Blast from the past! Kanye West had more than one high-profile relationship before he married Kim Kardashian in 2014 — and he’s ready for another.
The “Jesus Walks” rapper scored mainstream success after the release of his debut record, The College Dropout, in 2004. Two years before the album dropped, West sparked a romance with designer Alexis Phifer. The pair dated on and off from 2002 to 2008, with the “Love Lockdown” artist even getting down on one knee in August 2006.
West’s life changed forever after his mother, Donda, died in November 2007 after complications from plastic surgery procedures. His romance with Phifer came to an end as he dealt with his grief and the duo called off their engagement in 2008.
Two years later, the “Touch the Sky” artist began dating Amber Rose. The former couple quickly got serious but went their separate ways in 2010. Looking back at her relationship with West 10 years later, Rose claimed that she’s been “picked on” by him ever since they split.
“I didn’t soak up anything from him. Me and him are two very different people,” she said during an October 2020 episode of the “No Jumper” podcast. “I’m a compassionate person. I have empathy. I’m a good person. That’s why people love me. That’s why anybody I’ve ever dated loved me. … I don’t know if he says things to make his wife more comfortable, but to slut-shame me and say you needed 30 showers, like, bro, you took me around the world. Since when do you need 30 showers?”
Following her split from the Yeezy designer, Rose later moved on with Wiz Khalifa, with whom she welcomed son Sebastian in February 2013, five months before they tied the knot. The model filed for divorce in September 2014.
West, for his part, wed Kim Kardashian in May 2014 after two years of dating. The couple started their relationship while the KKW Beauty founder was still legally married to ex-husband Kris Humphries, from whom she split after just 72 day of marriage. Her divorce was finalized in June 2013.
“Right before I got married to Kris Humphries, [Kanye and I] were talking, and I just went a different direction,” the makeup mogul recalled during Keeping Up With the Kardashians‘ 10th anniversary special, which aired in 2017. “I think I had to go through that to figure out what I wanted. After my breakup, I was feeling really low and down and he said, ‘Just come to Paris and see my fashion show.’ … I swear from the moment I landed, I fell madly in love with him and I thought, ‘Oh, my God, why didn’t I do this sooner?’ Like, this is what real life is like — love and fun and real support.”
The pair tied the knot in Italy in May 2014 and share four kids: North (born in 2013), Saint (born in 2015), Chicago (born in 2018) and Psalm (May 2019). After working through a rocky year in 2020, Kardashian and the philanthropist sparked rumors that they were heading for a split.
“They have both been living separate lives for many months now,” a source told Us Weekly exclusively in January 2021, noting that the California native was “done” with her marriage. “Kim and Kanye haven’t been on the same page for a while now.”
Us confirmed in February 2021 that Kardashian filed for divorce from West after six years of marriage. “This really was done amicably. The filing wasn’t a surprise to either of them; both knew it was coming,” an insider revealed at the time. “There is no one person who is exiting the marriage. They both just grew apart from each other. They both wanted to make the marriage work — that’s why they put this off for so long.”
While the pair were declared legally single in February 2022, they are still working to finalize their divorce. He hired Melinda Gates’ divorce attorney in September 2022.
