Entertainment

Kanye West Broke? The Rapper Is Not Really $53 Million in Debt, Source Claims

Published on: February 15, 2016 at 1:35 PM
By Sandra Johnson

Is Kanye West broke or not? Ever since the rapper alleged via Twitter that he has $53 million in personal debt, the internet at large has speculated about how ‘Ye could really have fallen that far into debt.

According to a Hollywood Life source, the answer is simple: He hasn’t. The source told the news outlet that Kanye isn’t really broke, and he’s not struggling to pay his bills. Instead, the source said, West is simply doing everything he can to create a buzz around his most recent business endeavors.

“Kanye is not $53 million in debt. He has several businesses and investments, from his clothing line to restaurants to music worth millions. He is a master in marketing and is doing everything he can to generate interest in his album, Tidal and his clothing line,” the source told Hollywood Life .

The source continued, “From claiming Bill Cosby is innocent, to dissing Taylor Swift, to suggesting that he’s running for president and making wild claims about being in debt, Kanye is doing exactly what he set out to do — create tremendous buzz and interesting in his business endeavors. He will make millions and millions more from all this attention.”

It’s true that West has been particularly busy within the past week. On Thursday, Kanye launched his Yeezy Season 3 clothing line and, at the same time, performed a new song from his most recent album, The Life of Pablo . That album was released Saturday.

It’s also true that within the past month, ‘Ye has definitely done quite a bit to draw attention to himself. The rapper has recently gone on a series of bizarre Twitter rants. The most recent odd social media behavior seemed to begin just a few weeks after his Twitter feud with Wiz Khalifa .

And since Saturday alone, fans have seen two incoherent and increasingly strange Twitter rants from Kanye. On Saturday, while waiting to go onstage for Saturday Night Live , West released a string of tweets discussing his album and the source of the album’s name. It was amid that particular rant that Kanye claimed he had $53 million in personal debt.

On Sunday, West was at it again when he went off on the impact he plans to have on the world, going to far as to beg Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Google co-founder Larry Page for a $1 billion investment so that he could accomplish his goals. After begging for the money — via Twitter, no less — Yeezus seemed to insult the internet moguls from whom he sought cash.

While one unnamed source for Hollywood Life claims that Kanye West is simply trying to generate publicity for his projects (which he’s certainly done), a co-writer for Kanye’s album insists that ‘Ye isn’t quite right in the head.

Rhymefest, who co-wrote West’s “Jesus Walks” and “New Slave,” told a fan that Kanye needed to seek help in order to get well.

What do you think of Kanye West’s Twitter rants? Do you think he’s simply attempting to garner publicity for The Life of Pablo and Yeezy Season 3, or do you think there’s something else going on? Do you think he’s really $53 million in debt? Why or why not?

Find out more about Kanye West’s debt in the video below.

[Photo by JP Yim/Getty Images Entertainment]

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