Keith Gomes

An emotional, spiritual and powerful tour de force for god. A technical masterpiece. Donda will surely deter many for its religious content/delivery/ye/etc. Get past that and you find a record that will provide solace to those in need of hip-hop-shaped spiritual upliftment. Play it for the kids, play it for your folks, play it for the fam. Just pay attention to where you were when you first heard Donda, it is a story that will need retelling in years to come. West cements his position as the high priest of sampling of which he is the most avant-garde technician of our time. From charismatic christians speaking in tongues to internet memes, one thing is clear - YouTube is the reflection of culture that West relies on. Footage recorded on an Android phone from 2009 can serve as hooks for hit songs in his hands. All while the rest of us mortals dream of weighted knobs. The word genius has often been bandied about in relation to West and if there is any genius at display here it is in the art of the melodic narrative. Sparse as it seems, the musical and production techniques on display are of the highest order. Much like for the thematic choices, you wouldn't find much counsel renouncing drum tracks; but Ye makes it work. Make no mistake despite what the gossip columns say, Donda is here to stay. West's capacity at emboldening heresy may just overcome his aptitude to convert doubters, but one thing is for sure - it is a good time to be a believer. In a world of goldfish class attention spans and digital virtue signals, humankind's faith in the good old album (and divinity) is renewed. Donda was an emotional rollercoaster that had me hooked. As Bernie Mac once said 'Kanye done did it again!'. The deal with Yeezus however has always been if you are willing to accept him, he will show you the light.