Kanye West’s YZY Memecoin Collapses 80% Amid “Hacked Instagram” Drama!

Kanye West’s official Solana-based memecoin, YZY, has plummeted more than 80% from its peak just seven days after launch, fueling further skepticism around celebrity-backed crypto projects.

The downfall came shortly after West claimed on social media that his Instagram account had been hacked to promote a fake version of the token. Ironically, while West attempted to steer fans toward the “real” YZY, the alleged imposter token briefly outperformed the official coin, soaring before crashing within hours.

Kanye’s Instagram “Hacked”

On Tuesday, Aug. 26, West posted a video on X to his 33 million followers, insisting his Instagram account had been compromised. According to West, the hackers manipulated his profile to push a fraudulent version of YZY, created on Pump.fun.

In the same video, he shared the official contract address, ending in “YEEZY,” to help his followers distinguish it from the fake. However, blockchain data showed that West’s Instagram account had been following a profile named “yzytoken,” which heavily promoted the alleged imposter coin.

The fake YZY briefly surged to a market cap of $7 million before collapsing the next day, while the official version quickly fell to the bottom of Solana meme charts.

Are All Celebrity Memecoins Scams?

The controversy surrounding Kanye West’s token is far from unique. Celebrity-branded coins have gained notoriety for being short-lived hype cycles, often designed as quick cash grabs with little substance behind them.

A recent example came in December when Hailey Welch, the viral “Hawk Tuah Girl,” launched her $HAWK token on Solana. Within minutes, it skyrocketed to a $500 million market cap before collapsing 95% in under an hour. Blockchain data revealed that 96% of the token supply had been pre-allocated to just ten insider wallets, who rapidly dumped their holdings, triggering the crash.

Industry analysts warn that this trend is damaging investor trust. Blockchain author David Gerard, speaking to The Guardian, bluntly described the situation: “Basically, all memecoins are scams.”

The Bigger Picture

The YZY token’s collapse highlights an ongoing issue in the crypto market: celebrity endorsements paired with little accountability. While big names like Kanye West can draw massive attention to projects, the lack of transparency and sustainable tokenomics often leads to rapid crashes, leaving retail investors holding the bag.

As more celebrities experiment with memecoins, investors are becoming increasingly wary, questioning whether these projects are genuine attempts to innovate or simply opportunistic plays on fan loyalty.