Kanye West, now known as Ye, has once again opened up about his past, but this time with a personal and unsettling revelation.
In a social media post, the 47-year-old rapper introduced a new track titled “Cousins”, inspired by a traumatic experience he claims occurred during his childhood. The song reflects on his relationship with a male cousin, who is currently serving a life sentence in prison.
Ye’s post reads: “This song is called ‘COUSINS’ about my cousin that’s locked in jail for life for killing a pregnant lady a few years after I told him we wouldn’t ‘look at dirty magazines together’ anymore.”
He went on to explain: “Perhaps in my self-centred mess, I felt it was my fault that I showed him those dirty magazines when he was 6 and then we acted out what we saw.
“My dad had ‘Playboy’ magazines, but the magazines I found at the top of my mom’s closet were different. My name is Ye and I sucked my cousins d*** till I was 14. Tweet sent.”
Kanye West révèle dans sa nouvelle chanson « COUSIN » qu’il a fait des fellations à son cousin jusqu’à l’âge de 14 ans. pic.twitter.com/UeyBb2xhFK
— 75 Secondes 🗞️ (@75secondes) April 21, 2025
Although Ye didn’t identify the cousin by name, he and his former wife, Kim Kardashian, have both referred to this relative in past interviews. Speaking to “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in 2018, Ye said, “My cousin is locked up for murder, and I love him. So he did a bad thing, but I still love him.”
Kardashian later spoke about the same cousin during her 2020 docuseries “The Justice Project”, sharing that he was sentenced to a double life term for a murder committed at the age of 17.
During the episode, she noted the emotional weight of the case, speaking with Marc Howard of the Frederick Douglass Project for Justice, and reflecting on how many families quietly carry such burdens.
The song “Cousins” offers further insight into Ye’s inner world, touching on guilt, trauma, and confusion stemming from early exposure to adult material.
The lyrics detail how those experiences blurred lines and influenced behaviour that he now views through a very different lens.
In the accompanying visuals, the mood is raw and unpolished, much like the story being told – grainy home-style footage underscoring the emotional weight of the track.
Experts on childhood development and trauma often warn about the harmful effects of early exposure to pornography and inappropriate material.
When it is coupled with a lack of understanding, supervision, or support, it can lead to unhealthy behaviours and unresolved psychological distress.
Researchers Jochen Peter and Patti Valkenburg, after surveying two decades of studies, concluded that early exposure is linked to more permissive sexual attitudes and entrenched gender-stereotypical beliefs, which in turn can influence everything from body image to interpersonal behaviour.
Timing matters. A master’s thesis from Brigham Young University showed that the younger someone is when first encountering pornography, the more likely they are to suffer poorer mental health, reduced life satisfaction and problematic sexual behaviour later in life.
Without proper guidance or discussion, children can internalise confusing or harmful messages and then replay them in unhealthy ways.
