Ye (born Kanye Omari West on June 8, 1977, in Atlanta, Georgia), profession… Read Full Bio ↴Ye (born Kanye Omari West on June 8, 1977, in Atlanta, Georgia), professionally known as Kanye West, is a Grammy award-winning American rapper, producer, singer, author, director, performance artist and fashion designer.

West began making beats and rapping in the early 90s in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois, when he formed the rap group Go Getters with Chicago natives GLC and Really Doe. He later gained nationwide popularity through his work in New York, where he began producing tracks for artists such as Jay-Z, Twista, Mase, Talib Kweli and Alicia Keys.

West's style of production often utilizes pitched-up vocal samples, usually from soul songs, with his drums and instruments. The first major label song he produced was The Truth by Beanie Sigel, and his first major release featuring his trademark vocal sampling style was This Can’t Be Life, a track from Jay-Z’s The Dynasty: Roc La Familia. West said he sped up the drum beat of Dr. Dre’s Xxplosive to use as a replacement for his drums on This Can’t Be Life.

West has said that Wu-Tang Clan producer RZA influenced him in his style, and has said on numerous occasions that Wu-Tang rappers Ghostface Killah and Ol’ Dirty Bastard were some of his all-time favorites. Said Kanye West: “Wu-Tang? Me and my friends talk about this all the time… We think Wu-Tang had one of the biggest impacts as far as a movement. From slang to style of dress, skits, the samples. Similar to the [production] style I use, RZA has been doing that.”

In 2004 (after being pushed aside by many record companies who felt he wasn't a marketable hip-hop artist), he managed to release his debut solo album, The College Dropout on Roc-A-Fella Records. The album received critical acclaim, including 10 Grammy nominations and the awards for Album of the Year and Best Rap Album, as well as defining the style for which West would become known: "wordplay" and heavy sampling of the 70s soul and RnB tracks.

Not content to rest on his laurels, West invested two million dollars and hired a string orchestra to help with his latest effort, Late Registration (2005). West collaborated with Jon Brion to help develop the sound of the album, despite his lack of experience in hip hop production. The album received widespread acclaim like its predecessor and again claimed the Best Rap Album award at the Grammys.

West was no stranger to controversy, such as storming out at the 2004 American Music Awards after not receiving Best New Artist, but just days after the release of his second studio album, West began embroiled in a major controversy after going off-script during Hurricane Katrina broadcast, proclaiming "George Bush doesn't care about black people", which Bush claimed was "one the most disgusting moments of my presidency". In January 2006, West posed on the cover of Rolling Stone wearing a crown of thorns, once again attracting controversy.

For his third release, West was keen to produce songs that could be used more effectively when performing in arenas. For Graduation, the third and ultimately final entry into his 'Dropout Bear' series, West drew musical inspiration from The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. In the lead up to the album he became involved in a friendly rivalry with 50 Cent over which of the two artists' upcoming albums would sell more, as they were both released on the same day. West ultimately sold 957,000 copies in the first week of release, outselling Curtis by a large margin. The albums lead single "Stronger" sampled Daft Punk, and was West's third number one on Billboard 200. Many proclaim West's 'victory' over 50 Cent to be the 'death' of gangster rap as the dominant hip hop subgenre.

Following the death of his mother, Donda West, and the end of his engagement to long term partner Alexis Phifer, West abandoned his initial plan to release a fourth album entitled Good Ass Job, and shocked his fans by releasing 808s and Heartbreak, which was full of autotune singing, extensive use of the TR-808 drum machine, themes of love, loss and loneliness and very little rapping. It received slightly more mixed reviews than his previous efforts, but many critics cite 808s and Heartbreak as the catalyst for a new wave of rappers, most prominently Drake, due to its themes which were uncommon in mainstream hip-hop.

West's grief seemed to lead to a spiral out of control which culminated in him storming on stage at the 2009 VMAs to interrupt Taylor Swift's award acceptance speech to proclaim that Beyoncé deserved the award instead, in a move that is infamous in pop culture and was vilified by the entire world in the aftermath. West disappeared from the public eye following this, and his upcoming tour with Lady Gaga was cancelled. The disgraced West, who was described as a 'jackass' by President Obama, seemed to have much work to do to return to the his former glory, but he was about to embark on what some critics consider to be the best run of his career.

