If you asked the typical American to name the artist whose recent album includes a gospel choir, a Kenny G saxophone solo, and lyrics about Chick-fil-a, their first guess probably wouldn’t be Kanye West.
But in a turn of rather bizarre, albeit sincere, events, the king of hip-hop is now bowing down to the King of the Universe. Yeezus is unapologetically praising Jesus.
West released his newest album, aptly titled “Jesus is King,” on Oct. 25, a month after his original release date. The 11-track album is West’s latest since “Ye,” released in June 2018. “Jesus is King” is his ninth studio album in 15 years, and it’s a marked transition from his earlier discography.
The album sees West rejecting his bad-boy persona of the last 15 years and discussing his conversion to Christianity. While West has alluded to Christianity in his music for years, “Jesus is King” seeks to worship Christ and explores Kanye’s struggle to reconcile his life with his newfound faith.
Twenty-seven minutes of gospel-infused hip-hop, “Jesus is King” delivers West’s promise of a strictly Christian record. It is not, however, a typical contemporary Christian album. The earmark of most contemporary Christian artists is vaguely spiritual lyrics that often ring hollow. The musical style is often meant to evoke a passionate emotional response from the listener. Replace “God” or “Jesus” with the name of any Tom, Dick, or Harry and you find yourself with a poorly-written love song.
A lot of contemporary Christian music isn’t about God, it’s about the listener and the artist. “Jesus is King” isn’t about the listener and unlike past Kanye albums, it isn’t about Kanye. It’s about God.
For die-hard hip-hop fans, “Jesus is King” is far from perfect. Criticisms leveled at West include the scope of his lyrics being too narrow and his rap being too weak. But perhaps that’s the point.
If Kanye West made just another larger-than-life Ye-focused album about his conversion, would we believe it? Could we believe it? The stripped-down lyrics, the gospel choir, the Biblically-drawn lyrics and Kanye’s bare rap sequences all point to a humbled man who realizes this isn’t about him.
For evidence, look at the first track of the album, “Every Hour.” It’s the only track on the album that doesn’t feature vocals from West. Instead, his Sunday Service Choir sings of worshipping God every hour, every minute, every millisecond. “Sing ‘til the power of the Lord comes down” repeats over and over in the chorus.
That is Kanye’s mission with “Jesus is King,” with the Sunday Services, with all of it. He’s going to sing until the power of the Lord comes down.
If West’s goal is to change the world, maybe he should have produced an album that’s longer than 30 minutes. Like any good sermon or worship service, however, it’s not about the length but about the truth of its content. Kanye produces sincere lyrics with quality music and delivers on his promise of a truly Christian message.