Model Jennifer An, also known as Jenn, is suing Kanye West for allegedly making her gag and choke until she blacked out.
The former America’s Next Top Model contestant, who appeared on cycle 13 of the show, filed a federal lawsuit against the rapper, accusing him of assaulting her during the filming of La Roux’s In For the Kill music video that featured him. According to TMZ, she said in the lawsuit that she was selected out of line-up of women as Kanye said, “Give me the Asian girl.”
After he said that, they went to film a scene at the New York City’s Chelsea Hotel that was reportedly mortifying and menacing for Jenn. She claimed she was scantily-clad in lingerie for the shoot, which Kanye told her, “That’s why I chose you.”
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Kanye made her sit on the chair across from him and advised the director to have the camera right on Jenn. In the lawsuit, Jenn said it was then he began strangling her with his two hands and “smothered” her face with his palms afterwards. Prior to the smothering, he “rammed several fingers down her throat, continuously moved them in and out, and gagged her to emulate forced oral sex” for what was more than a minute, according to Jenn.
She also alleged that the Graduation singer yelled: “This is art. This is f—ing art. I am like Picasso.” Jenn claimed that the entire scene felt closer to “pornographic gagging/deep throat/BDSM fetishes” than an actual music video shoot. The Mindy Project actress claimed that La Roux, who the song is originally by with Kanye featured in the remix, detailed the filming of the music video to a friend as seeing some “upsetting, unsettling” behavior.
Jenn is not only suing Kanye, but Universal Music Group for gender-motivated violence during the shoot. Jennifer further alleged that the record label and “high-profile figures” in the industry tried to “bury” the incident. In the music video for In For the Kill that’s online, there’s no sight of Kanye or Jenn in the music video. The music video is only the original version with the English pop duo, La Roux, consisting of singer Elly Jackson and record producer Ben Langmaid.
This lawsuit comes as the 47-year-old was accused of sexual assault in an amended lawsuit by his ex-assistant Lauren Pisciotta in October. She initially filed a lawsuit against Kanye in June for wrongful termination, claiming she was fired for not sleeping with him and accused him of sexually harassing as well as stalking her.
The Mirror reached out to Kanye West’s team for comment.