Last night, Kanye West held a listening party in Wyoming for his newest album ye for friends he invited and selected members of the media. Today the album has been released to the public.
Album Cover
Kim Kardashian West, his wife tweeted the album cover for ye is a photograph taken by Kanye himself when they were on their way to the party. He used his iPhone which can seem laugh out loud hilarious. Though it shows how personal and simple this album is for Kanye. He took the picture himself.
Kanye shot the album cover on his iPhone on the way to the album listening party ??❤️????
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) June 1, 2018
The album cover is the Wyoming landscape, featuring the sky, mountains and forest underneath. On the cover, there are also two statements: “I hate being Bi-Polar; it’s awesome.” This relates to Kanye’s own personal mental health issues and his relationship with his condition.
Also, notice that these statements are not asking for pity. They can imply that Kanye has found acceptance and love for his condition and how it shapes who he is. These statements can also seem sarcastic. Once you listen to the album, you’ll decide for yourself which implication is more sensible to you.
Album Title
The album title ye is also pretty simple and personal as well. The title refers to Kanye of course, particularly the last two letters of his name. It’s also the only Kanye album with only lowercase letters. This may not seem to be a big deal but Kanye could have easily capitalized the y in ye but he didn’t. This says something even if it doesn’t appear that way.
This can imply the “lowerness” or inferiority people may feel within themselves. This “lowerness” relates to the open and personal nature of the album.
This album could have been even more personal if Kanye released the album next Friday which is on his birthday. There is not a clear explanation for why he didn’t. Maybe he just wanted to get this album off his chest before his birthday. One theory could be that Kanye suspects or knows the newest album from Drake, Scorpion will be released on June 8th. Scorpion is planned to be released in June but there is not a clear date for the album yet.
It would have been insane though if these albums came out on the same day and might have meant less opening day streams for each album. This is only speculation though. Though don’t be surprised if Scorpion comes out next week.
Number of Songs
Also, for number of songs, this is Kanye’s smallest album to date. There’s only seven songs and it takes about 23 minutes to listen to the entire album. Kanye’s last album, The Life of Pablo had nearly triple the amount of songs. Though a smaller song count does give the album more replay value. You can listen to the entire album twice in one hour. Less songs also makes the album simpler and easier to understand.
Controversy
Kanye West has been even more controversial than usual lately. He claimed that slavery was a choice for African Americans. Hopefully, this album satisfies his fans and enemies and allow them to enter his head space whether they like what he has to say or not.
