It's hard to ignore Kanye West in the lead-up to an album release. This time West has announced he's running for President of the United States, laid down a feature on Ty Dolla $ign's new single Ego Death, and revealed a new 10-year deal with GAP.
This all coincides with the announcement of God's Country, which will be the Chicago rapper's tenth studio album. So what do we know about the album so far?
Firstly, it's likely that Dr. Dre will be producing the project after West announced that he and the hip-hop legend had been working on a sequel to his ninth studio album, Jesus Is King three weeks after its release in 2019. It never happened but God's Country sure has the makings of a sequel.
In April, during an interview with GQ, West also showed off a song called Superman as well as a very early snippet of what's now known to be the first single off of the record called, Wash Us In The Blood.
GQ also reported on a song called Ambitious, which is funny when you read that interview with West, where he says: "The word ambitious is not allowed to be used around me. Kanye West is nothing if not ambitious. Because ambition, when I hear it, it says that it seems like it’s almost impossible."
For now, that's all the concrete information we have. So, to pass the time until the album arrives here are our five predictions about God's Country.
1. Features on features on features
If there is one thing you can bank on Ye delivering on, it's a feature-packed tracklist. The first single, Wash Us In The Blood, prominently feature the Autotune flourishes of protege Travis Scott. So who should we expect on the album? It's already been confirmed by Pusha T that he's been laying down some lines for Ye. Ty Dolla $ign is more than likely to make an appearance as he continues to be one of West's go-to artists. And we know he loves drama, so it would be exciting to see a Cardi B feature following his years of loyalty to Nicki Minaj, but that probably won't happen.
We'd love to see his GOOD Music signee Teyana Taylor lay down an R&B melody. The return of go-to collaborator PartyNextDoor, who featured heavily on ye, would also be a treat.
But with Yeezy always looking to the future, the likelihood he taps a few upcoming hip-hop stars is not a bad guess.
2. A return to Yeezus
The haunting industrial irreverence of Wash Us In The Blood was reminiscent of West's most critically acclaimed record, Yeezus. While we don't think the "I am a god" rapper is going back to the Yeezus era lyrically, sonically it could be what we get.
3. A whole lot of controversy
It isn't a Ye album if there isn't any drama. At this point, it's near impossible to predict what exactly the drama will be but we're sure there will be beef, divisive lyrics and a name drop or two.
4. Mike Dean
Revered hip-hop producer Mike Dean played a pertinent role in the shaping of Yeezus, so it would make sense for him to be working on this record alongside Dre. The producer and the rapper have worked together numerous times, with credits on Graduation, 808s and Heartbreak, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Watch The Throne, The Life of Pablo, ye, and Jesus Is King.
5. A brand new aesthetic
As innovative as West is, he comes from a generation of music stars that transform themselves aesthetically for every album cycle. Not one to follow the zeitgeist, it's any wonder what he'll release on his Yeezy store to go along with God's Country, but chances are we'll be paying exorbitant amounts for it on the resale market.