West holed up in Hawaii for a few months and worked tirelessly to produce what many consider to be his magnum opus. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, West's fifth studio album, was released in November 2010 to rave reviews from critics, which solidified his comeback. In stark contrast to his previous effort, which featured a minimalist sound, Dark Fantasy adopts a maximalist philosophy and deals with themes of celebrity and excess. The record included the international hit All of the Lights, and Billboard hits Power, Monster, and Runaway, the latter of which accompanied a 35-minute film of the same name. During this time, West initiated the free music program G.O.O.D. Fridays through his website, offering a free download of previously unreleased songs each Friday of the week, a portion of which were included on the album. Dark Fantasy went on to go platinum in the United States, but its omission as a contender for Album of the Year at the 54th Grammy Awards was viewed as a "snub" by several media outlets.

Following a headlining set at Coachella 2011 that was described by The Hollywood Reporter as "one of greatest hip-hop sets of all time," West released the collaborative album Watch the Throne with Jay-Z. By employing a sales strategy that released the album digitally weeks before its physical counterpart, Watch the Throne became one of the few major label albums in the Internet age to avoid a leak. Niggas in Paris became the record's highest charting single, peaking at number five on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2012, West released the compilation album Cruel Summer, a collection of tracks by artists from West's record label GOOD Music. Cruel Summer produced four singles, two of which charted within the top twenty of the Hot 100: Mercy and Clique. West also directed a film of the same name that premiered at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival in custom pyramid-shaped screening pavilion featuring seven screens.

Sessions for West's sixth solo effort begin to take shape in early 2013 in his own personal loft's living room at a Paris hotel. Determined to "undermine the commercial," he once again brought together close collaborators and attempted to incorporate Chicago drill, dancehall, acid house, and industrial music. Primarily inspired by architecture, West's perfectionist tendencies led him to contact producer Rick Rubin fifteen days shy of its due date to strip down the record's sound in favor of a more minimalist approach. Initial promotion of his sixth album included worldwide video projections of the album's music and live television performances.

Yeezus, West's sixth album, was released June 18, 2013 to rave reviews from critics. It became the rapper's sixth consecutive number one debut. Def Jam issued "Black Skinhead" to radio in July 2013 as the album's lead single. On September 6, 2013, Kanye West announced he would be headlining his first solo tour in five years, to support Yeezus, with fellow American rapper Kendrick Lamar, accompanying him along the way.

In November 2013, West stated that he was working on and recording his next studio album. The album was to be produced by Rick Rubin and Q-Tip.. Kanye released a single entitled "Only One", on December 31, 2014 featuring Paul McCartney, as well as collaborating with McCartney on the Rihanna track " FourFiveSeconds", released in January 2015. West appeared on the SNL 40th Anniversary Special on February 15th 2015 to debut a new song Wolves, featuring Sia Furler and Vic Mensa. Another single, entitled "All Day" was released on March 2, 2015, again featuring McCartney as well as Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom. In June of the same year, Kanye headlined the Glastonbury Festival in the UK, which garnered much outrage including a petition with 135,000 signatures against his appearance, leading to West declaring he was "the greatest living rock star on the planet" towards the end of his set, and the performance receiving a mixed reaction among fans and critics, due to its controversy. In September 2015, West performed {album artist kanye west]808s and Heartbreak in its entirety at the Hollywood Bowl over two nights, which received rave reviews a featured a 60 person orchestra, guests such as Kid Cudi and Mr Hudson, and over 70 dancers. West released "Facts" at the turn of the new year.

West had originally stated that his upcoming album would be called 'So Help Me God' before changing the title to 'SWISH' and announcing that it would be released on February 11th. In January 2016 he released "Real Friends" and "No More Parties in LA", featuring Kendrick Lamar. As well as renaming the album once again to "Waves", West became involved in several twitter controversies in the lead up to the album, including with rapper Wiz Khalifa after he suggested that West had stolen the idea of the wave from other artists and seemingly dissed Kim Kardashian, which later turned out to be a misunderstanding over the use of "KK". West again changed the name of the album just days before it's release, this time to "{album artist=kanye west]The Life of Pablo", and debuted it at Madison Square Garden on February 11, but delayed it's release for a few days. On February 14, West released the album are a performance on SNL. West initially claimed the album was to be a Tidal exclusive, but it was later released on other streaming platforms, although it is yet to receive a physical release. West continued to tinker with the mixing and production of the album even after it was released, and it was updated several times, including the final song "Saint Pablo" in June 2016. West had also made public his plans to release an album in the summer of 2016, entitled "Turbo Grafx 16", based on the 1990s games console, which never surfaced, although he did release a single thought to be from the upcoming G.O.O.D. Music album "Cruel Winter", called Champions. In the same month, a video for "Famous" was released, including nude wax figures of celebrities such as West, Kim Kardashian, Taylor Swift, Donald Trump, Chris Brown, Rihanna, Bill Cosby and George W. Bush.

