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.

Keep The Receipt
kanye west Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Yo this is Dirt McGirt
I'm chilling with Kanye West
He's killing y'all niggas on the beats
He's killing y'all niggas on the tracks
Where your plaques at dog
The game is officially over
Go kill yourself

Now take that and equipment back to the store
We don't wanna hear that weak shit no more
Do anybody else make hits anymore
Guess not mothafucka, it's the Roc mothafucka

Now y'all gon' stop talking that shit that you talking
Your broke-ass mamma couldn't afford that abortion
Now tell me how the hell she gon' afford that coffin
Now I done sat back and seen it all too often
The backbone of this like Marino to the Dolphins
Most hits out the Chi since Sosa and Andre Dawson
My niggas had Pro Tools, I had no tools
Karaoke machine, fuck it I'm old school
Only difference is my tracks drove niggas postal
So I drove costal while they stay local
How I can't rhyme when my freestyles'll roast you
Sit down I'll coach you while we style in posters, dog
Niggas had a chance to sign me, dropped the ball
I'll see you at the awards
Now after all that it took, I made it to The Roc
I guess I ain't as dumb as you look

Now take that and equipment back to the store
We don't wanna hear that weak shit no more
Do anybody else make hits anymore
Guess not mothafucka, it's the Roc mothafucka

Now I showed you how to do this, dog
Put a few beats on the tape, I saved this one for myself
I heard you niggas' tapes, need a little bit of help
But I'm rapping and I can't do nothing for you man
Ask G and Hop this, 40 grand if you ain't fam
I mean, if you ain't Hov if you ain't Cam
Damn I know you say he's killing hisself
He got a little bitty deal now he feeling hisself
Yup just cause I played beats and act hospitable
Don't mean I can't get you changed to hospital you
I'm from a raw family, dog, and I'll spit on you
So play like a kid in the garden and get little you
Who your hype man, I'm curious
It got you souped up like the cars on The Fast & Furious
Here go a new movie for you critics called "Who's Laughing?"
The first producer that rap better than the rappers

Now take that and equipment back to the store
We don't wanna hear that weak shit no more
Do anybody else make hits anymore
Guess not mothafucka, it's the Roc mothafucka

Aftermath still making them hits, nigga
Lunatics still making them hits, nigga
So So Def still making them hits, nigga
Bad Boy still making them hits, nigga
Wu-Tang still making them hits, nigga
Ruff Ryders still making them hits, nigga
Cash Money still making them hits, nigga
Dirt McGirt still making them hits, nigga
Yo yo the game is over, go kill yourself

Go yourself nigga
We don't wanna hear that weak shit no more

Overall Meaning

"Keep the Receipt" is a diss track by Kanye West, featuring Ol' Dirty Bastard. The lyrics take aim at anonymous rappers whom Kanye believes are giving the hip-hop genre a bad name. The song’s catchy hook takes its cues from another diss track, Jay Z’s “Takeover,” which Kanye produced. The song is considered a response to anyone who questioned what place Kanye had in hip-hop, despite being a producer who had not yet made a name for himself as a rapper.

The opening verse by Dirt McGirt (Ol' Dirty Bastard) challenges all other rappers by asserting that no one can compete with Kanye’s beats and tracks. He further attacks their lack of success by asking "where your plaques at dog?" and suggests that the game is officially over for them. He also urges anyone who can't make hits to "go kill yourself." Kanye then takes over the second half of the song, asserting his dominance in the industry and calling out people who have criticized him in the past. He brags about his success and his journey from using karaoke machines to now making hits and being signed to The Roc.

The song’s chorus advises those rappers who can't make hits to take that “weak shit” and return it to the store since they don't want to hear it anymore. At the end of the song, Kanye promises to school anyone by showing them how to do things correctly in the hip-hop genre.

Line by Line Meaning

Yo this is Dirt McGirt
I'm introducing myself as Dirt McGirt, also known as ODB.

I'm chilling with Kanye West
I'm hanging out with Kanye West.

He's killing y'all niggas on the beats
Kanye is dominating the music scene with his beats.

He's killing y'all niggas on the tracks
Kanye is killing it with his music production skills.

Where your plaques at dog
I don't see any of your awards or accolades!

The game is officially over
Kanye and I have won the game and there's no denying that.

Go kill yourself
You're done, just give up already.

Now take that and equipment back to the store
Please return your equipment because it's weak and we don't want to hear it anymore.

