Kanye West's Watch Collection - Ye’s Rolexes, Patek Philippe’s and More
While his career may have begun in music, Kanye West’ has grown to become something of a fashion icon as well. Because of this, Kanye’s net worth has ballooned to an estimated $1.8 billion USD in 2022. And although Kanye’s fashion empire may not extend to watches, he has shown that he appreciates fine wristwear. Indeed, Kanye referenced his love for watches in the his 2004 hit “All Falls Down”. In the song he raps “that's why you always see me with at least one of my watches / Rollies and Pashas done drove me crazy”. He also references Jacob Arabo of Jacob & Co. fame later in the song stating “I went to Jacob with twenty-five thou before I had a house and I'd do it again”.
Clearly Kanye has had an affinity for watches for a long time and his collection does not disappoint. While a large portion of his collection is made up of Rolexes (whose isn’t?), he has a bunch of other high-end brands including Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin and Richard Mille.
Kanye West’s Rolex Watches
Ye’s been rapping about Rolex from the early days, so it makes sense that he has a fairly robust Rolex collection. Kanye clearly has a thing for gold watches, and gold Rolexes in particular. Almost all of the watches I have spotted him in are gold. One such piece Kanye has been seen wearing is a gold Rolex Submariner with blue dial. Kanye appears to be wearing the older variation, the Ref. 116618, as opposed to the newer Ref. 126618. You can pick up this gold Submariner on the secondary market for around $48,000 USD.
In addition to the the gold Submariner, Kanye West also owns one of the more, shall I say obscure, Rolexes. The Rolex Yacht-Master II is atypical for a Rolex, mostly because it comes in at a fairly large 44mm. The Yacht-Master II runs on a Rolex Calibre 4161 movement which allows the wearer to use the “chronograph” to countdown laps in 10 minute increments (hey, it may come in handy at that next regatta you plan on racing in…). You can read more about how the watch functions in our review. While I doubt Ye is using the complications, and I probably wouldn’t either, the Yacht-Master II is a lot of watch for someone that wants a Rolex with real presence on the wrist. The gold Rolex Yacht-Master II Ref. 116688 currently retails for $43,550 USD but sells on the secondary market for around $50,000 USD.
West also has been spotted wearing a couple variations of the iconic Rolex Daytona, obviously in gold. He was spotted with his ex, Kim Kardashian, wearing a everose (rose gold) Rolex Daytona Ref. 116515. While the watch pictured is on a rubber strap, Kanye appears to have his on a gator strap. Kanye’s Daytona Ref. 116515 currently is for sale on the grey market for around $67,000 USD.
Kanye’s other Daytona is a little a more unique. West’s Daytona Ref. 116518-0073 has a yellow gold case with Tahitian Mother of Pearl dial. This Daytona is discontinued but available on the secondary market for $43,000 USD.
The final Rolex I am featuring in Ye’s collection is a rose gold Rolex Day-Date. Kanye’s Day-Date is of the discontinued 41mm variety (Ref. 218235). It has a pink gold dial and roman numeral indices. The current Day-Dates offered by Rolex are 40mm so this one has a bit more heft to it. You can pick up this Rolex Day-Date Ref. 218235 on the secondary market for around $70,000 USD.
Kanye West’s Patek Philippe Nautilus Watch
Kanye has also been spotted wearing at least one Patek Philippe over the years, and an older one at that. West was spotted wearing the stunning Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 3800/1J in yellow gold with gold dial. You can pick one of these pieces up on the secondary market for around $110,000 USD.
Kanye West’s Vacheron Constantin Overseas Watch
One of my favorite pieces from Kanye’s collection isn’t a Patek Philippe or Rolex, or even an Audemars Piguet. Kanye has a gold Vacheron Constantin Chronograph that he was spotted wearing to the Grammy Awards. Considered among the “Holy Trinity of Swiss watchmakers” (along with Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet), Vacheron Constantin watches, and especially the Overseas, has been growing in popularity and value recently. Because of the increased demand, the gold Vacheron Constantin Overseas chronograph Ref. 49150 will cost you $135,000 USD on the secondary market.
Kanye West’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Openworked Watch
In addition to his Nautilus, Kanye also has another iconic Genta-designed piece in his collection. West has been spotted wearing the 39mm Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Openworked Perpetual Calendar in pink gold. (Ref. 25829OR.OO.0944OR.01) The skeleton sapphire dial has indications for the day, date, moon phase, month and even keeps track of the date during leap years. The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Openworked Perpetual Calendar will set you back around $250,000 USD on the secondary market.
Kanye West’s Cartier Crash Watch
One of the more unique pieces that West has been seen wearing is the Cartier Crash. The Crash is unique due to it’s asymmetric, distorted case and dial. The Crash was first introduced by Cartier in 1967 and it has since been rereleased multiple times. The Crash is not an inexpensive piece either on the secondary market. A piece from 1970 sold at auction for around $800,000 USD while a more modern version from 2003 sold at auction last year for $137,500 USD.
Kanye West’s Richard Mille RM010 Watch
We have already seen Ye wearing timepieces from some of the most iconic Swiss watch brands. Well, what celebrity watch collection would be complete with a Richard Mille? West was spotted wearing a Richard Mille RM010. The RM010 is one Richard Mille’s older models and the prices can very fairly widely on the secondary market. You can pick one up for between $160,000 USD and $250,000 USD on the grey market.
Kanye West’s Casio G-Shock
Who said Kanye’s collection was all expensive watches? West has been spotted wearing at least a couple different G-Shocks over the years. If you want to mimic Kanye’s style but don’t want to lay down tens of thousands of dollars to pick up an expensive watch, you can find a similar Casio G-Shock for under $100 USD.