Maps of Music

Bully (2025)

Where the lyrics of Bully take you, and where it was really made.

The first version of the album used AI-generated deepfake vocals for most of West's singing, and he re-recorded the lyrics himself for the final release.

Key places

Tokyo, where Bully was worked on (2025)

Recording site Tokyo — West worked on Bully in Tokyo, and engineer John Scott was brought there to help with the album. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Bully is the twelfth studio album by Kanye West
• Released 28 March 2026 through YZY and Gamma
• Guests include Travis Scott, André Troutman, Nine Vicious, CeeLo Green, and Peso Pluma
• Deluxe edition released 19 June 2026 with Lauryn Hill, Don Toliver, and the Wrldfms Tony Williams
• Production mainly by West, Troutman, the Legendary Traxster, Nkenge 1x, and 88-Keys
• West mostly sings instead of rapping, and the album relies heavily on sampling and interpolations
• Lyrics centered on grief, isolation, ego, detachment, and emotional fatigue

Background

• Work began after the Vultures 1 and Vultures 2 releases in 2024; the album was announced in September 2024
• On 18 March 2025, West surprise released several work-in-progress versions via X, with the Bully V1 short film
• The Bully V1 short film was directed by West and edited by Hype Williams
• After Bully V1, West delayed the album several times and released two extended play previews in June 2025
• In March 2026 the album came out on physical formats, then premiered at a listening party in Inglewood
• The livestream of that listening party was removed from YouTube hours later
• Most of West's vocals on Bully V1 and the physical releases were AI-generated deepfakes
• For the final release, West re-recorded most lyrics with his own vocals

Recording

• Work on the album took place in Tokyo
• Japanese musician Yojiro Noda of Radwimps was invited in October 2024 to add live instrumentation
• Noda and session musicians contributed to tracks including Beauty and the Beast, Bully, Circles, Highs and Lows, and White Lines
• Engineer John Scott, invited to Tokyo by Josh Schuback, contributed additional bass guitar to three tracks
• Irko handled mixing and mastering for the deluxe edition

Cover

• The cover was shot by the Japanese photographer Daidō Moriyama and posted on 23 October 2024
• It is a black-and-white image of Saint wearing titanium grills

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Ye (born Kanye Omari West, June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer.
• Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago; began producing in the mid-1990s for Chicago-area artists.
• Signed to Roc-A-Fella Records as a recording artist after producing for Jay-Z's label.

Members

• Solo artist; formed the Go-Getters group with GLC, Timmy G, and Arrowstar (1999).

Career

• Debut The College Dropout (2004) and Late Registration (2005) earned critical acclaim.
• Released eleven US Billboard 200 number-one albums; five US Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles.
• Known for stylistic shifts from chamber pop to electropop, gospel, and industrial rap.
• Founded GOOD Music label; ventured into fashion with Louis Vuitton, Nike, and Adidas (Yeezy).
• Has 24 Grammy Awards and sold an estimated 160 million records.
• Faced major controversy for antisemitic statements from 2022 and later expressed remorse.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Bully polarized critics, who praised the production but were divided over whether it was a return to form for West or overly imitative of his past work
• Metacritic gave a weighted average of 55 out of 100 from 4 critic scores, meaning mixed or average reviews
• Vice described it as West's most coherent, satisfying project in years
• Rolling Out's Eddy Lamarre gave a highly positive review and called it a reset for West's career
• Esquire's Rudra Mulmule called the album surprisingly restrained in its handling of controversy
• Hot Press's Peter McGoran gave a positive review and called it West's first good album in 10 years
• Rolling Stone's Preezy Brown gave a mixed review, naming six standout songs and calling the album lifeless overall
• Pitchfork's Kieran Press-Reynolds rated it 3.4 out of 10 and criticized the mixing
• Complex's Peter A. Berry called it a spacey cloud of glossy hollowness that imitates older West work
• Financial Times's Ludovic Hunter-Tilney gave a negative review, framed around West's January 2026 public apology

Records

• Debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 for the week of 2 April 2026, behind BTS's Arirang
• Recorded 152,000 album-equivalent units, with 56,000 album sales, West's 14th top-10 record on the chart
• Gamma disputed the figure, claiming 201,000 units in the first full week
• Debuted at number one on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, West's 13th number one there
• 16 of 18 tracks charted on the Billboard Hot 100; Father reached number 21
• UK Albums Chart debut at number three
• Canada debut at number two; Australia debut at number three
• Top five debuts in many countries, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Hungary, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The title Bully refers to Saint, whom West had seen kicking a kid for being weak, according to West.
• Melrose, featuring Playboi Carti and Ty Dolla Sign, was removed from the March 2025 preview tracklist and later turned into a solo song by West.
• James Blake received a production credit for This One Here, which came from the unreleased War collaboration, but asked for the credit to be removed.
• The Bully V1 short film stars Saint West, who fights Japanese wrestlers with a toy mallet while the album plays over the footage.
• Speaking of Bully's cover, grills designer Omar Alvarado described the shoot as a real test of skill and resilience.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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