Maps of Music

Jesus Is King (2019)

Where the lyrics of Jesus Is King take you, and where it was really made.

The album was first announced as Yandhi, missed several release dates under that title, and came out in October 2019 as Jesus Is King.

Key places

Chicago sessions with Ant Clemons (2019)

Recording site Chicago Recording Company — Ant Clemons recorded his vocals for Everything We Need and an earlier version of Selah during the Chicago sessions with West and Chance the Rapper. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Miami studio session with Timbaland (2019)

Recording site The Hit Factory Criteria — In December 2018, West joined a Miami studio session of Timbaland and Federico Vindver to make more healing music for Yandhi, the album's earlier title. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Finishing work at the Cody ranch (2019)

Recording site Cody, Wyoming — In early September 2019, West was reportedly finishing the album with Pusha T at his newly bought ranch in Cody, Wyoming. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Summer sessions in Calabasas (2019)

Recording site Calabasas home studios — In the summer of 2019, Vindver and Lopez were invited to Calabasas, California, to work on the project again, with sessions described as lasting many hours. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Pi'erre Bourne's work in Japan (2019)

Recording site Japan — In July 2019, producer Pi'erre Bourne worked on the album with West in Japan, a location given only at country level in the source. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Ninth studio album by the American rapper Kanye West
• Released 25 October 2019 by GOOD Music, distributed by Def Jam Recordings
• Follows a Christian theme, in sharp contrast to West's earlier work
• West described the album as an expression of the gospel
• Guests include Clipse, Ty Dolla Sign, Kenny G, Fred Hammond, Ant Clemons and the Sunday Service Choir
• Production by West, Federico Vindver, Ronny J, Pi'erre Bourne, Labrinth and Timbaland, among others
• Released together with a concert film of the same name
• Companion album Jesus Is Born by the Sunday Service Choir came out in December 2019

Background

• West began recording in August 2018, first announcing the album as Yandhi
• Yandhi missed its release dates in September and November 2018
• Delayed indefinitely after leaks in 2018
• West formed the Sunday Service Choir in January 2019
• Title changed to Jesus Is King in August 2019 and missed two more planned dates in September 2019
• Water was performed live by the group before release

Recording

• Chicago sessions with Ant Clemons, who recorded vocals for Everything We Need and an early version of Selah
• Miami sessions with Timbaland and Federico Vindver in December 2018
• Kenny G recorded his saxophone part in the studio after West previewed songs to him in February 2019
• Finishing work at a newly bought ranch in Cody, Wyoming, in September 2019
• Sessions in Calabasas, California, in the summer of 2019
• Pi'erre Bourne worked on the album with West in Japan in July 2019
• Final mixing overseen by frequent collaborator Consequence
• West later said about 20 percent of the album was recorded on an iPhone

Cover

• Cover art is a blue vinyl record with the title at the top and West's name at the bottom
• The text AR 1331 A is the Archer Records pressing plant code of a 1970 gospel single by Rubye Shelton

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

• Metacritic gave a weighted average of 53 out of 100 from 25 critic scores, which it described as mixed or average reviews
• NME's Jordan Bassett called the album concise by West's standards and wrote that there is density and focus throughout
• The New York Times' Jon Caramanica called it more engaged and vivid than Ye, though nowhere as robust as The Life of Pablo
• Pitchfork's Rawiya Kameir called it markedly more cohesive and enjoyable than expected but criticized its focus on how religion served West himself
• Rolling Stone's Charles Holmes described it as a far more muted, stripped-down affair than most West albums
• Chicago Tribune's Greg Kot called it a pedestrian effort, though he pointed to certain gospel moments as musical sparks
• The Guardian's Dean Van Nguyen called it too slight a record to offer real insights into West's mind
• Consequence's Wren Graves gave the album an F rating
• Robert Christgau found the album grandiose, self-involved and uninspired
• Critics often compared it with Ye, and some praised its composition while others faulted its lyrics and inconsistent ideas

Reappraisal

• Complex's Eric Skelton said it was not a sonic departure from West's previous work and praised the production while criticizing the songwriting
• Afisha Daily ranked it among the best foreign albums of 2019, at the same position as the Rolling Stone list
• The Mercury News listed it as the 44th best album of the 2010s, with Jim Harrington calling it arguably the boldest, bravest album of the decade
• Consequence later ranked it as the worst Kanye West album

Records

• Debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 264,000 album-equivalent units, 109,000 of them pure album sales
• The first album to top the Billboard 200, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, Top Rap Albums, Top Christian Albums and Top Gospel Albums at the same time
• Number two on the UK Albums Chart and certified silver by the BPI in March 2021
• Number one in Canada, Australia, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, New Zealand and Slovakia
• Certified gold in the United States by the RIAA

Awards

• Won Top Christian Album and Top Gospel Album at the 2020 Billboard Music Awards
• Won Best Contemporary Christian Music Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards
• Nominated for Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year at the 51st GMA Dove Awards

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Originally titled Yandhi, the album was set for release on 29 September 2018, then postponed to 23 November 2018
• West said in a January 2020 interview with GQ that 20 percent of the album was recorded on an iPhone, including Closed on Sunday
• West cut the songs New Body, Up from the Ashes and LA Monster from the album before release
• Jesus Is King missed its midnight premiere, and West explained the delay on Twitter, saying mixes on Everything We Need, Follow God and Water were being fixed
• The album was delivered to streaming services at 4:30 AM on release day
• Jesus Is King was released as a CD in the United States on 27 March 2020

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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