#3 Rapper Of All Time[]
Ye Omari West previously known as Kanye West is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. West gained attention as a producer for Jay-Z's record label Roc-A-Fella Records for artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and Janet Jackson and also for albums like Jay-Z's The Blueprint. His production style originally used high-pitched vocal samples from soul songs incorporated with his own drums and instruments. He later broadened his influences to include 1970s R&B, baroque pop, trip hop, arena rock, folk, alternative, electronica, synthpop, industrial, and classical music.
West was born in Atlanta, Georgia and moved to Chicago at the age of three, growing up in a middle class household in Chicago, he began rapping in the third grade and became involved into the city's hip hop scene. West attended art school for one semester before dropping out to pursue music entirely in the late 1990s. Although his real desire was to become a rapper, record executives did not take West seriously, viewing him as a producer first and foremost. After being signed to Roc-A-Fella in 2002, West released his debut album The College Dropout in 2004 to commercial and critical acclaim. The baroque-inspired Late Registration followed in 2005, and Graduation in 2007. West switched rapping for singing on his dark 2008 effort 808s & Heartbreak, and embraced maximalism on 2010's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Following several collaborations, West released his sixth album, Yeezus, in 2013.
West has been one of the most acclaimed producers and rappers of the 21st century as well as one of the best-selling and among the most awarded artists, winning a total of 21 Grammy Awards. Several of his studio albums, most prominently Late Registration and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, have been ranked amongst the greatest albums of all time. West's background and style, from his debut album, deviated from the then-dominant "gangster" persona in hip hop, and he would later alter the genre stylistically as rappers adopted his alternative aesthetic. An outspoken and controversial celebrity, West has often been the source of incidents at award shows, and his dapper and flamboyant fashion sense has also attracted media attention and set West apart from other rappers. West runs his own record label GOOD Music and has directed several short films.
Discography[]
Studio albums[]
- The College Dropout (2004)
- Late Registration (2005)
- Graduation (2007)
- 808s & Heartbreak (2008)
- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010)
- Yeezus (2013)
- The Life of Pablo (2016)
- Ye (2018)
- Jesus Is King (2019)
- Donda (2021)
Collaborative albums[]
- Watch the Throne (with Jay-Z as The Throne) (2011)
- Kids See Ghosts (With Kid Cudi as Kids See Ghosts) (2018)
- Vultures 1 (With Ty Dolla $ign as ¥$) (2024)
Demo album[]
- Donda 2 (Via Stem Player) (2022)
Compilation albums[]
- Cruel Summer (as GOOD Music)
Live albums[]
- Late Orchestration (2006)
- VH1 Storytellers: Kanye West (2010)
Mixtapes[]
- Get Well Soon... (2002)
- I'm Good... (2003)
- Welcome to Kanye's Soul Mix Show (2006) (with A-Trak)
- Can't Tell Me Nothing (2007)
Scrapped Albums[]
- Main article: List of unreleased Kanye West albums