Kanye West has formally filed a petition to change his name to just Ye.
For years, the rapper, whose full name is Kanye Omari West, has used the nickname but in Los Angeles Superior Court documents obtained by the Associated Press he has now requested that it be recognized as his legal name, for "personal reasons."
The documents dated Aug. 11 were sent into the court system on Tuesday. The petition now awaits a judge's approval.
West first stated he wanted the name change in 2018, when he tweeted, "the being formally known as Kanye West… I am YE." The name holds particular meaning to West, who titled his eighth studio album "Ye." That same year he revealed its biblical relevance during an interview with Big Boy.
"I believe 'ye' is the most commonly used word in the Bible, and in the Bible it means 'you,'" he said.
"So I'm you, I'm us, it's us," West continued. "It went from Kanye, which means the only one, to just Ye – just being a reflection of our good, our bad, our confused, everything. The album is more of a reflection of who we are."
West is expected to release his highly anticipated tenth studio album, "Donda," which was named after his late mother Donda West, this week, according to reports.
Fans have been anticipating a follow-up to West's 2019 "Jesus Is King" album for a long time. The musician was initially meant to release "Donda" back in July 2020, but that never materialized. Then, in June his manager, Abou "Bu" Thiam, hinted that the new album was definitely on its way. And while there has been massive hype surrounding the release, West's musical career has been overshadowed by his personal life after Kim Kardashian filed for divorce earlier this year, after being dogged by rumors of marital issues for months.
In July 2020, West made the shocking revelation that he had been considering divorcing Kardashian since November 2018, according to a report by People at the time. Days later insiders confirmed that the pair had been discussing divorce for several weeks.
"They are just not on the same page when it comes to their future as a family. And Kim is okay with it," another source told People.
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Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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