Kanye West reportedly the richest Black man in U.S. history

Kanye West is arguably one of the best musicians in the world. The rapper became a certified billion last April following the impressive success of his businesses. The 22 Grammy winner has a booming sneaker and apparel business, making him one of the most successful celebrities in the world.

The rapper turned entrepreneur is not just a billionaire but a multibillionaire following the latest estimate of his business deals. West is officially worth $6.6 billion, according to Bloomberg, making him the richest Black man in U.S. history.

This latest information about the worth of West comes following valuations prepared by investment bank UBS Group AG. Yeezy, West’s sneaker/apparel partnership with Adidas is worth between $3.2 billion and $4.7 billion, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg.

The African-American rapper owns a 100% stake in Yeezy and also has a partnership with The Gap which is valued at $1 billion. West also has additional income coming from his $110 million music catalog, $122 million in cash and stocks and business investments with his estranged wife Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS underwear brand.

Bloomberg reports that Gap expects its Yeezy line to break $150 million in sales in its first full year in 2022 and envisions it becoming a billion-dollar revenue brand in 2023.

The documents also showed that sales for Yeezy’s Adidas sneakers survived the effect of the pandemic by posting a growth of 31% and making nearly $1.7 billion in revenue while netting $191 million in royalties.

West had previously claimed he was worth $3 billion although Forbes published that his net worth was lower than he claimed. Displeased with Forbes’s valuation of his worth, Kanye, according to the People, texted Forbes, “It’s not a billion. It’s $3.3 billion since no one at Forbes knows how to count.”

With his current net worth of $6.6 billion, West has surpassed Oprah Winfrey’s $3.5 billion net worth, David Steward’s $3.9 billion net worth, and Robert F. Smith’s $6.5 billion, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Also, West’s current net worth makes him the third richest celebrity in the world, behind only Steven Spielberg ($7 billion) and George Lucas ($10 billion), according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Recently, West revealed his plan to build a ‘city of the future’ on an island in Haiti.

Touching on the subject during an interview on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast in October, the 43-year-old explained how the project would benefit locals on the island.

“We go to Haiti and the president gives us this island to develop; to make it a city of the future,” West said. “We’re gonna have the farmers and the people that live there take ownership of the land they have right now so when it raises in value, they all eat.”

West’s announcement of the partnership with Haitian president Jovenel Moïse and his government, however, did not sit down well with some people on social media, prompting him to clarify the details of the agreement on his Twitter page on October 27, GQ reported.

“Just to be CLEAR: WE ARE IN ENGAGED WITH HAITI’s GOVERNMENT to make a transformational INVESTMENT to bring JOBS, DEVELOPMENT, HELP SUPPORT LOCAL FARMERS and FISHERMEN and Build a new « CITY OF THE FUTURE » in a very beautiful country,” he tweeted.