Kanye Omari West is his full name. In Swahili, his name means “the only one”.¹⁾

Kanye has several nicknames, including Yeezy, Ye, and Yeezus.²⁾

Kanye West relocated to Nanjing, China, with his mother, Donda West, when he was 10 years old when she accepted a teaching position there. He learnt Mandarin while there, but he has forgotten how to speak it.³⁾

The legendary musical artist began composing poems when he was five years old and rapping by the third grade. By the age of 13, he had recorded his first rap song, a fresh twist on Dr. Suess's renowned poem “Green Eggs and Ham”.⁴⁾

Kanye rewarded himself with a massive 18th-century aquarium after receiving his first major payday as a result of the success of The College Dropout album. The aquarium had 30 koi fish and a gold fountain on a marble pedestal.⁵⁾

When it comes to crafting music, Kanye does not allow anything stand in his way. Despite nearly dying in a vehicle accident in 2002 after falling asleep behind the wheel, Kanye recorded “Through the Wire” while still in the hospital with his mouth wired shut.⁶⁾

Kanye has been arrested three times, all of which occurred as a consequence of altercations with photographers.⁷⁾

Kanye has made no secret of his struggles with mental health. He has also acknowledged to having suicide thoughts in the past while suffering from despair, bipolar illness, and paranoia.⁸⁾

Kanye once financed a Formula BMW World Finals race vehicle in order to try something new. The event was place in Valencia, Spain, in November of 2006.⁹⁾

Kanye founded Kanye Travel Ventures, an internet travel firm, in 2008, but it didn't work out soon after.¹⁰⁾

Donda, Kanye's mother, died after receiving cosmetic surgery. According to the official coroner's report, she died of heart disease while also suffering from severe post-operative problems following her plastic surgery treatment.¹¹⁾

Kanye West is known for getting several tattoos, but he is most fond of their specific meanings. The Roman numerals on his wrists, for example, indicate the birth dates of his daughter North and his mother.¹²⁾

Ray West, Kanye's father, was naturally proud of his son. He was not just one of the first black photojournalists at the venerable Atlanta Journal-Constitution, but he was also a Black Panther, a Christian marital counselor, and a medical artist.¹³⁾

He worked on his popular song “Stronger” for days, mixing it 50 different ways with eight different engineers before arriving at the final result.¹⁴⁾

The cover of Kanye's album “ye” is really a photograph he took using his personal iPhone. He took the iconic photo while driving through Jackson Hole, Wyoming on his way to a listening party for the new album.¹⁵⁾