# Kanye West

> Kanye West, legally known as Ye, is a Chicago-raised rapper, producer, designer and YZY founder whose career moved from soulful beats for Jay-Z to 24 Grammy wins, 11 Billboard 200 No. 1 albums and an unusually broad influence across music, footwear, fashion and live spectacle. His gift for turning resistance into creative fuel also became a liability: antisemitic statements and other provocations cost him major partnerships, restricted his international appearances and made every attempted return a referendum on accountability as much as art.

- **Role:** Founder of YZY
- **Organizations:** YZY, Donda
- **From:** Atlanta, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Studied painting; no degree, American Academy of Art, Studied English; no degree, Chicago State University
- **Known for:** 24 Grammy wins and 76 nominations through the 2026 Grammy Awards., 11 Billboard 200 No. 1 albums by 2026., The College Dropout won the Grammy for Best Rap Album, while Jesus Walks won Best Rap Song.

## Career timeline

- **1996** — Earned early official production credits on Chicago rapper Grav's album Down to Earth.
- **2000-2001** — Built national recognition as a Roc-A-Fella producer, including work on Jay-Z's The Blueprint.
- **2002** — Recorded Through the Wire after a car crash; the song became his breakthrough as a rapper.
- **2004** — Released The College Dropout, which reached No. 2 in the United States and won Best Rap Album at the Grammys.
- **2005** — Late Registration debuted at No. 1; Gold Digger became his first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 as lead artist.
- **2007** — Graduation extended his stadium-scale sound and opened at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
- **2008** — Released 808s & Heartbreak, foregrounding Auto-Tune, singing and sparse electronic production.
- **2010** — Released My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, a maximal collaborative album assembled largely in Hawaii.
- **2013** — Released Yeezus and premiered New Slaves by projecting its video on buildings in cities around the world.
- **2015** — Introduced the Adidas Yeezy Boost 750 and presented Yeezy Season 1 in New York.
- **2016** — Released and continued revising The Life of Pablo after its initial streaming release.
- **2019** — Released Jesus Is King and staged Sunday Service performances.
- **2021** — Released Donda after stadium listening events and legally changed his name to Ye.
- **2022** — Adidas, Gap and other partners ended relationships after antisemitic statements and related conduct.
- **2024** — Released Vultures 1 with Ty Dolla $ign; it became his 11th Billboard 200 No. 1 album.
- **2026** — Released the 18-track Bully and returned to a major U.S. stage with sold-out SoFi Stadium concerts.

## Achievements

- 24 Grammy wins and 76 nominations through the 2026 Grammy Awards.
- 11 Billboard 200 No. 1 albums by 2026.
- The College Dropout won the Grammy for Best Rap Album, while Jesus Walks won Best Rap Song.
- Designed sneaker lines with Nike and Adidas; the Air Yeezy and Adidas Yeezy lines helped join luxury-fashion cues with mass sneaker culture.
- Founded the multidisciplinary creative company Donda and the YZY brand.
- Received the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards.
- Earned his first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 as a lead artist with Gold Digger in 2005.
- Vultures 1 with Ty Dolla $ign debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in 2024.

## Latest updates

- **2026-07** — Performed in Madrid during an international return to live shows, amid continuing controversy and scrutiny over his public statements.
- **2026-04** — The UK blocked his travel authorization over his history of antisemitic remarks, prompting cancellation of the three-day Wireless Festival he had been scheduled to headline.
- **2026-04** — Played two sold-out SoFi Stadium concerts; the second featured Lauryn Hill, Travis Scott, CeeLo Green and North West, with roughly 70,000 attendees reported.
- **2026-03** — Released Bully, an 18-track, 42-minute album through YZY/gamma, followed by a deluxe edition.
- **2026-01** — Published an apology for his antisemitic statements in a full-page Wall Street Journal advertisement and said future change would need to be shown through actions.

## Links

- Website: https://yeezy.com
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/kanyewest
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@kanyewest

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/kanye-west
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-21