North West’s Rap Alter-Ego Northie Is Kanye West’s Protégé

Updated March 4, 2020: The internet is buzzing after North's riveting performance at Fashion Week, but not everyone is excited about the prospect of Ye's daughter taking her rightful crown as music royalty — especially since many believe that she's riding off of the success of another young artist.

ZaZa, the 4-year-old known for her bubbly personality and fun lyrics, penned the 2019 song "What I Do?" during a trip to the studio. The simple but powerful instrumental was the same backing track that North performed with onstage just days ago.

ZaZa's parents peeped the similarity, speaking up about North's performance on social media. "We take PRIDE in creativity, and believe whether a child’s involved or an adult... creativity deserves RESPECT/homage," a statement on ZaZa's Instagram page read.

"PLS SHOW LOVE AND SUPPORT TO THE ORIGINAL FIRST!!!" the caption continued. "We admire Kanye west, and adore his journey. However, we don’t wanna feel like our daughter’s journey in the world of entertainment is being STIFLED ."

Kim Kardashian-West quickly caught on to the situation, sharing a clarifying statement of her own in the comments. "We love you, North is a huge fan and records in the studio all the time with her dad and is inspired by ZaZa and loves Lay Lay too!” she wrote, referencing another young rap star. “I didn’t mean to not give credit where credit was due. Would love for the girls to meet soon."

Kanye West is widely considered one of the most influential artists in the hip hop game, churning out some of the genre’s most important projects over the course of his career. His knack for creating an immersive musical experience has been passed down to his oldest child, North, and she’s already hit the studio to release brand new original music.

North, who also goes by “Northie,” showed off some of her natural talent during Paris Fashion Week. As her father debuted season 8 of his Yeezy fashion line, his daughter took to the stage to perform an original track to the pleasure of the audience. Standing on a very minimalist stage — true to her dad’s “less is more” aesthetic — North confidently shared her gifts with the world.

“Yeah, you know my name,” the six-year-old rapped over the beat, eliciting cheers from the crowd. “It’s Northie.”

“I will never do bad things,” North continued with laser focus. “This is new. Look at my shoes — they’re cute! And cool!”

At some point in her performance, Kanye took the stage to interrupt North’s flow politely, but the tiny diva could not be bothered. She carried on with her song, taking a moment to shout out her best friend and cousin Penelope Disick in the audience before launching into the track’s spirited chorus: "Yeah, yeah, yeah! Cool! Cute! Cool — yeah!”

North has been exhibiting a talent for performance for quite some time now. In February, she thrilled her classmates and parents alike with a special performance of another original production, in which she dropped a casual flex about being friends with YouTube star Jojo Siwa. No biggie.

North has taken center stage at many of her father's Sunday Service performances and was rumored to perform with him during his hotly anticipated Coachella performance. Sadly, her takeover might happen, as it does for today's youths, by way of TikTok. Kim Kardashian-West revealed that North loves the video app and wants to keep making videos for her fans, even though there are no plans to hit the live button on her account anytime soon.

While she may have some years to go before fully reaching her potential as music's next big thing, North's future is bright. Combined with her natural confidence (a direct result of being Kanye's daughter), the baby is going places.