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.

Grammy Family
kanye west Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Oh it can't Be
G.O.O.D. music my Grammy family
Used to bump the demo up outta the Camry
Now I'm hoppin' out the limo or either the Lam be
But you niggas gon' get in 'til you get to Miami

G-L-C goin' be stoned as Angie
I be Don see, Johnny Patron, and me

It's a celebration bitches more bottles of cham-p-aign
In love with the same stripper that sprung T-Pain
And all this Louis Vuitton shit ain't cheap mayn
Dog I can't keep sayin' G.O.O.D music the greatest latest
Stuntin' out the middle of nowhere like Vegas
From the chi the city of hella haters
Where we keep rising to the top like elevators
Hi haters I'm back of hiatus I feel just like you I mean even I hate us
Turn the radio down I mean every song
Yeezy got a vision that's clearer than Evian
Used to hit the radio them fagots ain't let me on
Until Khaled turned up the volume
Hit the club wit it come on homie they wildin'
Nas done told you come on homie we major
Really Doe told you hoes where we staying
G.O.O.D music up in this bitch now quit playing

Dog it can't be
G.O.O.D. music the Grammy family
A little bit a stuntin' flickin' dog it ain't deep
I'm only trying to spend what they claim you can't keep
Before you die so I make sure I stay on the Chi side
Like Lakeshore Drive, The Grammy Family

Uh,uh,uh
Ghea uh,uh it's the Cons fool, word

Oh it can't Be
G.O.O.D. music my Grammy family
Used to bump the demo up outta the Camry
Now I'm hoppin' out the limo or either the Lam be

And after music meetings wit evenings with Angie
It's gon' prolly add a joint that got John Legend and me
And we, be in Miami
So when they spot me in Bentley it's gon be a stampede
'cause we be racing Bentley's no different than Grand Prix's
Fam please, don't make my man squeeze
And we can take it to the cars and I'll show you the hand speed
I started independent with owners from land speed
But now they recognize the way they did for Sam Sneed
And sense I got my shot like I was call and man be
I hope they lose they spot guarantee a plan be
We'll be waiting in the telli like Jamie and Fancy
Prolly paintin' they nails in nuthin' but they panties
And we'll be up town Jimmy and Camby
Headin' to the game to watch Kenyon and Camby
They can't breathe or hardly catch they next breath
And I know my nigga Ye told you we was the best dressed
I know I got a buzz so plan up the next step
So what y'all wanna do when it comes to that next check
And bet Quence and Khaled know what the business is
So open up them envelopes you know who the winners is

Oh, oh, oh, the grammy family

La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La
On Grammy night call it G.O.O.D. family night

Celebrate tonight
Oh it's alright, it's alright, yeah

Overall Meaning

In Kanye West's song Grammy Family, he talks about his record label G.O.O.D. Music and the success they have achieved over the years. The song is an anthem for the artists signed to G.O.O.D. Music, and the chorus repeats the phrase "G.O.O.D. music my Grammy family." Kanye reminisces about how they started with humble beginnings, bumping their demos out of a Camry, but now they're living the high life, hopping out of limos and Lamborghinis. He talks about how they're going to party in Miami, and he's in love with the same stripper who sprung T-Pain. Kanye also talks about the struggles he faced when he was trying to get his music played on the radio, but now he's risen to the top like an elevator. He feels like he's on top of the world, and even though there are haters out there, he knows that G.O.O.D. Music is the greatest.

Line by Line Meaning

Oh it can't Be
I can hardly believe that G.O.O.D. music is now my Grammy family

Used to bump the demo up outta the Camry
I used to listen to my demo on my Camry, but now I have a much more luxurious lifestyle

Now I'm hoppin' out the limo or either the Lam be
These days, I'm often seen getting out of a limousine or a Lamborghini

But you niggas gon' get in 'til you get to Miami
You guys won't be satisfied until you reach Miami, and neither will I

G-L-C goin' be stoned as Angie
My friend G-L-C will be high like Angie Stone

I be Don see, Johnny Patron, and me
Don C, Johnny Patron, and I will all be there

It's a celebration bitches more bottles of cham-p-aign
We'll be celebrating with lots of champagne

In love with the same stripper that sprung T-Pain
We all love the same stripper that inspired T-Pain's hit song

And all this Louis Vuitton shit ain't cheap mayn
These Louis Vuitton products are very expensive

