He’s kept us waiting for what feels like a lifetime (maybe because he was too busy trying to run for president in 2020, but let’s strike that from the record, shall we?) and now Kanye West is finally ready to unleash some new music on us.
The rapper teased some details about his upcoming record Donda—named for his late mother—during a Beats By Dre commercial featuring U.S. sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson, in which viewers were told to live stream Kanye’s Donda listening event on Apple Music Thursday, July 22.
The listening party happened. The album did not.
Now, it would seem that the eccentric performer is living at the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta while he puts the finishing touches on the album, with a rep from the arena confirming that was, indeed, what was happening.
So, what else do we know about Ye’s long-awaited tenth album? Here’s what we’ve got.
What date will it drop?
Donda will allegedly now be released on August 6, according to West’s reps, but we say allegedly because it was supposed to drop on July 23 and that never happened.
So, while we won’t hold our breath, we will certainly hold hope that this time, the right date is saved.
Which artists will be featured?
West’s collaborator on 2010’s Watch the Throne—Jay Z—appears on the new album on a track called ‘Jail’,
Lil Baby, Playboi Carti, Baby Keem, Don Toliver, Pusha T, Travis Scott, Roddy Ricch and Lil Durk are also rumoured to be featured on the record.
What kind of sound can we expect?
The album is said to maintain the Christian themes and gospel vibes that Ye has become known for but apparently only contains a few elements of religious music such as a church organ and choirs on a couple of songs.
The tone of the record is slower and more thoughtful than we’ve heard from him in a while, which makes sense as it is in honour of his dearly departed Mum.
According to Variety, the new album recalls, at times, his 808s and Heartbreak album — the one he released after his mother’s death.
Does Kim get a mention?
You’ll have to wait for the album to officially drop to find out. West has previously called his now ex-wife Kim Kardashian his “muse”, so it’s hard to imagine that their divorce won’t influence his music in some way.
And then there was the time he, rather unfortunately, called Kris Jenner Kim Jong Un… the man clearly has a lot of feelings.
However, this is Kanye we are talking about so we must learn to anticipate the unpredictable, and expect it months later than we were first told.
Read more stories from The Latch and subscribe to our email newsletter.