Kanye’s father is an accomplished photographer, while his mother is an English language teacher. Since he was a child, Kanye has s2016hown an interest in poetry, demonstrating a particular talent in this field. At the age of 15, he developed a friendship with producer NO I.D., who was working with rookie rapper Common. Kanye learned studio music production techniques from NO I.D., purchasing his first electronic keyboard and starting producing instrumentals and writing lyrics.
“Kanye West & Jay-Z | Watch The Throne Tour | Gelredome Arnhem, Netherlands | June 15” by PJaYOfficial is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse.
During his university years, he worked part-time while in 1998 one of his instrumentals was used by Jermaine Dupri, a famous Atlanta producer, for one of his songs. In 2001, Kanye decided to make a change in his life and traveled to the East Coast, from which he returned with numerous collaborations, including one with Jay-Z, who signed him to Roc-A-Fella Records. Damon Dash, co-founder of the label, signed the contract after listening to a demotape by Kanye in 2002. Kanye thus collaborated with various Roc-A-Fella artists, also contributing to the musical production of the famous single “03 Bonnie & Clyde” by Jay-Z.
His debut solo album, “The College Dropout,” was marked by a series of unfortunate events, including a car accident that caused him to fracture his jaw in three places. However, despite the accident, Kanye recorded his first single, “Through The Wire”, which was released under Roc-A-Fella. The album was released in 2004, receiving widespread acclaim from both critics and the public.
