Kanye West Biography
Kanye West is a unique phenomenon not just in American culture, but worldwide – a talented musician, popular rapper, successful businessman, provocateur, and misanthrope. His songs are performed by Beyoncé, Madonna, Janet Jackson, and other global superstars, while world leaders consider it an honor to shake his hand and invite him to family celebrations. Kanye was married to one of the planet's most beautiful and sexiest women and even talked about plans to occupy the presidential chair.
Childhood and Youth
Kanye Omari West was born into an intellectual African American family from Atlanta. The head of the household, Ray West, worked as a photojournalist for the local newspaper, while his mother, Donda West, a philology professor, taught English.When the boy turned three, his parents divorced, and his mother moved with her son to Chicago. There she landed a position as dean at the local university, and six years later was sent to China through an exchange program. The ten-year-old had to urgently master Chinese since he was the only foreigner in his class. To Kanye's credit, he handled this challenging task brilliantly and within a few months was already fluently communicating with his peers and teachers.
Musical Career
Initially, the musician focused on writing compositions for other artists before moving into production. His songs were performed by Beyoncé, Talib Kweli, Janet Jackson, Alicia Keys, and many other popular performers. Over time, thoughts of his own solo career increasingly came to mind, especially since he had more than enough musical material to work with.
West drew inspiration from Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, and other legends of world music, and was quite flattered when he too was recognized as one of the greatest artists of the 21st century. He became a record holder for the number of Grammy awards received, joined the ranks of best-selling musicians, and his albums made it onto Rolling Stone magazine's all-time golden list. Kanye was featured multiple times in Forbes' rankings of the richest and most famous, and twice made it into the list of the planet's 100 most influential people.
Career in the 2020s
In August 2023, reports emerged that West was recording his eleventh studio album. The music world held its breath – could the genius be making his comeback?On November 22, 2023, he dropped the first single from the upcoming album – "Vultures" featuring Bump J. In December, he announced his collaboration with Ty Dolla Sign for the forthcoming record.
On February 10, after multiple delays, the long-awaited Vultures 1 finally arrived. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, making it West's eleventh consecutive chart-topping release. But the content sparked controversy once again. On the title track, Kanye rapped: "How I'm antisemitic? I just f***ed a Jewish b****."
August 3, 2024 saw the surprise release of "Vultures 2." Critics weren't having it, delivering mostly negative reviews that slammed its unfinished sound.
Other Projects
Beyond music, Kanye's made his mark as a fashion designer. He's collaborated with global powerhouses like Nike, Louis Vuitton, and Adidas, and since 2012 has been releasing clothing and footwear under his own YEEZY brand. West also owns creative agency DONDA, named after his late mother, and record label GOOD Music.
The private Christian school Donda Academy, named after the rapper's late mother, opened in 2022 but shuttered in August 2023 following multiple scandals and lawsuits from former staff.
Former teachers Cecilia Hailey and Chekarey Byers revealed that students had to wear only black clothing, Adidas and Nike brands were banned, and sushi was the only lunch option – every single day, no exceptions. There weren't any chairs in the school – just foam cushions and stools, because West wouldn't allow chairs. Isaiah Meadows, a former staff member, complained about an overflowing septic tank, exposed electrical wires, and missing window glass.
Working with British company Kano Computing, Kanye developed the innovative Stem Player device, letting users remix music in real time. The $200 device went on sale in August 2021, but Kano ended their partnership with West in January 2023 due to his antisemitic statements.
West invested in the Fatburger restaurant chain through his company KW Foods LLC. Some locations thrived, while others faced financial struggles and were forced to close.
West holds a stake in underwear brand Skims, founded by his ex-wife Kim Kardashian. He also collaborated with her on the KKW Beauty cosmetics brand project. He also owns a share in Jay-Z's streaming service Tidal.
Kanye donates massive amounts to charity, founded his own foundation to fight illiteracy, and frequently helps people affected by wars, epidemics, and natural disasters.In January 2025, West claimed his net worth stands at $2.77 billion according to Eton Venture Services' valuation.
Kanye West's Personal Life
Kanye has always had a weakness for stunning, sexy women and from his youth chose girlfriends with model looks. In 2002, he started dating fashion designer Alexis Phifer and even planned to take her to the altar. But the wedding never happened, and after a year and a half, the lovebirds called it quits.
Kim Kardashian
In 2012, he started appearing in public with Kim Kardashian, the socialite and reality TV star. They'd known each other for about five years before that, but kept their distance and didn't show any romantic feelings for each other.Less than a year later, Kanye popped the question, getting down on one knee in front of family and close friends. Four months before this milestone moment, the couple welcomed baby North (born 2013), and in May 2014, the lovebirds tied the knot in a romantic Florence wedding.
West publicly revealed Kim Kardashian's intentions to have an abortion during her pregnancy with their daughter North, and also told reporters he wanted to divorce Kim. Kardashian responded to these statements, linking her husband's strange behavior to another episode of his bipolar disorder.
