What is Kanye West’s net worth? Kanye West is an American producer, rapper, entrepreneur, and fashion designer. His popularity dates back to the year 2004 upon the release of his music album “The College Dropout.” Kanye is not only one of the most popular but also a successful hip hop singer. West has won many music awards. Recently, he got much inclination to the business world more than music. He is the owner of Yeezy, a sneaker brand partnered with Adidas. Kanye West cumulatively has a net worth of $3 billion. Most of his earnings come from this Yeezy brand and related royalties. According to several articles, the Wall Street Journal, to be specific, Yeezy is reportedly worth between $3 and $4 billion. This potentially would put Kanye on the right track to enormous wealth. Various aspects of considerations have been highlighted in the assessment of Kanye’s net worth: assets including his real estate assets in excess of $120 million, a huge music catalogue, and the Yeezy brand. These, together with other assets, total over $3 billion.
Kanye West Biography and Early Life
Kanye Omari West was born on June 8th, 1977, in Atalanta, Georgia. He moved to Chicago Illinois with his mother following a divorce between his parents when he was three. He met with music producer DJ No. I.D. Through his mentorship, West showed interest started experimenting with music. He attended the American Academy of Art through a scholarship but transferred to Chicago State University where he later dropped to chase his potential music talent.
To enhance his experience, he used his time to make beats for local artists. His first significant achievement was the successful production of the Down to Earth album for Grave, one of the Chicago rapper. Later on, he produced for Foxxy Brown, Deric “D-Dot” Angelettie, and Harlem World.
Career and Rise to Fame
West’s career in the music industry started to pick when he worked as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records. He interacted with famous artists like Janet Jackson, Ludacris, and Alicia Keys. His production talent attracted more interest upon releasing Jay-Z’s album The Blue Print of 2001. Regardless of his success in production, his primary dream was to be a rapper. He was denied a contract with Capitol Records in 2002 but managed to convince the head of Capitol Records to sign him to Roc-A-Fella. West accumulated inspiration from the successful artists and recorded the song “Through the Wire” which set a base for The College Dropout album. He earned a significant amount of money from this album that kept him moving in pursuit of his rapper dream. This album, upon its release, earned West 10 Grammy Awards nominations.
Kanye spent $2 million to produce “The Late Registration” which was released in the year 2005. This album had returned a total of $2.3 million just in the United States toward the end of the release year. After that, it was a continuous production of music albums including “Graduation” of 2007, 808s “Heartbreak” in 2008, and “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” in 2010. Through collaboration with Jay-Z, he released “Watch the Throne” album in 2011, Yeezus in 2013, Life of Pablo in 2016, Ye in 20118 and Jesus is King in 2019. Most of these albums were ranked number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and the US R&B Rap Chart.
How He Spends His Money
Real Estate: West owns approximately $120 million worth of real estate in the United States. With $23 million, Kanye acquired his primary residence at LA, Hidden Hills that is reportedly worth $70 million after renovation, rearranging, and also expansion. He also awn a 320-acre estate on Stokes Canyon Calabasas worth $16 million. In Wyoming, Kanye has a 6,700-acre ranch called Bighorn Mountain Ranch worth $15. Additionally, he owns a 1400 acre ranch called The Monster Lake Ranch worth $14 million and a $2 million commercial property in Cody, Wyoming.
Business: Besides, West dedicated his time to venture into business. With his interest in fashion, he started the Yeezy brand for sneakers. Yeezy has been a lucrative source of income for this famous entrepreneur. The brand, together with the Yeezy.com website, is worth $3.1 billion. Apart from that, Kanye founded a production company labeled “G.O.O.D” Music, an abbreviation of “getting out our dreams.” Many prominent artists signed to this label. Among them John Legend, Big Sean, Kacy Hill, Teyana Taylor, among others. This label has earned $80 million in return.
Philanthropy: In the year 2003, together with his mother, Kanye founded the “Kanye West Foundation based in Chicago. This foundation was a nobble initiative to combat illiteracy and dropout. It, therefore, had to partner with the community-based organizations to give underprivileged youths access to music education. He also participated in various fundraisers and benefit concerts including, the Millions Movement, 100 Black Men of America, among others. Additionally, he donated $10 million for the completion of Roden Crater by an American artist in the year 2019. Following the killing of George Floyd, West donated $2 million between the Floyd family and the other two victims of police brutality in the year 2020.