Last year, Kanye West and his Donda's House charity sought to purchase his childhood home, with the noble intention of turning it into a community center. Unfortunately, the Chicago house is currently abandoned. In fact, A Daily Mail report paints quite a derelict picture, describing the home as "barely inhabitable, surrounded by garbage, old fireworks, and broken glass...it seems as if it has served as a hangout for drug addicts as paraphernalia associated with crack - tin foil and plastic bottles - was found strewn with trash."
Apparently, the house was protected by a clearly ineffective padlock, and smashed glass was allegedly found at the scene. The sorry state is a far cry from Kanye's original intent, leading many to wonder exactly what went wrong. The house was purchased by Rhymefest in November of 2016, where the original mission statement was announced in an optimistic press release on Instagram:
"I'm excited to announce the purchase of Kanye's childhood home as a community Arts incubator. It will be the first of our Nationwide Lite-Houses. A state of the art recording studio, a curriculum space for @dondashouse and southside music museam. We want to show bright spots in communities thatve been divested from, we know more Lights exist here, they just need to be activated. Please click the link in my bio & Donate to DondasHouse, support our efforts to support our youth."
Unfortunately, none of those goals have come to fruition, and Kanye's childhood home currently stands as little more than an abandoned drug den. It's sad, especially considering the fact that Rhymefest and the Donda's House organization have done great work in making a difference in community. Here's hoping that the team can get it together and salvage the place that a young Kanye and his mother once called home.