Here’s Why Kanye West Only Wants To Be Referred To As “Ye” From Now On
Kanye West is done with Kanye West. Through a letter, his chief of staff Milo Yiannopoulos urged “streaming platforms, publishers, stores, unions, lyrics websites, and data resellers,” to refer to the 46-year-old as Ye, and Ye only.
“Ye is one of the most recognizable people in the world, on par with presidents and popes,” reads the memo, per Page Six. “He didn’t take the decision to change his name, potentially sacrificing some of the immense value captured by the brand of ‘Kanye West,’ lightly. The change was made fully, legally, and permanently. This is who he is now. His name is Ye.”
The note continues, “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.”
According to The Guardian, the Chicago musician legally changed his name in October 2021. A Los Angeles judge approved the name update, which leaves the rapper with no middle or last name. The petition was filed in August 2021 for “personal reasons.”
“I believe ‘Ye’ is the most commonly used word in the Bible, and in the Bible it means you. So I’m you, I’m us, it’s us,” detailed the “I Wonder” performer in 2018 when he first announced the change. He continued to explain that his name “went from Kanye, which means the only one, to just Ye – just being a reflection of our good, our bad, our confused, everything.”
In 2018 he also released the album Ye, with PARTYNEXTDOOR as the only credited feature across seven tracks.
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