Kanye West has released his new album, Donda, his first full-length since 2019’s Jesus Is King. It came out the weekend after his third listening party, which took place at Chicago’s Soldier Field. The album features guest appearances from Jay-Z, the Weeknd, Jay Electronica, the Lox, Young Thug, Pop Smoke, Pusha T, Travis Scott, Lil Baby, Kid Cudi, Lil Durk, Lil Yachty, Baby Keem, Playboi Carti, Ty Dolla $ign, Don Toliver, and Fivio Foreign. Lauryn Hill’s “Doo Wop (That Thing)” is sampled on “Believe What I Say.” Donda also contains a sample of the globglogabgalab meme, originally from the animated movie Strawinsky And The Mysterious House.
During his most recent event, West brought out Marilyn Manson and DaBaby. (DaBaby was recently dropped from festivals after making homophobic comments; Manson is being sued for multiple instances of sexual assault.) Manson is credited on the released album on “Jail,” under his real name Brian Warner. DaBaby is supposed to be on a track labeled “Jail Pt. 2” (which appears on select streaming services as unavailable) but West posted photos of a text thread chain that said DaBaby’s manager will not clear the rapper’s verse. Chris Brown also has a writing credit on “New Again.”
Our first exposure to Donda was at a listening party in late July that West held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. No finished album appeared, however, and a couple weeks later a second listening party took place at the same stadium, and West had a new version of the album in tow. But still — no Donda! For each listening party, West made alterations and additions to the album.
While this extended rollout has been going on, West has kept busy by beefing with Drake, going so far as to briefly send out his home address. (Drake’s new album Certified Lover Boy is rumored to come out next week, which might explain why West has finally put out Donda.) He also launched a $200 stem player and filed a petition to legally change his name to Ye. It’s also being reported that West and Kim Kardashian West’s divorce is not finalized and that they’re working on their relationship, which makes sense since the last Donda listening party ended with a fake wedding.
Anyway, here it is: Donda. Stream below.
Donda is out now.