Kanye West is leading an ‘upper class homeless’ life in a glamorous Asian metropolis while working on his next album Bully, it is claimed.
The 47-year-old is living in a luxury Tokyo hotel room and recording the project there rather than using a studio, music journalist Touré reported on his Substack.
A friend of his noted that West is waging a ‘war with the paparazzi’ in Los Angeles, but is rarely troubled by members of the public in Japan.
‘When he’s in Japan, people see him, but they’re very quiet. They’re very respectful. Very seldom will they even come up and ask for a picture. So he can move around Japan with no security,’ the insider remarked.
The claims come after West and his wife Bianca Censori indulged in a public display of affection in Tokyo, contradicting rumors of a divorce.
Kanye West is leading an ‘upper class homeless ‘ life in a glamorous Asian metropolis while working on his next album Bully, it is claimed; pictured this March in Los Angeles
West is said to be the only producer on Bully, according to a source who insisted: ‘This album is 100% him. He’s producing everything 100% himself. This will be 100% Kanye West, which it hasn’t been in many, many years.’
One of his friends said: ‘I think Japan is good for him. In LA he’s got a war with the paparazzi. He does not like the paparazzi.’
The source noted the contrast between West’s life in California and the ‘respectful’ Japanese public who ‘seldom’ even request a photo with him.
Another friend noted: ‘In Japan he has a different level of peace of mind, which obviously leads to being able to make really good music. Because your mind is at ease. Your mind is at rest. You’re not paranoid about anything.’
Although he has previously traveled with an entourage of 30 to 50 people, he has no such group in his orbit in Tokyo, where he is accompanied by a single engineer.
‘When you get him actually on the machines, that’s a different beast. That’s when you get Kanye the producer at the highest level,’ said a friend.
‘When he’s actually touching the machines there’s nobody better. He just has a gift when it comes to that,’ the pal continued.
West is said to be ‘pulling from an eclectic pool’ of influences for the album. ‘He’s traveled the world a lot so he’s aware of a lot more music than probably ever before. So I think sound-wise, it’s probably varied. But in a Kanye-esque form.’
West’s representative has denied allegations made in a lawsuit that the rapper hired a ‘fixer’ to follow his wife Bianca Censori and investigate the Kardashian familyl (West, Censori in February)
The latest claims about his life in Tokyo come after West’s representative has denied allegations made in a lawsuit that the rapper hired a ‘fixer’ to follow his wife Bianca Censori and investigate the Kardashian family.
In the lawsuit filed on Thursday, a former employee of the 47-year-old rapper — who recently refuted he had split from Censori, 29 – claims West instructed him to hire private investigators to ‘tail’ Censori while she was abroad, along with making other allegedly illegal requests.
‘Many of the details in his complaint are simply fantastical and false,’ Kanye’s representative told Page Six on Friday.
The rep further stated that the lawsuit—which also accuses West of abusing nitrous oxide—is ‘designed to cause embarrassment and/or capitalize on perceived problems in Ye’s marriage.’
According to the lawsuit obtained by Rolling Stone, John Doe’s duties allegedly included mitigating West’s risks and preventing bad press, involving investigations and managing nondisclosure agreements (NDAs).
‘Many of the details in his complaint are simply fantastical and false,’ Kanye’s representative told Page Six on Friday; (Kim Kardashian, West pictured in 2019)
He also claims that his investigations targeted Censori and the Kardashian family, including West’s ex-wife, Kim Kardashian, with private investigators allegedly following Censori on West’s orders.
The 22 page lawsuit filed in LA reads: ‘A particularly notable task by Ye was to have Doe hire private investigators to follow and ‘tail’ his wife, Bianca Censori, when she was traveling alone to visit family in Australia, without Ms. Censori’s knowledge.’
In May Doe cites West began exhibiting ‘erratic behavior’ including spending $850,000 on a set of titanium teeth and sacking a ‘large majority of the Yeezy leadership – including former chief of staff Milo Yiannopoulos – who has also accused West of being hooked on nitrous oxide.
The alleged behavior came at a time when West was claimed to be consuming nitrous oxide – which Doe believes ‘played a role in West’s decision-making at the time.’
Doe’s attorney Ronald Zambrano told the publication: ‘My client believes there is a direct correlation between the nitrous oxide and the increase in paranoia and siege mentality that ended up happening in that timeframe that Doe worked for West.
‘There were internal concerns about the amount of nitrous oxide that was being delivered to his house.’
The lawsuit claims Doe’s employment ended in mid-May when he got a call from a Donda Academy teacher ‘regarding safety concerns they had about some of the students.’
Doe says he informed Yeezy leadership about the call and ‘almost immediately’ West allegedly ‘called Doe to yell, curse and threaten Doe with great bodily injury, including death, if Doe repeated what Doe learned from the Donda employee.’
The rep further stated that the lawsuit—which also accuses West of abusing nitrous oxide—is ‘designed to cause embarrassment and/or capitalize on perceived problems in Ye’s marriage.’