Do anybody else make hits anymore
Is anyone else making quality music these days?

Guess not mothafucka, it's the Roc mothafucka
No one else is making hits except those associated with Roc-A-Fella Records.

Now y'all gon' stop talking that shit that you talking
Stop talking nonsense and acknowledge our success.

Your broke-ass mamma couldn't afford that abortion
Your mother was so poor she couldn't afford to have an abortion.

Now tell me how the hell she gon' afford that coffin
If she couldn't afford an abortion, how will she afford a coffin?

Now I done sat back and seen it all too often
I've seen this situation happen too many times.

The backbone of this like Marino to the Dolphins
I am the backbone of this like Dan Marino was to the Miami Dolphins.

Most hits out the Chi since Sosa and Andre Dawson
My music has had the most hits out of Chicago since baseball players Sammy Sosa and Andre Dawson.

My niggas had Pro Tools, I had no tools
My colleagues had advanced music production tools, but I didn't have many resources.

Karaoke machine, fuck it I'm old school
I used a karaoke machine to produce my music, but I don't care, I'm old school.

Only difference is my tracks drove niggas postal
The one difference is that my music made people go crazy.

So I drove costal while they stay local
I was successful and traveled along the coast while they stayed local.

How I can't rhyme when my freestyles'll roast you
Don't doubt my rapping skills because my freestyles are fire.

Sit down I'll coach you while we style in posters, dog
I'll teach you how it's done and we'll do it while looking cool in photos.

Niggas had a chance to sign me, dropped the ball
Music executives had the opportunity to sign me, but they missed out.

I'll see you at the awards
I'll be at the awards ceremony, collecting my deserved recognition.

Now after all that it took, I made it to The Roc
Despite the challenges, I made it to Roc-A-Fella Records.

I guess I ain't as dumb as you look
I may not look smart, but clearly, I am.

Now I showed you how to do this, dog
I showed you how it's done, man.

Put a few beats on the tape, I saved this one for myself
I made a few beats for the album, but I kept this one to myself.

I heard you niggas' tapes, need a little bit of help
I listened to your music, and you need some work.

But I'm rapping and I can't do nothing for you man
I can rap, but I can't help you improve your music.

Ask G and Hop this, 40 grand if you ain't fam
Talk to G and Hop about it, but if we're not close, I can't help you for less than $40,000.

I mean, if you ain't Hov if you ain't Cam
If you're not Jay-Z or Cam'ron, I can't do anything for you.

Damn I know you say he's killing hisself
I know you're saying Kanye is overworking himself.

He got a little bitty deal now he feeling hisself
Kanye has become more confident since securing a small record deal.

Yup just cause I played beats and act hospitable
Don't mistake my friendly attitude and beat production for weakness.

Don't mean I can't get you changed to hospital you
I can still beat you up if necessary.

I'm from a raw family, dog, and I'll spit on you
I come from a tough background, and I won't hesitate to disrespect you if you cross me.

So play like a kid in the garden and get little you
Act like a child, and I'll treat you accordingly.

Who your hype man, I'm curious
Who is your hype man? I'm asking out of curiosity.

It got you souped up like the cars on The Fast & Furious
Your hype man is boosting you up like the cars in The Fast & Furious franchise.

Here go a new movie for you critics called "Who's Laughing?"
This is my latest creation, called "Who's Laughing?", which is targeted at music critics.

The first producer that rap better than the rappers
I am the first producer who can rap better than the rappers themselves.

Aftermath still making them hits, nigga
Aftermath Records is still producing quality music hits.

Lunatics still making them hits, nigga
The rap group, Lunatics, is still producing quality music hits.

So So Def still making them hits, nigga
So So Def Recordings is still producing quality music hits.

Bad Boy still making them hits, nigga
Bad Boy Records is still producing quality music hits.

Wu-Tang still making them hits, nigga
Wu-Tang Clan is still producing quality music hits.

Ruff Ryders still making them hits, nigga
Ruff Ryders Entertainment is still producing quality music hits.

Cash Money still making them hits, nigga
Cash Money Records is still producing quality music hits.

Dirt McGirt still making them hits, nigga
I (ODB) am still producing quality music hits.

Yo yo the game is over, go kill yourself
The music game is finished, give up.

We don't wanna hear that weak shit no more
Please stop making low-quality music, we don't want to listen to it anymore.

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind