Mason Pazhwak ‘23
Events Editor
“Donda..Donda..Donda…. Donda, Donda, Donda, Donda…..” The Donda Chant was a very appropriate introduction to Kanye West’s (Ye’s) tenth studio album, Donda, forecasting several of the record’s strengths and weaknesses. On the strong end, the Donda Chant and the songs that follow reaffirm Ye’s place as an artist with creative ability when it comes to his sonic choices. Hurricane comes to mind, with its rich sounds and abrupt shifts in tone, from The Weeknd’s reflective resonance to Lil Baby and Ye’s more classic verses. This is not to say that every song, or the album, was as strong as some of his previous works, but there was plenty that was interesting. There was also Ye’s ability as a producer to bring many other artists into a room together, and it was often some of his features that shined as opposed to himself.[1] Moon comes to mind, where Ye plays a small role, in a song that is a pleasure to listen to, with performances by Kid Cudi and Don Toliver.
This brings us to the album’s many weaknesses, which are, unfortunately, greater than its strengths. Using his deceased mother’s name on repeat to kick off the enterprise foreshadowed that the album would be thematically complex and perhaps involve some deep reflection on his mother and motherhood. However, the album fails to do this meaningfully, and instead is mainly dominated by overused themes that are self-aggrandizing to Ye himself. Indeed, the album constantly invokes faith and religious imagery when it does not at all feel like the artist practices what he preaches, though he may certainly think he does. Instead, it appears that many choices are designed to grab the listener’s attention with something that appears meaningful, only to have that pseudo-meaningful moment fall apart under deeper scrutiny. This, perhaps, keeps with Ye’s personality, and I could cite many parts of the album where there is nothing new under the sun. Finally, just as the name “Donda” is repeated perhaps a few too many times in the Donda Chant, so too does the album have a few too many songs, undercutting itself by its sheer length which includes a lot that feels unnecessary and, quite frankly, messy.
Dana Lake
Production Editor
I consider myself a Kanye fan, even after these last few tumultuous years. Kanye is one of few artists who I can put his whole discography on shuffle and continue to find new favorites or underappreciated verses. There are some albums that I had to listen to a few times before they grew on me,[2] but I always came around eventually. That is to say, I’m willing to put in the work. Music can be a two-way street, and sometimes the listener has to be an active participant.
I put in the work for Donda, and I still don’t really like it. Kanye has claimed his label Universal Music Group released the album without his permission[3] (after three listening parties allowed hundreds of fans and critics to listen to it), and I believe him. The album suffers from both too many songs and songs that are far too long.[4] Kanye’s real skill is his ability to edit, so the unfinished and hastily assembled feel of Donda is almost jarring. His big themes of being Black in America, the price of fame, and his complicated relationship with his faith and family are present here but without adding anything new or innovative.
You might wonder why he made this album at all, until you remember the music isn’t for us in any way that really matters. Kanye has the drive to create and share that talented people do (or maybe that’s where the talent comes from in the first place) but the substance of his work has always been deeply personal and self-motivated. The substance here, of course, is his reckoning with himself and God over his mother’s death in 2007. Dr. Donda West died from complications related to cosmetic surgeries made possible due to Kanye’s musical success—success he only achieved after ignoring her advice not to drop out of school. To say he has some unresolved issues relating to the whole awful ordeal is an understatement. While I wish there could have been some tracks similar to “Hey Mama,” a beautiful song dedicated to her on Late Registration that he wrote and performed while she was still alive, maybe that just isn’t possible for him anymore.
Holding massive listening parties in the middle of a pandemic and collaborating with known abusers (including, bafflingly, Chris Brown, though his verse was dropped from the final release) would be irresponsible no matter the outcome, but to go through all that for such a weak final product[5] is extra disappointing. Though he might not take advice from people less successful from him,[6] let’s hope someone intervenes before the next release.
---
mwp8kk@virginia.edu
dl9uh@virginia.edu
[1] I should note that several of the feature choices appear quite ill-conceived based on their behavior as people, and this point could easily be spun as a negative depending on the people focused on.
[2] See The College Dropout; See also Jesus is King
[3] https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-58383576
[4] As a choice sample pointed out in Kids See Ghosts: “I mean, you only want two and a half minutes.”
[5] “Come to Life” is a gem and worth listening to.
[6] See “No Mistakes” from 2018’s Ye