For weeks, rumors had been swirling that American rapper Kanye West would close out 2019 with a new album. And those rumors have finally come true. Jesus Is Born, the Chicago native's second studio album (he released Jesus Is King in October), went on sale yesterday, December 25th, Christmas Day for some, the day of Jesus Christ's birth for others. A minor detail: Kanye West doesn't appear on the album. At least, not his voice.
Visually, Jesus is born continues the electric navy blue aesthetic seen on both the album and the Jesus is King film. However, musically, things have taken a bit of a turn. Hip hop is nowhere to be seen.
This time, Kanye West, the producer, has simply stayed behind the wheel. Jesus Is Born is a pure gospel album (not a trace of rap this time) performed by the well-known Sunday Service group. Well-known thanks to Kanye, the pest.
Since the members of this unusual Sunday Service received Kanye's ideological and publicity backing a year ago , they have become almost as famous as him. And if confirmation were needed, Kanye's second album of 2019 serves it up on a silver platter: Kanye West has decided to dedicate his life to the glorification of Christ.
There's little to say about the album itself. It contains 19 tracks (making it much longer than Jesus Is King) , all of which are pure gospel that, we assume, will meet the expectations of fans of the genre. We'll have to keep waiting for the real meat , which will arrive with Jesus Is King 2. The existence of this sequel is a given, and the only reason we should feel a glimmer of hope is because of Dr. Dre's involvement in the production. We shall see.
Below you can listen to Jesus is born in its entirety for free on Spotify:
Kanye West and his stranger 2019
From Kanye West we learned a long time ago that anything could be expected. We learned that a decade ago when the rapper dared to cut off Taylor Swift to vindicate Beyoncé during her 2009 VMAs acceptance speech.
We learned it every time we saw him furious/friendly/furious with the paparazzi that he himself attracts by publicizing his private life with Kim Kardashian on social media.
We learned this a few years ago when, during breaks between songs at his concerts, Kanye West started talking, and talking, and talking. Something he still does: Kanye West's concerts are rallies.
We learned that Kanye West is an unpredictable being when he announced his future candidacy for the presidency of the United States or when he fell out with Jay Z. Therefore, when he presented two operas this year, we could only react in one way: «Aha» .
This 2019 that is about to end has been nothing more than a continuation of the parade of inexplicable Kanye moments.
Even with the sequel to Jesus is King on the horizon, everything suggests that Kanye West's musical side is exhausted. The sneaker designer is focused on something else. Kanye is turning his new recording projects into the ultimate postmodern vehicle, using them to promote his image , not his music.
Therefore, we will continue to be attentive to any announcement from Kanye. For the fanfare Not because of his music.
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