KANYE TO FULFILL MOM'S LAST WISH BY MARRYING HIS FIANCEE, ALEXIS IN A WINTER WEDDING BY THE END OF 2007.

Kanye West is planning to fulfill his mother's last wish, and marry his fiancee Alexis Phifer by the end of the year (07). The rapper has decided not to stall his marriage plans in the wake of his mother Donda's tragic death last month because he knew she wanted him to settle down. However, before his mother's untimely death, the rapper told GQ magazine, "I'm just going to go and get married -- I'm not going to make a big deal out of it. It's not to prove anything to anyone -- it's for me, for stability in my life, and I'm so happy that I found someone that I really love, that challenges me, that keeps my life interesting, that's just as crazy as I am."

According to a press release: Kanye will celebrate the New Year (2008) as a married man, if his fiancée Alexis Phifer has her way. The blushing bride-to-be accepted West's romantic marriage proposal during an Italian vacation last year (06) - and she admits the couple is planning a winter wedding. Asked when she'll become Mrs. West, Phifer gushes, "Before the year is up."

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A friend of the family tells the National Enquirer, "His mother's sudden death brought into focus just how short life really is. Kanye doesn't want to wait any longer to make Alexis his wife. He believes that this is what his mom would want him to do. Kanye knew how much his mother loved Alexis and how she was looking forward to seeing them married."

Before her death, Donda went public with her feelings for her daughter-in-law-to-be, calling Phifer "a very outstanding young woman," adding, "I can't think of one negative thing I would say about her - even in private." West's mother died earlier this month (Nov07) after undergoing a tummy tuck and breast reduction in Los Angeles.