In Whose Name? is a 2025 American documentary film directed by Nico Ballesteros about the life of the American rapper Ye. It was released on September 19, 2025, through AMS Entertainment.[3][4][5]
Synopsis[]
In Whose Name? explores six years in the life of American rapper Kanye West, diving into his struggles with bipolar disorder, powerful performances alongside the Sunday Service Choir, the failed 2020 presidential campaign, the breakdown of his marriage to Kim Kardashian, and his widely condemned hateful and antisemitic public statements. The documentary features appearances from Amber Rose, Anna Wintour, Candace Owens, Charlie Kirk, Chris Rock, Consequence, David Letterman, DMX, Donald Trump, Drake, Elon Musk, James Turrell, Joel Osteen, Kenny G, Kris Jenner, Lady Gaga, LeBron James, Lil Dicky, Marilyn Manson, Michael Che, Pharrell Williams, Playboi Carti, Rihanna, Sean Combs, Steve Higgins, and Swizz Beatz.
Background[]
In an interview with Associated Press, Nico stated that he was fascinated with West after one of his friends had a pair of Yeezys. He also mentioned how he skipped school one day to go to an AMC-presented live stream of a The Life Of Pablo (2016) listening party/YZY SZN 3 event. This is where Nico found out about more of the music, artistry, and cultural meaning of Kanye.[6]
Nico revealed that West's team invited him to record as Kanye was doing many events.[6] He began recording West in 2019, roughly around the same time as West's album JESUS IS KING. At the time, Nico was just eighteen years old, doing 15-hour shoot days.[7] Ballestros reportedly recorded over 3000 hours of footage.[8] It was also stated that Nico rarely stopped recording, sometimes slept while shooting, and filmed 18 hours on certain days.[6]
After shooting all the footage and editing for a year and a half, Ye came to visit Ballestros to watch the film. Ye stated it was "deep" and felt like he was looking back at his life as if he had passed.[6]
After the film's release, Ye's ex-manager, YesJulz, in tribute to the documentary's release, posted various pictures of fond memories she had working with Ye onto Snapchat.[9] As well, on September 23, 2025, Ye was seen watching the film with the director Nico Ballesteros, and producers Shy Ranje and Jack M. Russell.[10] On December 13, the film became available to rent on Fandango.
References[]
- ↑ https://www.marcustheatres.com/movies/in-whose-name#:~:text=Rating%3A%20R%2C%20for%20language%20throughout,and%20brief%20sexual%20material%2Fnudity.
- ↑ https://www.filmratings.com/Search?filmTitle=in+whose+name%3F&x=0&y=0
- ↑ https://www.inwhosenamemovie.com/
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Whose_Name%3F
- ↑ https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/in_whose_name
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTy7VxHq8cg
- ↑ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kanye-west-documentary-in-whose-name-trailer-1235407197/
- ↑ https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/937343-kanye-wests-trailer-new-documentary-in-whose-name-hip-hop-news#:~:text=Ballesteros%20narrowed%20down%20over%203000%20hours%20of%20footage%20to%20create%20the%20film%2C%20which%20hits%20theaters%20on%20September%2019th
- ↑ https://x.com/YesJulz/status/1969044231990964493
- ↑ https://www.instagram.com/nico.ballesteros/p/DO7q6eejpVp/