African Celebrities: Kanye West

Friday 20 December 2013

Kanye West

Kanye Omari West popularly known as Kanye West is an American hip hop recording artist, songwriter, record producer, film director, entrepreneur and fashion designer from Chicago, Illinois.

Kanye West was born on June 8, 1977 in Atlanta, Georgia. At the age of three, his parents divorced and he moved with his mother to Chicago, Illinois. His father is Ray West, a former Black Panther who was one of the first black photojournalists at the Atlanta Journal - Constitution and later a Christian counselor. His mother, Dr. Donda C. West, was 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 West's manager.

At the age of 10, Kanye West moved with his mother to Nanjing, China, where his mother was teaching at Nanjing University, as part of an exchange program.

Kanye West was raised in a middle - class household in Chicago, Illinois, and began rapping in the third grade, becoming involved in the city's hip hop scene. He attended art school for one semester before dropping out to pursue music entirely in the late 1990s.

Kanye West is one of the best - selling and among the most awarded artist in popular music. He has won a total of 21 Grammy Awards, making him one of the most awarded artists of all - time.

Kanye West has been in a relationship with reality star and longtime friend Kim Kardashian since April 2012. They have a daughter, North "Nori" West, who was born on June 15, 2013, in Los Angeles, California. Kanye West and Kim Kardashian became engaged in October 2013.