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Kanye West drops new album, claims $53M in debt
At a time when millions of Americans are struggling with personal finances, one of the world's biggest music stars revealed he's not immune to the same syndrome.
In the wake of releasing his highly anticipated new album, Kanye West revealed to his 18.7 million Twitter followers that he was burdened with more than $50 million of debt. The news capped off what should have been a victory lap for the rapper, who late last week unveiled his new clothing line and made an appearance on "Saturday Night Live."
If West's confession is true, the famously volatile artist appears to have plenty of company. The world of celebrity is peppered with musicians, actors and athletes who have reaped fortunes, only to hit rough financial shoals through a combination of overspending, fraud and mismanagement.
West, who is married to reality TV star Kim Kardashian, recently launched his Yeezy clothing line, which may be a source of at least some of his financial woes. Last year, he told BET that he incurred millions in debt trying to become a fashion entrepreneur.
West's financial troubles also raised the question of whether he should have taken embattled pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli up on his offer. Last week, Shkreli offered $15 million to West to sell his new album, "The Life of Pablo," exclusively to him.
Late Saturday, Shkreli issued a series of tweets suggesting he had struck some sort of deal with West, but the rapper released the full album nonetheless. The "pharma bro" also posted he had actually paid West via bitcoin, but was somehow defrauded.
Shkreli was revealed to have been the secret bidder behind the purchase of an exclusive album Wu Tang Clan auctioned off last year—which has now become the source of a furious war of words between the entrepreneur and Ghostface Killah, one of the group's members.
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