Kanye West

Kanye West

Kanye West is anything but a wallflower: he's spoken out against homophobia and materialism, and famously slammed White House inaction after Hurricane Katrina, saying, "George Bush doesn't care about black people."

But at the end of the day, West's music speaks for itself. After bringing a soulful, distinctive sound to artists like Jay-Z and Alicia Keys, West won multiple Grammys for his rap debut, The College Dropout, and his follow-up, Late Registration.

In November 2007, tragedy struck when West's mother, Donda, passed away after undergoing a cosmetic procedure. He delivered an emotional tribute to her at the 2008 Grammy Awards, where he won his third Best Rap Album Grammy for Graduation. Following romances with Alexis Phifer and Amber Rose, West settled down in 2012 with Kim Kardashian, who gave birth to their first child, daughter North, in June 2013. Less than a year later, the pair wed in a lavish ceremony at the Forte di Belvedere in Florence on May 24, 2014.