In August 2016, West embarked on the ambitious Saint Pablo Tour, which included a mobile stage suspended from the ceiling. After the violent robbery of Kim's jewellery in Paris in October, West had to end a show early and postpone shows following it. In the following performances, West cancelled shows early and went on long winded rants against fellow artists such as Jay Z and Beyoncé among others, as well as making controversial political statements including implying his support for Donald Trump. On November 21st 2016, West cancelled the rest of the tour and was hospitalised due to sleep deprivation and extreme dehydration. Following this, West disappeared from social media, and only resurfaced 11 months later with a series of tweets which included many philosophical thoughts and the announcements two albums in June 2018, a solo album which would include 7 tracks on June 1, and a collaboration with Kid Cudi to be released on June 8.

On August 29th, 2021, Kanye released his 10th highly anticipated studio release Donda via GOOD Music and Def Jam Recordings after a series of three listening parties.

Personal life:
West was born in Atlanta, Georgia. When he was three years old (as mentioned in Hey Mama) his parents divorced, and he moved with his mother to Chicago, Illinois. His father, Ray West, was a former Black Panther; one of the first black photojournalists at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution; and is now a Christian counselor. Kanye’s late mother, Dr. Donda West, worked as a Professor of English at Clark Atlanta University, and the Chair of the English Department at Chicago State University before retiring to serve as Kanye’s manager. He was later raised in an upper middle class background, attending Polaris High School in suburban Oak Lawn, Illinois after living in Chicago.

After attending The American Academy of Art, a Chicago art school, West attended Chicago State University but eventually dropped out due to poor grades and to continue working on his music career. While attending school, West produced for local artists, including on rapper Grav’s debut album Down to Earth. He later gained fame by producing hit singles for major hip hop/R&B artists, including Jay-Z, Talib Kweli, Cam’ron, Paul Wall, Common, Mobb Deep, Jermaine Dupri, Scarface, The Game, Alicia Keys, Janet Jackson and John Legend among others. He also “ghost-produced” for his once mentor Deric Angelettie according to his song Last Call and the credits of Nas’ Poppa Was a Playa.

West was married to Kim Kardashian. Together they had four children: daughters named North (*2013) and Chicago (*2018); and sons named Saint (*2015) and Psalm (*2019). In 2021, Kardashian filed for divorce.

In 2020, West launched an unsuccessful independent presidential campaign that primarily advocated for a consistent life ethic. In 2022, he faced backlash and lost a number of sponsors and partnerships—including his collaborations with Adidas, Gap, and Balenciaga—after making antisemitic statements.

Breathe in/out
kanye west Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Yeah, breathe in, breathe out
If ya iced up, pull ya sleeves out
Push a big truck, pull ya keys out
Girls go wild and pull ya D's out
Breathe in, breathe out
Let them hoes fight, pull her weave out
If a nigga act up, pull a Desert E's out
When I pull the piece out, niggas like, "Peace out!"

Golly, more of that bullshit ice rap
I got to apologize to Mos and Kweli (Kweli)
But is it cool to rap about gold
If I told the world I copped it from Ghana and Mali? (Mali)
First nigga with a Benz and a backpack
Ice chain, Carti lens, and a knapsack
Always said if I rapped I'd say somethin' significant
But now I'm rappin', 'bout money, hoes, and rims again
And it's still about the Benjamins
Big faced hundreds and whatever other synonyms
Strippers named Cinnamon
More chips than Pentium
"What ya gon' buy next?" Whatever new trend it is
I'm tryin' to spend my stacks
And I'm so broke, I look back like "Damn, was I on crack?"
I mean twelve platinum chains, was I on that?
What the hell was wrong with me, dawg?
Sing along with me, y'all

Yeah, breathe in, breathe out (uh)
If ya iced up, pull ya sleeves out
Push a big truck, pull ya keys out
Girls go wild and pull ya D's out
Breathe in, breathe out
Let them hoes fight, pull her weave out
If a nigga act up, pull a Desert E's out
When I pull the piece out, niggas like, "Peace out!"