Dog I can't keep sayin' G.O.O.D music the greatest latest
I can't keep saying that G.O.O.D. music is the greatest and latest

Stuntin' out the middle of nowhere like Vegas
We'll be showing off our wealth and success like we're in Las Vegas

From the chi the city of hella haters
We're from Chicago, a city with a lot of haters

Where we keep rising to the top like elevators
Despite the haters, we keep climbing to the top like elevators

Hi haters I'm back of hiatus I feel just like you I mean even I hate us
We're back from hiatus and we can relate to the haters, we even hate ourselves sometimes

Turn the radio down I mean every song
We don't like any of the songs on the radio

Yeezy got a vision that's clearer than Evian
I have a clear vision for my music career

Used to hit the radio them fagots ain't let me on
The radio stations wouldn't play my music in the past

Until Khaled turned up the volume
DJ Khaled played my music on the radio, and things started to change

Hit the club wit it come on homie they wildin'
Let's go to the club and have a good time, things will get crazy

Nas done told you come on homie we major
Nas already told you that we're major, let's go out and prove it

Really Doe told you hoes where we staying
Really Doe already told people where we're staying

G.O.O.D music up in this bitch now quit playing
G.O.O.D. music is here, stop playing around

A little bit a stuntin' flickin' dog it ain't deep
We're just showing off a little, it's not that serious

I'm only trying to spend what they claim you can't keep
I want to spend money in a way that others think is foolish or unsustainable

Before you die so I make sure I stay on the Chi side
I want to make sure I stay connected to home before I die

Like Lakeshore Drive, The Grammy Family
I'll stay on the Chicago side, just like Lakeshore Drive, and remember my Grammy family

And after music meetings wit evenings with Angie
After music meetings, I'll spend my evenings with Angie Stone

It's gon' prolly add a joint that got John Legend and me
We'll probably collaborate on a song that features John Legend and me

And we, be in Miami
We'll all be in Miami for work and celebration

So when they spot me in Bentley it's gon be a stampede
When people see me in my Bentley, they'll go crazy

'cause we be racing Bentley's no different than Grand Prix's
We'll be racing our Bentleys like it's a Grand Prix race

Fam please, don't make my man squeeze
Please don't make my friend pull out his gun

And we can take it to the cars and I'll show you the hand speed
We can settle any problems outside and I'll show off my driving skills

I started independent with owners from land speed
I started in the music industry as an independent artist with friends from the racing world

But now they recognize the way they did for Sam Sneed
Now I've gained recognition just like Sam Sneed, a legendary producer

And sense I got my shot like I was call and man be
Ever since I got my chance in the music industry I've been on top

I hope they lose they spot guarantee a plan be
If other musicians fail or lose their spot, they always have a backup plan

We'll be waiting in the telli like Jamie and Fancy
We'll be waiting in the hotel like Jamie and Fancy from the TV show "The Jamie Foxx Show"

Prolly paintin' they nails in nuthin' but they panties
They're probably wearing only panties while painting their nails

And we'll be up town Jimmy and Camby
We'll be uptown, in a fancy area, with Jimmy and Camby

Headin' to the game to watch Kenyon and Camby
We'll be going to the game to watch Kenyon Martin and Marcus Camby play basketball

They can't breathe or hardly catch they next breath
They can hardly breathe, they're so overwhelmed

And I know my nigga Ye told you we was the best dressed
My friend Kanye already told you that we're the best dressed

I know I got a buzz so plan up the next step
I know I'm popular right now, so let's plan our next move

So what y'all wanna do when it comes to that next check
What do you want to do next when we get our next paycheck?

And bet Quence and Khaled know what the business is
I'm sure Quentin and DJ Khaled know what to do in this business

So open up them envelopes you know who the winners is
Let's open up those envelopes and see who won, we already know it's us

On Grammy night call it G.O.O.D. family night
On Grammy night, we'll celebrate and call it a G.O.O.D. family night

Celebrate tonight
Let's celebrate tonight, we've come a long way

Oh it's alright, it's alright, yeah
Everything is alright, there's nothing to worry about

La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La La
We're so happy and successful that we can just laugh and sing together

Uh,uh,uh

Ghea uh,uh it's the Cons fool, word
It's me, Consequence, fool

Lyrics © Ultra Tunes, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: KANYE OMARI WEST, JOHN STEPHENS, DEXTER MILLS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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