Kim Kardashian is facing a difficult parenting dilemma as her eldest daughter, North West, approaches her teenage years with a level of fame most adults would struggle to manage.
Now, one month from turning 13 on June 15, North is no longer only the child of two famous parents. She has become a public figure in her own right, with music, fashion, business filings, and a massive TikTok audience.
Highlights
- North West is approaching her 13th birthday with music releases, trademark filings, a major TikTok audience, merchandise, and reported industry backing.
- Kim Kardashian has admitted she is conflicted about managing North’s career and wants her work opportunities balanced with normal childhood experiences.
- Critics have questioned whether North is being exposed to fame too early, warning that it could affect her later in life.
Kim has taken the brunt of the criticism, with many labeling her a “bad mom” for allowing her daughter to build a public-facing career before even becoming a teenager. An insider, on the other hand, believes she had little choice on the matter.
“Kim would actually prefer it if her kids weren’t so in the spotlight, but she knows that isn’t realistic,” the insider said. “That’s why she’s preparing them all to be self-sufficient financially and exploit their nepo baby status.”
As North West’s career moves forward, Kim Kardashian is once again at the center of public debate
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According to the insider, Kim sees North’s fame as inevitable. The question, then, is not whether her daughter will become a public figure, but who will benefit from that notoriety.
She was first introduced to the world almost 13 years ago through a close-up photo as a two-month-old baby dressed in white, her hands clutching a matching blanket.
By the time she was still a toddler, North had already been part of a world few children ever enter: a lunch date with Anna Wintour, front-row seats at New York Fashion Week, a Vogue spread, a modeling appearance in CR Fashion Book, and her television debut on Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
Image credits: kimandnorth/TikTok
By age four, she had become a cover star. By six, she had shown off her vocals at her father’s Paris Fashion Week show. By ten, she had performed on stage in The Lion King.
Her current life is even more active. North has reportedly been pulled out of her private school and moved to home tutoring, giving her more room to explore fashion and music.
She shares a TikTok account with Kardashian that has amassed 21 million followers, and she has also been tied to multiple trademark filings.
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In January, Kardashian submitted a federal trademark application under KimYe’s Kid Inc. for North’s emerging brand, NOR11. The name combines the first three letters of North’s name with the age she was when she began developing the concept.
The filing covers bags, clothing, footwear, jewelry, and cosmetics.
“Kim knows North is going to be a star, so the trademarks are practical,” the insider said. “It’s her way of beating anyone hoping to cash in on her fame by trademarking her name to the chase.”
Kim has found herself in the role of “momager” the same nickname once used for Kris Jenner
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Kardashian has already admitted that managing North’s growing career has put her in a role she did not expect to take on this early.
The 45-year-old shares four children with Kanye: North, Saint, Chicago, and Psalm. But North’s early public ambitions have made Kardashian her de facto “momager,” a word long associated with her own mother, Kris Jenner.
Kardashian has said she monitors North’s livestreams closely, either standing nearby herself or having a trusted person present when she cannot be there.
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“She’s not doing anything without me being right there the whole time,” Kardashian said last year on The Kardashians.
On another episode of the Hulu show, she admitted she was struggling with how quickly North’s career interests had grown.
“Me having to be her momager right now is crazy,” Kardashian said. “It’s just, it was not on my list. It was not on my Bingo card for this year. And I’m not ready…”
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Kardashian said the issue was not simply whether North could work, but whether her work could be balanced with ordinary childhood experiences.
“I’m really conflicted on my daughter’s career,” she said. “I just really want to make sure that everything’s really well balanced. All of the work experiences are balanced out with just enough fun life experiences. I just want balance.”
That question has become harder as North’s projects have grown beyond social media.
North’s debut six-track EP reportedly came with an advance “well over seven figures”
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She recently released her debut six-track EP, N0rth4evr, on which she raps about the downsides of being a famous child. According to the insider, the advance was “well over seven figures” and is reportedly being held in a trust she can access in adulthood.
North also launched a N0rth4evr online shop, selling arm warmers for $25, T-shirts for $56, and long-sleeve tops for $85. Accessories, including pens and studded bracelets, range from $16 to $30.
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The EP arrived days after she debuted her single, Piercing on My Hand, alongside Kanye in Mexico City. The father-daughter pair also performed Kanye’s 2014 song Only One, which was written as a dedication to North, along with Talking and Bomb.
North has also collaborated with several other artists, with credits spanning production work and guest appearances.
FKA Twigs has referred to North as a friend. Chance the Rapper, meanwhile, praised her work at The Gordon Parks Foundation Gala on May 19.
“She’s an incredibly talented artist,” he said. “Everything I’ve heard from her is amazing… very vibrant and well put together. She’s an inventor.”
Despite the noise, North’s career is steadily moving forward, helped by influential industry figures
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The praise has come alongside a harsher public response.
North’s attitude has made her a frequent subject of online debate. She has shouted at paparazzi, once described herself as “the best ever,” and has embraced a bold visual identity that includes long blue hair, finger piercings, fake facial tattoos, colored contacts, and teeth grills.
North’s public image has increasingly divided online observers. Some users have expressed concern that she is being exposed to fame too early, while others have criticized her behavior and styling choices more harshly.
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A separate line of criticism has focused on nepotism, with commenters arguing that her music and fashion ventures are being pushed into public view largely because of her parents’ fame, money, and industry access.
“I won’t be a bit surprised when we find out later that she gets herself into a world of trouble because she was given so much so soon,” a viewer wrote.
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North is said to be working with Gamma, the music and media company founded by former Apple executive Larry Jackson. Jackson is described as a trusted family friend and recently took on the difficult task of signing Kanye after years of public controversy to release his new album, Bully.
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“North is currently working with Larry, who has been behind the careers of Fantasia, Leona Lewis and signed Lana Del Rey,” the insider said. “The label is also home to fellow nepo babies Willow and Jaden Smith.”
"The acorn doesn't fall far from the tree," a reader wrote
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