Kanye West Is Tired of Being Referred to by His ‘Slave Name,’ Wants to Be Called This Instead
Kanye West is allegedly tired of the disrespect from everyone who continues to call him … “Kanye West.”
Over the weekend, a letter from Milo Yiannopoulos, the Chicago rapper’s chief of staff, was obtained by TMZ. In the letter from the controversial British commentator, Yiannopoulos made it known that his boss is tired of people calling him his born “Slave Name,” and wants stores, unions, streamers, and lyric websites to squarely refer to him as “Ye.”
The letter read:
Ye is one of the most recognizable people in the world, on par with presidents and popes. He didn’t take the decision to change his name, potentially sacrificing some of the immense value captured by the brand “Kanye West,” lightly. The change was made fully, legally, and permanently. This is who he is now. His name is Ye.”
We are reaching out to streaming platforms, publishers, stores, unions, lyrics websites and data resellers. This change will happen everywhere. Your platform has been identified as one of the most visible places this change may occur, and we passionately hope you will be able to fully and properly reflect the new name and identity of such an enormously influential and historic figure.
He has on several occasions referred to it as his slave name. Ye is a black man in America who wants the right to full self-determination just like everyone else. My colleagues and I are reaching out at his urging and hope you can assist in this effort by bringing any and all instances of his name into line on your services.
If you recall, the “Vultures” rapper legally changed his name to “Ye” in August 2021, which was also around the time he released his 10th studio album, “DONDA.”
But despite that, the majority of people continue to call him Kanye West.
First and foremost, when you’re referred to by one name for nearly 20 years by the entire public, it’s going to be difficult for people to just drop it and not use it—even if you did go through the legal hoops to permanently change it.
Furthermore, he isn’t the first rapper to change his name, and he won’t be the last. For hip-hop artists, changing your name is just as common as dropping an album. K. Dot changed his name to Kendrick Lamar. Most Def changed his name to Yasiin Bey. Common Sense changed his name to Common. Tity Boi changed his name to 2 Chainz. Snoop Dogg has changed his name to Snoop Doggy Dogg, Snoop Lion, and Snoopzilla.
It’s all part of the game. So while this letter likely won’t stop people from calling Ye, “Kanye West,” surely people will catch on over time.
Or, like many of Ye’s venture, he will just drop it all together.
