Kanye West is not the richest Black person in America, Forbes disputes reports

Bloomberg reported Wednesday that Kanye West is now worth nearly $7 billion, making him the richest Black person in America. It said Kanye’s sneaker brand Yeezy, as well as Yeezy Gap, have a combined value of as much as $4.7 billion and an additional $1.7 billion in assets.

Bloomberg's report cited a UBS document on Kanye's businesses. The bank made several assumptions based on projected future earnings, particularly for Yeezy Gap, which is yet to launch.

But Forbes said the reports were based on the “magical thinking around sales that don’t yet exist”.

Forbes estimates he’s worth less than a third of that, or $1.8 billion and that is a big jump from last May when Forbes first pegged his net worth to be $1.3 billion, but nowhere near as much as the purported $6.6 billion.

An analysis released by Forbes right after the publication of Kanye West’s new estimated worth said it disputes the reports and “in actuality, it’s nothing personal”.

It mentioned Vista Equity’s Robert F. Smith as the current richest Black person in the U.S., worth an estimated $6 billion, while Aliko Dangote of Nigeria, worth $11.8 billion, is the richest Black person in the world.

Kanye West hasn’t spoken since Forbes’ dispute.