For almost as long as he’s been in the spotlight, being a fan of Kanye West has been an emotional roller coaster of an enterprise.
Many may point to the intense backlash in the wake of his interruption of Taylor Swift at the 2009 VMAs and the subsequent greatness of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy as a perfect example of this experience. And while the sudden shifts between embarrassment and elation are certainly well-established in this example, they’ve been a part of his fandom ever since 2005’s Late Registration .
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I say all of this to express that by now, it’s difficult for West’s fans to know what to expect from him.
And while his latest announcement may not be the most shocking plot twist in the Kanye West story, it still came out of nowhere.
In recent months, fans have been eagerly awaiting West’s newest release.
As CBS News reported , the album was originally supposed to come out on September 27, but has yet to have a public release beyond some listening parties in Chicago, New York City, and Detroit.
Among those who have heard the album is Andrew Barber, who owns the Chicago-centric music blog Fake Shore Drive.
He also apparently had the opportunity to see the accompanying documentary of the same name, which is expected to be released exclusively in IMAX theaters on October 25.
Barber also said that the album’s final track features a reunited Clipse, which is no small feat.
Given the album’s title and the fact that No Malice left the Virginia-based duo and changed his name from Malice after embracing Christianity, it comes as little surprise that Kanye made this record to explore his own conversion.
As Kim Kardashian West said, “Kanye started this to really heal himself and it was a really personal thing, and it was just friends and family. He has had an amazing evolution of being born again and being saved by Christ.”
Even with this in mind, a statement West made during a surprise appearance at a Chance The Rapper concert in Chicago still floored fans.
As Barber tweeted out, West made it clear that his inspiration for Jesus Is King is one that he intends to pursue “from here on out.”
Apparently, we have heard the last of his entries into the secular music world.
Of course, it remains to be seen whether this is a change that West will commit to.
However, he has already proven with this outing that he can make an album without any curse words and it’s also true that he has put his faith to music before in the 2004 single “Jesus Walks.”
We’ll simply have to wait and see.
h/t: CBS News
