DONDA
I'm going to be honest with you all; I was unsure whether or not this day would actually arrive. It has been over 400 days since we were originally supposed to be listening to this album. Three entire stadiums have been sold out for listening parties and mentions of AOTY had been going around for an album yet to be released. Features were added and subtracted from the album left, right and centre, and every listening party showcased the album in a completely different state from the previous iteration. This combined with the controversial guest appearances at Kanye’s shows has solidified in my mind that Donda will go down as one of the strangest album roll outs in history.
I woke up to see that Donda had dropped and I was filled with a swirl of different emotions. The main thought repeating through my mind as I made my way to my computer was, "Please be good. Please be good." I, along with many others, knew that this album was going to be a career defining one. Kanye has become a divisive figure in many industries, with some claiming he's an artistic genius with true vision, while others claim that he is, for lack of a better word, a clown. Opinions aside, no one can deny that he has produced some absolutely incredible songs and albums throughout his attention demanding career. So does Donda live up to the hype, and was it worth waiting for? In short, yes and no.
I will say that Donda is the best album Kanye has released in years. Strong production across the board, great performances from Kanye and friends and a plethora of sounds reminiscent from different eras in his discography are a welcome change from the last few albums, which were in my opinion a little lackluster. Songs such as 'God Breathed' feature gritty, growling bass, heavily reminiscent of cuts off of Yeezus, while 'Believe What I say' would be at home on Kanye's third album Graduation. There are even elements of Kanye's collaborative effort with Kid Cudi, Kids See Ghosts, evident on tracks such as 'Heaven and Hell'. Heavy drums and colourful synthesizers feature throughout, and are accompanied beautifully by Kanye's Sunday Service Choir, who grace a majority of the album. As with Kanye's last album Jesus Is King, religious themes and God are at the centre of the album, oddly more-so than his late mother who the album is named after.
ABOVE: First Donda listening party - Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
There are far too many songs to cover in this review, but there are some songs that immediately stood out to me that I would love to touch on. The second track 'Jail' is a highlight for me. The distorted, textured synthesizers demanded my attention and the electric guitars harmonising with Kanye's voice sounded incredible. JAY-Z delivers a solid verse on the end of the track and marks what could be the return of The Throne. 'Off The Grid' is an instant banger and I’d be surprised if it doesn’t at least get a nod for Rap Song of The Year. The Weeknd & Lil Baby come in with two of the strongest features of the album on the track 'Hurricane'. There are remnants of the Sunday Service Choir that sound angelic when combined with the bright synthesizers throughout the track. Donda is full of stellar features, but the pairing of Don Toliver & Kid Cudi on the track 'Moon' is brilliant. The slower vibe of this track is a welcome stop on the journey that is Donda, and one of my favourite moments on the album. However, it’s at this point I started to feel a few kinks forming in the armour.
27 tracks is a big ask for the average listener, and although I found most of the songs to be good or even great, there were definitely moments where I was left thinking, “Does this really need to be on here?" 'Tell the Vision' is honestly terrible- it's a remake of Pop Smoke’s song of the same name that also features Kanye, but the production on this track is simply not good. The Pop Smoke sample sounds as though it was taken from a low quality recording of a low quality recording of a 30 second sample he recorded on his phone. The beat is boring and I could have definitely continued my life happily without ever hearing this track. Donda also suffers from heavy repetition on a majority of tracks, which becomes stale as you move into the second half of the album.
The backend of the album features some deep cuts that delve into Kanye's childhood, life before and after the spotlight, and even a track dedicated to his relationship with Kim. The final songs are remixed versions of 'Jail', 'Ok Ok', 'Junya' and 'Jesus Lord', with the same beats but different features. These tracks are aptly titled ‘pt.2’ and although an interesting edition to the album, probably could have been left off. I will say that I'd like to see more artists experiment with this idea of adding alternate versions of songs onto an album, as something extra for the fans. Donda closes out with an almost 12 minute cut of 'Jesus Lord', and although it’s extremely lengthy, it does have some fanstatic story-telling in it.
RIGHT: Alternate Donda cover art
My closing thoughts are this; for the most part, Donda is the album a lot of Kanye fans have been waiting for. It's a well produced tribute to his late mother. Largely experimental, it’s gritty in places but soulful in others. It’s full of great features and fantastic performances from Kanye himself and is ultimately a good album that is only weighed down by its monstrous size.
ABOVE: Second Donda listening party - photo credit BFA/YEEZY
