Martin Shkreli Offers Kanye West $10 Million To Not Publicly Release His New Album

The former pharmaceutical executive asked West to release his new album "solely to me." West had not publicly responded Thursday.

Martin Shkreli, the controversial former pharmaceutical executive, has offered Kanye West $10 million to not release his upcoming album to the public.

Shkreli, 32, became infamous last year when his company Turing Pharmaceuticals bought the rights to a drug used by cancer and AIDS patients, then raised the price from $13.50 to $750. In December, federal prosecutors charged him with fraud and he subsequently resigned as Turing's CEO.

West's album, The Life of Pablo, debuted Thursday during an event at Madison Square Garden. The event was live-streamed online and broadcast to theaters.

But in a series of tweets and a letter posted Thursday, Shkreli asked West to "withhold the release of your forthcoming studio album" and instead "sell this recording solely to me."

Here is my initial offer for the album. @kanyewest Thanks for your consideration and I look forward to your response

In the letter, Shkreli also described himself as a longtime fan of West and said he was inspired to succeed by his album The College Dropout.

Shkreli went on to suggest that West would "find this financial arrangement more attractive than your current course of action."

Shkreli also tweeted that his offer "should delay the album by a few days."

Shkreli's offer sounds far-fetched, but he actually successfully pulled off a similar deal with Wu-Tang Clan in 2015.

Shkreli paid $2 million for Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. The deal meant Shkreli got the only copy of the album. In December, he claimed he hadn't listened to the album yet.

It's unclear how much money Shkreli actually has.

In January, a court filing revealed Shkreli had $45 million in an E-Trade account. However, Gawker reported Thursday that he also owes more than $4.6 million in unpaid taxes.

West had not responded to Shkreli's offer Thursday.

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