 2019 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. It ran 45 minutes and was performed only once. Another musician, Willie Alexander, filed a lawsuit last year making similar accusations about an opera written without music in place. That case is still pending. In 2024, a class action brought by performers and behind-the-scenes workers over the production settled for $1.35 million.

Why does this matter beyond one production? Live shows depend on people who rarely get their names on the poster: performers, arrangers, stagehands and crew. Their pay and credit are often set in informal agreements, and disputes like this one tend to turn on what was promised and what was put in writing. Taylor's case is at an early stage, and its claims will be tested, if the case moves forward, through the court process.