He also claims that his investigations targeted Censori and the Kardashian family, including West’s ex-wife, Kim Kardashian , with private investigators allegedly following Censori on West’s orders; (pictured 2019)
West allegedly told Doe he was ‘f*****g dead to (him)’ and played a recording of ‘scary voices that were threatening to harm’ Doe – per the suit.
Doe claims in the following days West’s ‘enforcers’ began to threaten him, triggering his PTSD from past military experience.
The lawsuit claims: ‘(Doe) experienced panic attacks, anxiety, and severe emotional distress, which caused him to seek medical treatment and was placed in a facility to address his declining mental health.’
Doe is suing West for emotional distress, retaliation and several violations of California labor codes.
The plaintiff is seeking restitution of unpaid wages, attorneys’ fees, and general and punitive damages to be determined at trial.
DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Kanye West and the Kardashians for comment.
In August Yiannopoulo made a slew of bombshell allegations aimed at the rapper and his dentist, Thomas P. Connelly, in a legal affidavit.
Yiannopoulos, 39, who quit working for West in May after two years, claimed that West is addicted to nitrous oxide or ‘laughing gas’ and alleged Connelly was ‘aware’ of West’s ‘psychological vulnerabilities’ and believed he ‘sought to exploit them’ by supplying the gas.
Further shock claims in the document are that Connelly continued ‘to supply the gas after the emergence of distressing symptoms that led to widespread comment and concern’ and charged ‘more than $50,000 a month’ to do so.
(West was seen in a Reddit post three months ago with a mask on with the caption, ‘Ye on nitrous.’)
It was alleged West’s ‘growing dependency on the gas’ – also known as ‘hippy crack’ which can induce feelings of euphoria – concerned Yeezy staff members and that the rapper ‘seemed to be in and out of the inhaler mask on a near-constant basis’ and his communications ‘were becoming incomprehensible and contradictory.’
In August West’s former chief of staff Yiannopoulos, 39, claimed that West is addicted to nitrous oxide or ‘laughing gas’ – Pictured in 2017 in NYC
West allegedly told Doe he was ‘f*****g dead to (him)’ and played a recording of ‘scary voices that were threatening to harm’ Doe – per the suit – pictured in 2024
West has notably seen his career implode amid anti-Semitic comments – beginning with a vile post in 2022 that he was going ‘death con 3 on Jewish people’ – which got him promptly dropped by his agency CAA, production company MRC, Adidas, Gap, and Balenciaga.
The symptoms of West’s ‘widely-reported bipolar diagnosis and the side effects of prolonged nitrous gas abuse are strikingly similar’ claims the affidavit, with symptoms including ‘erratic behavior, mood swings, paranoia and violence.’
Yiannopoulos claims a Yeezy employee told him that they had witnessed West ‘self-administering the nitrous gas provided by Connelly.’
Yiannopoulos – who detailed his job duties as ‘solving mysteries and fixing problems where others have failed.’ said the affidavit was in tandem with a complaint he filed with the California Dental Board accusing Connelly of ‘reckless, unethical, dishonest, explorative and, upon information and belief, illegal conduct. ‘
He says he was ‘motivated by urgent concern’ for West’s health and safety’ in both his own capacity of himself and ‘on behalf of several individuals close to him.’
A rep for Connelly told TMZ that claims made by Yiannopoulos were ‘not only factually incorrect but also intentionally misleading.’
Yiannopoulos was ‘making up these claims for attention,’ Connelly’s rep told the outlet, and was ‘attempting to maliciously damage’ Connelly while doing so.
Connelly’s rep told TMZ that the dentist follows legal and ethical standards and will continue doing so.
This comes after it was claimed West and Censori orchestrated speculation they are heading for divorce to create a buzz around his new album.
On Monday, multiple reports emerged the couple had secretly called it quits ‘weeks ago’, with the rapper reportedly ‘ready to divorce’ his wife.
However, the duo were then pictured together in Japan just hours after split claims went public.
Now, sources close to the pair believe the speculation surrounding their nearly two-year marriage was a deliberate ploy to help build publicity around Kanye’s new album.
Late last month, Ye announced his new album Bully and debuted the song Beauty and the Beast during an event in China. He has also released his album Vultures 2 in August.
His 10th studio album, Vultures 1, was released on February 10
He has two Diamond certified songs — 2007’s Stronger and 2011’s N***as in Paris featuring Jay-Z — and all 10 of his albums have been at least certified Gold
Since bursting onto the rap scene over 20 years ago, West has sold an incredible 160million records worldwide and is a 24-time Grammy Award winner.
He has two Diamond certified songs — 2007’s Stronger and 2011’s N***** in Paris featuring Jay-Z — and all 10 of his albums have been at least certified Gold.
His 10th studio album, Vultures 1, went straight to No.1 when it was released in February 2024. It was done in collaboration with Ty Dolla Sign as their hip hop duo ¥$.
West previously teased that a follow-up album, Vultures 2, is in the works. The chatter around West’s alleged musical retirement comes amid a slew of legal woes for the rapper – mostly relating to his crumbling Yeezy empire.
