Is Kanye West Trying to Rename a New York Town?

Here's what people are asking on Twitter: Is Kanye West trying to rename a New York Town?

The rumor has been making its rounds on Social Media, and it's easy to see why: Social Media is a hotbed for disinformation. Give someone with a keyboard a slightly plausible idea and it will spread like "the election was stolen" rumors.

The rumor involves the town of Rye, New York, and that Kanye West was willing to give them $100 million to drop the "R" from its name, and just go by the name of "Ye". Yes, Kanye's nickname (one of the nice nicknames, anyway). (Wikipedia lists both a Rye, New York, and the Town of Rye, New York. We're not certain which is the target of this rumor.)

Insider is reporting that the Rye Record, the local paper, printed some of the rumors, citing an anonymous source. The rumors included that West was spending time in Rye, that he was really a sensitive guy, and that he wanted to build a music studio and a new church. The rumor also said that the $100 million would "erase both the city and school bond debt in full" and that Kanye's people had already filed paperwork to get the name changed.

When Insider spoke with businesses and officials in Rye, they found little to no evidence of any of the story being true. The courthouse, as Insider found out, has not received any paperwork dealing with a name change. The manager of one of the properties West was said to have looked at said that there has been no contact from his camp.

With all of that being said, we still don't know for certain that Kanye West isn't eyeing the town of Rye, New York. Locals said that some famous people have rented properties in the area, so the idea that another celebrity coming to town isn't all that far-fetched.

So is Kanye West trying to change the name of Rye, New York to Ye, New York? We don't know for certain, but my Magic 8 Ball is saying "Don't count on it."