Did Kanye West live in China? Connection explored as rapper shares childhood Instagram post ahead of Haikou concert

Kanye West has been making headlines recently after announcing that he would perform in China on September 15, 2024. Notably, the rapper lived in China during his childhood when he went to Nanjing at the age of 10, where his mother, Donda, was a Fulbright Scholar at Nanjing University.

West's recent Instagram post has also garnered significant attention, featuring a photo clicked at the time when he was a resident of Nanjing. The caption simply stated:

"Back."

This is not the first time that Kanye West has performed in China. He had previously organized a show at the place around 16 years ago. His upcoming event will be held on an island called Hainan, located at Haiko. The decision to choose Hainan raised a lot of questions among the public, and consultancy Jinghian's founder Michael Zhour told CNBC:

"This is Hainan trying hard to forge its branding as an international destination."

Hainan has been a popular tourist attraction site, generating profits of 181 billion yuan. Although a majority of the island's revenue comes from hotel stays and duty-free shopping, the number of shoppers was reduced by 11% last year.

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Kanye West had spoken up about the time he spent in China on different occasions

The State Property 2 star performed in China at the Shanghai Grand Stage in 2008. Although ticket sales for the show were not up to the mark, West still went on stage. In a conversation with Radii that same year, Ye recalled the time he spent with his mother in China, saying that Donda was strict towards her. He said:

"I was in school and I wasn't doing so good, but it was actually because I was bored and after she homeschooled me I did so good on the tests they put me two grades above in a lot of different courses."

Kanye West said that considering his connection to the place, he felt emotional as he returned to China. He added that this is because he could relive the memories. In another interview with Sabotage Times, Ye revealed that he was prepared to become a celebrity only because he went to China.

West stated that whenever he visited China, people stared at him since they never saw a black person. He added:

"I used to say something in Chinese that I just knew by instinct meant 'get away!'. They'd rub your skin. They'd ask you how old your mother is. I went to school there but it was hard because I didn't speak Chinese that well."

On another occasion, Kanye West shared a post on X where he included a photo featuring him with his father. The picture was captured in China, and it had two more people, all of them having a meal on the table. The post captioned:

"When me and my mom lived in China for a year. She had the fresh jacket with the braids."

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Kanye West spotted in China with Bianca Censori

While his upcoming performance in China has made his fans excited, West was recently spotted with Bianca Censori walking around the Huacai Intercontinental Hotel. They were accompanied by two more people.

Kanye West wore a white outfit with pants and shoes, and Bianca Censori was seen in a beige bandeau top alongside capri pants and heels.

As mentioned, he is scheduled to perform in China on Sunday, and although detailed information on the event remains unknown, it is reportedly supposed to be a listening party for the upcoming project Vultures 2, which is a collaboration of Ye with Ty Dolla $ign.