And while it seemed for a while that peace had finally returned to the family, the couple found themselves on the brink of divorce. The catalyst was a robbery attack on Kim in Paris, which triggered a severe nervous breakdown for her. Kardashian's depressed state took a toll on the rest of the family, and the situation threatened to reach a dead end. Kanye became dependent on sedatives and even ended up in the hospital when things went too far.
In February 2021, Kim announced she was filing for divorce. The split was conflict-free – the couple managed to divide their assets and custody of the children. After the divorce, Kanye dated Julia Fox. The romance lasted just a month, but it took Julia's career to the next level.
Bianca Censori
The musician's next high-profile romance was with designer Bianca Censori. They met in 2020 through social media – Kanye reached out first to the 26-year-old and invited her to work on his Yeezy brand. In January 2023, they held an unofficial wedding ceremony, exchanging rings.
In September 2023, Venice police launched an investigation against West and his new wife Bianca Censori for "actions contrary to public morality." The couple was photographed on a water taxi in rather compromising positions – which became a signature move in their relationship.
At the 2025 Grammy ceremony, Bianca Censori appeared alongside her husband in a completely transparent dress. West later posted: "I HAVE POWER OVER MY WIFE." This post sparked fresh concerns about the rapper's controlling behavior.
In April, reports surfaced that Bianca was planning to file for divorce. West released a song called "Bianca," begging her to come back. Soon after, the couple was spotted together again.
Scandals
The rapper's name has been tied to plenty of explosive scandals, stemming both from his professional work and his habit of speaking his mind openly—often contradicting mainstream beliefs and shocking the public.
In June 2022, Kanye made waves at the BET Awards. Known for his love of eccentric looks, he showed up in a black mask that completely covered his face, paired with dark sunglasses.
First, Kanye appeared at Paris Fashion Week wearing a "White lives matter" t-shirt. This slogan was adopted by opponents of the "Black lives matter" movement, which advocates for equal rights for all races. He wore the black version of the shirt, while his companion, Black activist Candace Owens, wore a white one with the same message.
Second, Ye posted several antisemitic messages on social media. First, he accused musician Sean Combs of being "controlled by Jews," but claimed Kanye "wasn't afraid of them—they couldn't intimidate or influence him." Then he wrote that he was going "death con 3 on Jewish people."
That phrase references the American military readiness system for responding to threats, but while the original levels are called DefCon (short for Defense Conditions), Kanye wrote "DeathCon." West's posts were deleted and his accounts were suspended.
Soon after, Kanye gave an interview to TV host Piers Morgan, declaring he didn't regret his statements. In another interview with Chris Cuomo, he complained that the backlash over his "White lives matter" shirts was orchestrated by some "underground Jewish media mafia." The rapper was outraged at being called antisemitic – claiming that since he's part of a minority himself, he couldn't possibly be antisemitic.
After this string of controversial statements, brands working with Kanye began dropping him en masse. The biggest blow for Ye was losing his contract with sportswear giant Adidas. They were the ones producing his famous Yeezy sneakers, which brought Adidas around 8% of their revenue.You're trying to say this mafia doesn't exist. But more than half of Hollywood's owners are Jewish. And these guys know each other. Every celebrity has Jewish names in their contracts – and that's not hate speech, that's pure truth. And these people, if you say the wrong thing, they can destroy your career
But for Kanye, this was also a massive loss: 9 years of collaboration with the brand had earned him $1.5 billion, and after the company's announcement, his net worth plummeted to $400 million. On top of that, luxury brand Balenciaga and casual wear brand Gap also severed ties with the rapper.
On January 19th, West appeared in an Instagram post with rapper JPEGMafia wearing a t-shirt featuring neo-Nazi musician Varg Vikernes.
By May 9th, 2025, marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany, Kanye released a track called "Hail Hitler." The Nazi slogan was repeated 15 times throughout the song. In the lyrics, West claimed he became a Nazi because of his custody battle with his ex-wife. The song ended with an excerpt from a 1935 Hitler speech.
After this stunt, the rapper was banned from entering Australia and had his current visa revoked.
Kanye West now
On March 18th, 2025, Kanye released his new album Bully as a 45-minute short film. In the film, his son Saint battles New Japan Pro-Wrestling wrestlers with a toy hammer.On March 15th, he dropped the song "Lonely Roads Still Go to Sunshine" featuring his daughter North and vocals from Sean Combs, which led to a lawsuit from Kim Kardashian.
On July 26th, West performed in Seoul at Incheon Munhak Stadium. This happened after his May concert was canceled by promoters due to his antisemitic tracks.
The release of album Bully in music format was originally planned for June 15th, his daughter North's birthday, but was ultimately pushed back to September 26th.
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2021-04-28 12:13:19
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