One thing is for sure with Kanye…he always puts on a good show whenever he steps foot on a stage.
Kim Kardashian became pregnant with Kanye’s child in late 2012. Their baby was born June 15, 2013. One month earlier, Kardashian had revealed the sex of the baby on her reality TV show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians. It was the first child for both the thirty-two-year-old Kardashian and thirty-six-year-old Kanye. They named their baby girl, North West.
It seemed 2013 just kept getting better for Kanye. On October 21, 2013, Kim’s birthday, Kanye rented out AT&T Park, the home stadium for the San Francisco Giants, for their friends and family to celebrate. But the celebration was about to get a lot bigger. After hiring a fifty-person orchestra for the event, Kanye proposed with a ring in the price range of $8 million. After Kim said “Yes,” the evening that was originally expected to be a birthday bash, quickly turned into an engagement party for the couple.
One thing is for sure with Kanye…he always puts on a good show whenever he steps foot on a stage.
Becoming a father did not slow Kanye’s musical career. One month before his daughter was born, his sixth studio album, Yeezus, was released. Details of the much-anticipated album were heavily guarded. Little by little, those details were released. When they were released, they were released in grand fashion. In May, for example, Kanye had sixty-six projectors set up in cities across the world. Those projectors showed the video for his vulgar song “New Slaves” on the side of buildings. The next day, Kanye performed the song and debuted another, “Black Skinhead,” on Saturday Night Live.
If the quality of Yeezus is anywhere near Kanye’s other albums, it is highly likely he will add numerous trophies to his impressive resume. Kanye’s three Grammy Awards in 2013 left him with a total of twenty-one for his career. The artist was not at the 2013 ceremony, however. He had instead decided to vacation with Kardashian in Brazil. His absence was not much of a surprise. During a concert a few months prior to the event, he had told fans “…don’t expect to see me at the Grammys this year, you know what I mean?” Kanye’s main issue was with the Grammy voters. Yes, he had received a lot of awards, he said. But they all had been given in what he considered to be the “black categories.” Those were categories—such as Best Rap Album and Best Rap Song—where the nominees were most often African Americans.
Kanye has never shied away from admitting he wants to be known and remembered as one of the greatest musicians of all time, not just one of the best hip-hop artists. He also has admitted that his ego is rather large. In a 2009 episode of VH1’s Storytellers, Kanye explained why. He said, “I do have an ego and rightfully so. I think people should have an ego. Think about it—I don’t offend people, I don’t put anyone down. Do I name names or bring people down? That’s not my thing. But I give myself big-ups. I feel good about the music I make. God chose me. He made a path for me. I am God’s vessel.”
Then Kanye revealed that ego: “My greatest pain in life is that I will never be able to see myself perform live.”