In a single day (Oct 25, 2022), Kanye West lost $1.5 billion. This moment marked one of the steepest drops in any individual’s net worth ever. West, argued to be among the most successful artists of all time, is now seen among the most controversial, and sits on a legacy of glory crumbling beneath him.
Kanye West or Ye, has a cemented spot in music history and a trophy closet to reckon with. West recorded six of the top 500 albums of all time according to Rolling Stone. He won 24 Grammys, placing him as the 12th most awarded artist ever. He sold more than 160 million records, and at one point had upwards of $1.5 billion in brand deals with Adidas. Yet after all of this success, West has slid from an international success story to controversy.
Prior to 2021, West boasted a career in music that yielded more than just awards. He challenged the standard of music production by creating highly personal, relatable lyrics in a music era dominated by pop culture themes. West successfully released music independently, disproving the lasting narrative that artists need major labels and feature artists to achieve stardom.
Five years ago, Kanye was a civic leader, an idol, a success story and on top of this, he was involved in philanthropy. He created Donda’s House, a charity that aims to help lower dropout rates and illiteracy by integrating musical education into the schools of underprivileged children in Chicago. These actions showed people what West stood for.
West was an admirable and charismatic man, but in 2021 he lost custody of his three children. In a divorce with fashion designer and reality television star Kim Kardashian, West lost the court battle fighting for custody of his children, North, Saint, and Psalm. Unfortunately for fans and listeners, it seemed at this time that it wasn’t just West’s personal life that had begun to destabilize; it was also his music.
¨His music has gotten much worse because he’s incorporated public opinions and politics into his music, making it an opinion-based thing to listen to, and a lot of people don’t agree with it,” freshman William Westfall said.
And it seems the very same emotional and personalized style that had set West apart from his peers has been replaced with his infamous unapologetic incorporation of far-right opinions and ideologies, which has tainted his name and brand.
Looking back on the last five years, many fans theorize that his impending downfall started in 2016, when Kanye was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Last February he gave a health update, stating that he was misdiagnosed and that he is now diagnosed with autism.
Over the course of his fall from stardom, West has attributed a number of his actions to his past bipolar and recent autism diagnosis. On the David Letterman show in late 2019 West said, “When you’re in this state, you’re hyper-paranoid about everything. Everyone is now an actor. Everything’s a conspiracy.” He describes himself as oftentimes in a different state of mind and conscience, causing everything he says to be taken with a critical lens leaving fans to wonder how much of what West says is still really himself.
As the timeline progresses the level of controversy surrounding West only gets deeper. In December of 2022, Alex Jones interviewed West on his podcast Infowars. West repeatedly praised Hitler and nazism. “I see good things about Hitler.” This moment was one of the first and most recognized instances that exposed West’s antisemitism, something that has become increasingly common on his social media account.
In February 2025, West posted , “I’m a Nazi” on X. As a result, West was banned from X.
“It’s hard, I can’t root for him, especially when you already know he’s controversial and he keeps dropping worse and worse music,” Junior Pedro Henriquez said.
West’s shift into a persona dominated by politics and antisemitism has made it increasingly difficult for his fans to continue to support him. And as West’s comments persisted, outrage in the media began to spark, calling for the cancellation and termination of any and all ties with West.
In August 2013, West formed a collaboration with Adidas called Yeezy. This brand, according to Forbes, created over $200 million in royalties for West, but was ultimately canceled in October, 2022. Adidas took to Twitter stating, “Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech,” The termination of the Adidas collaboration cost Kanye an estimated $1.5 billion, a loss accounting for over three quarters of his net worth.
West´s image is tarnished and his music has deteriorated, but throughout this adversity there are a few things that remain.
¨I think he’s always been a very passionate person. He’s passionate about different things now, but he’s always had that passion, and I think that I can admire that,¨ said Sophomore Luca Chung.
West has struggled to find a grip in his personal life in recent years, a trait that would most likely lead many musicians to discontinue their careers, however West remains persistent to this day, showing flashes of his former blockbuster song writing and producing self, sending occasional songs like ¨Carnival¨ and ¨Field trip” to the top of the billboards.
West´s downfall was caused by his offensive statements, which may have been caused by his diagnosis. This changed not only his wealth but the way people see him and listen to his music. While West has an undeniable musical legacy, that legacy is so tainted by divisive opinions and antisemitism that he does not deserve praise and appreciation beyond the works of his former legacy.