Scroll down for a look back at the fashion CEO’s love life:
Before his big break, West was still dating his high school sweetheart. He referenced their romance on "Never Let Me Down," a track from his 2004 record, The College Dropout. "Nothing sad as that day my girl's father passed away / So I promised to Mr. Rainey I'm gonna marry your daughter," he rapped. However, their relationship didn't last. Matt Baron/BEI/Shutterstock
The "Gold Digger" artist dated the fashion designer on and off from 2002 to 2008. The pair split when West's career took off in 2004, but they reunited the following year. In August 2006, West popped the question. However, their engagement eventually came to an end after 18 months following the unexpected death of West's mother, Donda. PNP/WENN/Newscom/Mega
During his time apart from Phifer in 2004, the Chicago native sparked a brief fling with the aspiring actress. Though their flame fizzled out, the Harlem Nights actress told Essence five years later that she and West were still "amicable." Jen Lowery/Startraksphoto.com
The pair hit it off when Lopez starred in the Grammy winner's "Flashing Lights" music video in 2008, but they never made things official. Matt Baron/BEI/Shutterstock; Amanda Schwab/Starpix/Shutterstock
After calling off his engagement to Phifer, the "Stronger" rapper dated Rose from 2008 to 2010. Their breakup quickly turned messy, and a decade later, the model alleged that West "bullied" her for years after their split. At the time, West didn't respond to Rose's claims. "That's what narcissists do, right? You share two years with someone, you take them around the world, you buy the jewelry, you shout-out to the world how much you love them and how much fun you have with this person and then the person decides that this is not what they want their life to be. I opted out," she said during an October 2020 episode of the "No Jumper" podcast. "I don't want my life to be like that. I'm not that type of person." Marion Curtis/Starpix/Shutterstock
West was spotted getting cozy with the Victoria's Secret model at fashion week in Paris in 2010 shortly after she starred in his "Runaway" music video. Sipa/Shutterstock
The "Ultralight Beam" artist was also linked to Iman in 2010, but the Georgia native laughed off the relationship speculation. "Rumors are rumors. Kanye's a great artist. He's very talented," she told Us at the time. "I've always loved his music. He's an incredible performer." Gregory Pace/BEI/Shutterstock
In April 2012, West began dating the reality star, who was in the midst of her split from Humphries. Kardashian's divorce was finalized in June 2013 and West proposed four months later. The pair tied the knot in Italy in May 2014 and share four kids. After six years of marriage, the couple sparked speculation of a split after a "big fight" in December 2020. "Kanye isn’t as focused and doesn’t live in the real world," a source told Us exclusively at the time. "Their world views no longer line up." Us confirmed in February 2021 that Kardashian filed for divorce from West. She opened up about what led to their split during a June 2021 episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. “I just think he deserves someone who will support his every move and go follow him all over the place and move to Wyoming. I can’t do that,” she explained. “He should have a wife that supports his every move and travels with him and does everything, and I can’t. I feel like a f--king failure. It’s my third f--king marriage. Yeah, I feel like a f--king loser. But I can’t even think about that. I want to be happy.” In March 2022, a judge granted Kardashian’s request to be declared legally single amid her and West’s ongoing divorce. Gregory Pace/Shutterstock
Us confirmed in June 2021 that West was dating the model — who appeared in his 2010 music video for “Power” — amid his divorce from Kardashian after he and Shayk were spotted together in France. “They’ve been quietly seeing each other for a couple months,” a source revealed, while a second insider added: “He’s always thought she was beautiful and they’re both looking forward to seeing where this goes.” By August 2021, they'd called it quits. Shutterstock (2)
The “Flashing Lights” rapper was spotted on a dinner date with Fox in Miami amid his divorce from Kardashian. A source revealed to Us in January 2022 that West and the actress were “having fun” after they connected via mutual friends. Days later, the duo attended a Broadway production of Slave Play in New York City.“It looked romantic,” a second insider told Us at the time. “They were only close to each other coming out of Carbone and they looked like they wanted to be close to each other. It was 100 percent a date. … They spent the night together. Julia was seen arriving back at the hotel this morning. She left at one point and came back with a baby carriage.” The twosome ended their romance in February 2022 after less than two months of dating. "Julia and Kanye remain good friends and collaborators but they are no longer together," a rep for Fox told Us at the time. Shutterstock (2)
West was first spotted with the model in January 2022 while he was still dating Fox. After the Uncut Gems actress and the "Famous" rapper split in February 2022, West's romance with Jones began to heat up with trips to Utah and Japan. West also gave Jones a limited edition Hermès bag worth $275,000. In June 2022, however, Us confirmed that the pair called it quits. "Kanye and Chaney are done," a source said at the time. "They split amicably. There’s no bad blood, things just fizzled." MEGA
The pair first sparked relationship rumors in early October 2022, with a source exclusively telling Us, “They’ve been on a few dates already," and West was “pursuing” the model. However, “[It] doesn’t seem to be anything serious," the insider added. One week later, the two were spotted kissing in L.A. and went out to dinner together. Courtesy of Juliana Nalu/Instagram
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