Now, even thouh I went to college and dropped out of school quick
I always had a Ph.D., a pretty huge dick
Ladies tired of gettin' ripped off by guys like this
And givin' head is like a whale thats usin' a toothpick
Well, I'm in the club for a limited time
Act now and get some action for free-ninety-nine
Later on I might charge for ménage
Heard her man was the boss of the floss
But she still wanna toss me the drawers
And it ain't goin' cost me because she my caddy
'Cause she grabbed my golf balls in the club
And I'm still actin' calm than a mug
She asked, "Can you drive me and the hundreds where my Altima was?"
While we drive she tellin' me 'bout problems with her man
Baby, I fully understand
Let me help you with a plan
While he trickin' off, don't get no rich nigga
Give me some head, that'll really piss him off

Yeah, breathe in, breathe out
If ya iced up, pull ya sleeves out
Push a big truck, pull ya keys out
Girls go wild and pull ya D's out
Breathe in, breathe out
Let them hoes fight, pull her weave out
If a nigga act up, pull a Desert E's out
When I pull the piece out, niggas like, "Peace out!"

I blow past low class niggas with no cash
In the fo' dash six, bitch, you can go ask
So when I go fast popo just lauh
Right until I run out of gas or 'til I go crash
Whatever comes first, I'm prepared for the worst
Whatever comes second, I'll be there with my weapon
Pullin' up in the Lexus's one on both hand
So I guess them GS's was ambidextrous
Could of sworn her breasteses was sendin' me messages
"K, I need a free hand-mammogram
I got weed, drink, and a Handicam
All of which is legal in Amsterdam"
So say my name like Candyman
And I'ma come and fix you up like the handyman
But if you don't need a fix, girl, you gotta leave
You can't take that all at one time, ya gotta breathe

Yeah, breathe in, breathe out
If ya iced up, pull ya sleeves out
Push a big truck, pull ya keys out
Girls go wild and pull ya D's out
Breathe in, breathe out
Let them hoes fight, pull her weave out
If a nigga act up, pull a Desert E's out
When I pull the piece out, niggas like, "Peace out!"

Yeah, uh-uh-uh, uh
And you say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Y-Yeah, and you say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Y-Yeah, and you say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Uh-huh (uh-huh), and you say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Y-Yeah, you say "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Uh-huh (uh-huh), you say, "Chi-"
Y-You say, "Ch-", Y-You say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)

Chi-city (Chi-City), Chi-City (Chi-City)
(Chi-city, Chi-City, Chi-City)

Overall Meaning

In "Breathe In Breathe Out," Kanye West opens with a hook that encourages taking a brief pause to breathe in, breathe out, and exhale any stress or worries. He then shifts towards discussing materialistic things and sharing his concerns about being perceived as just another rapper who talks about money, hoes, and rims again. He mentions that he used to think if he rapped, he'd say something significant, but now he raps about Benjamins, chips, strippers, and whatever the new trend is. West then switches back to discussing his lavish lifestyle, his fast cars, and the flings he has with women. He emphasizes the fact that he's willing to help these women diss their supposedly wealthy and influential men. Towards the end, West returns to his initial refrain of encouraging his listeners to take a breath and breathe out all the negativity they've been holding.

Line by Line Meaning

Yeah, breathe in, breathe out
Take a deep breath in and exhale, just like that

If ya iced up, pull ya sleeves out
If you're covered in ice (bling), then show it off by rolling up your sleeves

Push a big truck, pull ya keys out
Drive a big truck and show off your purchasing power by displaying your keys

Girls go wild and pull ya D's out
Girls get wild and start flashing their breasts

Let them hoes fight, pull her weave out
Let the girls fight and watch them pull out each other's hair extensions

If a nigga act up, pull a Desert E's out
If a man starts acting up, pull out a gun (preferably a Desert Eagle)

When I pull the piece out, niggas like, "Peace out!"
When I pull out my gun, people run away in fear

Golly, more of that bullshit ice rap
Oh my, another song bragging about jewelry and wealth

I got to apologize to Mos and Kweli (Kweli)
I need to apologize to Mos Def and Talib Kweli for selling out and making shallow music

But is it cool to rap about gold
Is it really cool to rap about gold and wealth?

If I told the world I copped it from Ghana and Mali? (Mali)
What if I told everyone that my gold came from Ghana and Mali instead of just flaunting it?

First nigga with a Benz and a backpack
I was the first guy to have a Benz and a backpack (a nod to his debut album title 'The College Dropout')

Ice chain, Carti lens, and a knapsack
I used to sport a shiny chain, Cartier lenses, and carry a backpack

Always said if I rapped I'd say somethin' significant
I used to believe that if I became a rapper, I would say something meaningful

But now I'm rappin', 'bout money, hoes, and rims again
But now all I rap about is money, women, and cars

And it's still about the Benjamins
But it's still all about the money

Big faced hundreds and whatever other synonyms
I stack big wads of cash and call it by various other names

Strippers named Cinnamon
I spend money at strip clubs on dancers with names like Cinnamon

More chips than Pentium
I have more money than a computer chip brand (Pentium)

"What ya gon' buy next?" Whatever new trend it is
People always ask me what I'm going to buy next, and I usually follow the latest trend

I'm tryin' to spend my stacks
I'm trying to spend all my money

And I'm so broke, I look back like "Damn, was I on crack?"
I spend so much that sometimes I wonder if I was on drugs

I mean twelve platinum chains, was I on that?
Did I really need to wear twelve platinum chains?

