Who Are Kanye West’s Parents? The Lowdown On Donda & Ray West

15 February 2022, 17:25

Here’s what you need to know about Kanye West’s parents; his mum Donda and his dad Ray.

Kanye West now has a family of his own, sharing four children with Kim Kardashian, but who are his parents?

Ye’s new documentary on Netflix called Jeen-Yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy follows the lead-up to, as well as the aftermath, of his 2004 debut album ‘The College Dropout’, which will see the rapper’s personal life showcased in clips, as well as his professional life.

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Fans of the Yeezy star will know Ye always had an incredibly close relationship with his mother, Donda, who sadly passed away in 2007.

But who are Kanye’s parents?

Here’s what you need to know about Kanye’s mum and dad…

Who is Kanye’s mum, Dr. Donda West?

Kanye was always very close to his mother, with the rapper even naming his 2021 ‘Donda’ album after her.

His parents divorced when he was three years old and he lived with his mother in Chicago, where she worked as a professor of English at Clark Atlanta University, and the Chair of the English Department at Chicago State University before retiring to be her son’s manager.

Donda sadly died aged 58 in 2007 following complications from cosmetic surgery including liposuction and mammoplasty.

Who is Kanye’s dad, Ray West?

Kanye’s dad Ray was a photojournalist and reportedly went on to work as a paparazzo, marriage counsellor and even a store owner.

Although Ye lived in Chicago with his mum when he was growing up, he’s previously rapped about spending summers with his dad.

They have been closer over the years, with the ‘All Falls Down’ star even tweeting about a visit from his father in 2019, where he told fans that Ray visited him at one of his ranches in Wyoming.

Ye even went on to say: “It took me 42 years to realize that my dad was my best friend.”

Ray appeared in Kanye's music video for 'Follow God' back in 2019.

Ray was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2018 but went on to beat it later that year.

According to reports, Ray West currently lives in the Dominican Republic, where he runs a charity for victims of prostitution.

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