Music icon Kanye West has filed to legally change his name to his longtime nickname "Ye," US media reported Wednesday, citing documents filed in a Los Angeles court. 

The 44-year-old wants to change his full name - Kanye Omari West - to the two-letter Ye, with no middle or last name, according to NBC News and other US media.

The change was requested for "personal reasons" and must be approved by a judge, NBC said.

West has already been calling himself Ye for some time, tweeting in 2018 that he was "the being formally known as Kanye West. I am Ye."

He also released an album by the same name in 2018. 

The Chicago-raised rapper and record producer has won 21 Grammys. 

He burst onto the rap scene on his production chops before delivering a string of critically acclaimed studio albums, selling more than 20 million copies.

The spotlight recently has shone on West more for his personal life than his art, after his partner of nearly a decade, Kim Kardashian, filed for divorce earlier in 2021.

Before the news broke, their union had been dogged for months by reports of marital difficulties. 

West has battled with mental health issues, and in 2020 launched an improbable and controversial foray into US presidential politics.