Not too long ago, Kanye West wouldn’t be caught dead smiling. It got so bad that “Resting Kanye Face” / “Sad Kanye” became a thing. Those days are clearly over because Ye, 44, had an ear-to-ear grin during a visit to Soho’s Little Beach House Malibu on Sunday (Jan. 30). Amid Ye’s ongoing romance with Julia Fox, the “Off The Grid” rapper and a few of his friends hit up the locale for the golden hour. As the sun set over Malibu, Ye and his entourage hung out with a few women. In the photos seen here, Ye was all smiles, laughing with a friend and one woman in white.
Of course, it’s not like Kanye is completely sunsets and smiles. When Ye and his crew walked into Soho house, the rapper donned one of his now-trademark face masks. The black, featureless mask covered up everything but his eyes. He also opted for an oversized leather jacket, a pair of faded black jeans, and some slides. Ye is still Ye, it appears.
If there is something – or someone – which can be credited with putting that smile on Ye’s face, it’s Julia. The 31-year-old model and Kanye struck up a romance at the start of 2022, and things have been intense over the past few weeks. The couple has taken their love worldwide, recently appearing in Paris for Men’s Fashion Week. While attending a high-fashion party full of similarly minded creatives, Ye and Julia engaged in a moment of unbridled passion, locking lips – and tongues – in a steamy kiss.
For those who were curious as to why Kanye used to never smile – or why he probably wears these masks in public – he gave an explanation to High Snobiety in 2015 (h/t The Guardian). “Back when I was working on Yeezus, I saw this book from the 1800s, and it was velvet-covered with brass and everything. I looked at all these people’s photos, and they look so real, and their outfits were incredible, and they weren’t smiling. People, you know, the paparazzi, always come up to me: ‘Why you not smiling?’ And I think, not smiling makes me smile. When you see paintings in an old castle, people are not smiling because it just wouldn’t look as cool.”