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Kanye West, who legally changed his name to Ye in 2021, is a rapper and producer born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago. He first made his name producing for Roc-A-Fella Records, crafting soul-sampling beats for artists like Jay-Z. He then stepped out as a rapper with The College Dropout in 2004. Albums like Late Registration, Graduation, 808s & Heartbreak and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy reshaped mainstream hip-hop, and 808s in particular influenced a generation of melodic rappers. He kept pushing his sound on Yeezus, The Life of Pablo, ye, Jesus Is King and Donda. He has won more than 20 Grammy Awards. He is also one of the most polarizing figures in music because of his public statements. His catalog remains one of the most sampled, remixed and studied in hip-hop, and producers on YouTube keep finding new ways to rework his tracks.