KANYE WEST: When it all Falls Down

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Kanye West may be facing criminal prosecution after his wife, the reality TV star Kim Kardashian posted a recording of a phone call between Kanye West and Taylor Swift on the internet.

The conversation shared between the famous rapper and singer is about Kanye's single 'Famous'. The single has long been noted as controversial, since in it Kanye implies that he made Swift famous. Think back to 2009 when Kanye infamously interrupted Swift's award acceptance speech. Who could forget that memorable line, "Taylor, I'm really happy for you and I'mma let you finish, but Beyonc? had one of the best videos of all time. One of the best videos of all time." Beyond the reference to that moment in time, the video to the song 'Famous' implies that West slept with Swift and the result is that she is now famous. However you would like to interpret it, it was a bad move for Kanye to use Taylor in the manner that he did. Now with the inclusion of the phone call conversation, Kanye has received more of the wrong kind of attention for his single that maybe even he expected.

Before the phone call conversation was release, Kanye responded to the backlash he received for the lines in the song that include Taylor by saying that he had an hour long conversation with Taylor and received her blessing for it.

In response, Taylor tweeted the following:

That moment when Kanye West secretly records your phone call, then Kim posts it on the Internet. pic.twitter.com/4GJqdyykQu

? Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) July 18, 2016

It's the inclusion of the words "secretly records your phone call" that may get Kanye in trouble. See the reason's why from an excerpt from the The Gaurdian:

If Kanye recorded the correspondence in California, where he and Kim Kardashian live, and failed to get Swift?s consent, then he would have violated state law, experts say.

In California, the wiretapping law dictates ?two-party consent?, which means it?s a crime to record or eavesdrop on any communication ? including a private conversation or phone call ? without the consent of all parties involved.

The law stipulates a possible punishment of a $2,500 fine or a year in county jail.

Outside of statutory damages, Swift could pursue civil damages through a lawsuit, which experts said is a more likely course of action.

?California is an ?all-party consent? wiretapping state. What that means is, even on things like a conference call, before you record it, you?re supposed to announce to everyone, ?I?m going to record this call,?? said Chris Hoofnagle, professor of law at the University of California and an expert on privacy.

?There?s civil and criminal liability,? he said, adding that criminal prosecution would be unlikely in this kind of case, but that Swift could allege damages to her reputation.

Paul Schwartz, co-director of the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology, said Swift could also bring a ?tort claim? alleging ?public disclosure of private facts?.

Brings the question to mind, when do the lines between expressing oneself through art and deliberately using the platform as an excuse to say whatever you like blur?

D.Damons