Kano Computing, which supplies hardware to musicians and creatives, severed connections with Kanye West (now Ye) in November 2022 due to the rappers’ anti-semitic remarks and a contractual dispute.
The British audio and computing hardware company hit new heights after releasing Stem Player, an audio remixing gadget that allows users to alter recordings. The device will be released in August 2021, in line with the release of West’s Donda album.
Complex reported that the company “sold more than 100,000 units in the initial drop, with each device selling for $200.” West’s Donda 2 album was released exclusively on the Stem Player in February 2022.
But, after severing relations with the rapper, the British company plans to raise equity funding from its clients and fans as it embarks on a new venture. According to CNBC, the company will launch a Crowdcube crowdfunding campaign in which average people will be able to own a share of Kano alongside Microsoft and billionaire investor Jim Breyer’s Breyer Capital. Then again, who doesn’t?
Kano hopes to fund $900,000 from private investors in the United Kingdom and Europe, with plans to extend to the United States later.
Kano Computing began as an effort to teach children how to code using simple computer kits. It then moved on to creating audio devices, the most notable of which being the Stem Player.
Alex Klein, the creator of Kano Computing, first met with West in 2019. The two talked about what became known as the Donda Stem Player, now Stem Player.
But, their partnership soured following the rapper’s anti-Semitic rants and arguments about conditions. According to CNBC, West previously orally pledged to acquire Kano for $80 million.
If the crowdfunding campaign is successful, Kano intends to release a set of white headphones known as the Stem Headphones by the end of 2023 or early 2024.