What the hell was wrong with me, dawg?
What was wrong with me that I had to spend so much money on material things?

Sing along with me, y'all
Join me in singing this song

Now, even though I went to college and dropped out of school quick
Despite me going to college and dropping out quickly

I always had a Ph.D., a pretty huge dick
I may not have a degree, but I always had a lot of confidence in myself

Ladies tired of gettin' ripped off by guys like this
Women are tired of getting played by men like me

And givin' head is like a whale that's using a toothpick
In comparison, me receiving oral sex is almost pointless

Well, I'm in the club for a limited time
I'm only in the club for a short period

Act now and get some action for free-ninety-nine
Act fast, and you can get some action for free

Later on I might charge for ménage
Later on, I might charge for a threesome

Heard her man was the boss of the floss
I heard her man was the boss of the richest people in town

But she still wanna toss me the drawers
But she still wants to have sex with me

And it ain't goin' cost me because she my caddy
And it won't cost me because she is like my servant

'Cause she grabbed my golf balls in the club
Because she grabbed my testicles in the club

And I'm still actin' calm than a mug
I'm still acting calm despite all of this

She asked, "Can you drive me and the hundreds where my Altima was?"
She asked me to drive her and her money to where her car is parked

While we drive she tellin' me 'bout problems with her man
During the ride, she's telling me about issues she has with her boyfriend

Baby, I fully understand
I empathize with her problems

Let me help you with a plan
Let me help you come up with a solution

While he trickin' off, don't get no rich nigga
While he's spending all his money, don't get another rich guy

Give me some head, that'll really piss him off
Instead, give me oral sex, that will make him angry

I blow past low class niggas with no cash
I speed past poor people who don't have any money

In the fo' dash six, bitch, you can go ask
In my Mercedes Benz, you can ask anyone about me

So when I go fast popo just laugh
So when I speed, even the police just laugh

Right until I run out of gas or 'til I go crash
Until I run out of gas or get into an accident, I'll continue to speed

Whatever comes first, I'm prepared for the worst
Whatever happens first, I'm ready for it

Whatever comes second, I'll be there with my weapon
If something else happens, I'll be ready with my gun

Pullin' up in the Lexus's one on both hand
I'm pulling up in a Lexus with one in each hand (likely referring to guns)

So I guess them GS's was ambidextrous
I guess those Lexus models are ambidextrous (able to be used with both hands)

Could of sworn her breasteses was sendin' me messages
I could have sworn her breasts were trying to tell me something

"K, I need a free hand-mammogram
She says she needs a free mammogram and asks me to use my hand

I got weed, drink, and a Handicam
But all I have is weed, alcohol, and a video camera

All of which is legal in Amsterdam
All of this is legal in Amsterdam, a city in the Netherlands known for its liberal policies

So say my name like Candyman
Say my name like Candyman (a horror movie character who appears after his name is said five times in a mirror)

And I'ma come and fix you up like the handyman
And I'll come and fix you up like a handyman (another nod to his nickname 'The College Dropout')

But if you don't need a fix, girl, you gotta leave
But if you don't need my help, girl, you have to leave

You can't take that all at one time, ya gotta breathe
You can't handle all of that at once, you need to take a breather

And you say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
And you say 'Chi-City' (Chicago, Kanye's hometown)

Y-Yeah, and you say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Yeah, and you repeat 'Chi-City'

Uh-huh (uh-huh), and you say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Uh-huh, and you continue to repeat 'Chi-City'

Y-Yeah, you say "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
Yeah, you say 'Chi-City'

Uh-huh (uh-huh), you say, "Chi-"
Uh-huh, and you start to say 'Chi-'

Y-You say, "Ch-", Y-You say, "Chi-City" (Chi-City)
You begin to say 'Ch-' and then finish by repeating 'Chi-City'

Chi-city (Chi-City), Chi-City (Chi-City)
Chicago (Chi-City), Chicago (Chi-City)

Lyrics © THE ROYALTY NETWORK INC., Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network
Written by: Brian Miller, Kanye Omari West

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS