The city of Atlanta has presented Kanye West with two momentous gifts, following a sold-out, stadium-set listening party for his long-awaited tenth album ‘DONDA’ â which is yet to hit streaming, despite a slated release date of July 23.
READ MORE: Kanye Westâs much-delayed 10th album âDONDAâ: the story so far
The first, as TMZ reports, is the official proclamation that July 22 be formally recognised as Kanye West Day. The rapper was presented with a plaque acknowledging the occasion backstage at Atlantaâs Mercedes-Benz Stadium, upon which he donned a wide, toothy smile (an especially rare sight for West in recent years).
Check out a fan-recorded video of the impromptu âceremonyâ below:
#ICYMI: Yesterday (June 22) was officially declared âKanye West Dayâ within the city limits of Atlanta Georgia.â – @TeamKanyeDaily
(: @_lanarae ) pic.twitter.com/lPRsDYtShE
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Black Music History
(@BlackMusicHstry) July 23, 2021
In addition, West was presented with the Dr. Donda West Meritorious Service award, honouring his late mother â who passed in 2007 of complications from cosmetic surgery â for her tenure as a respected member of Morris Brown College family. A teacher at the HBCU for almost 20 years, Donda also served as Chair of its English Department.
West was given the award by Morris Brown College president Kevin James, leading to a moment in which TMZ said the rapper âgot super emotionalâ. Per their report, members of Westâs family were in attendance to celebrate the achievement.
After months of rumours, leaks and formally announced dates that came and went without its delivery, yesterdayâs event saw the full âDONDAâ record played publicly for the first time. The 15-track album â Westâs tenth, following the 2019 release of âJesus Is Kingâ â was played to a full house of 42,000 punters, majority of whom paid between $20 and $100 for a ticket.
READ MORE: On the scene at Kanye Westâs âDONDAâ playback in Atlanta: âIt feels catharticâ
In NMEâs review of the event (see above), which was also livestreamed via Apple Music, writer Maria Lewczyk noted: âThereâs a sense of closure around the album. âDONDAâ is confident, full of forgiveness and optimism for a better future.â
She continued: âWhile audiences are inevitably going to be divided in their opinions on the album, this one wasnât made for those critiques. West has channeled his emotions into a singular work, making it feel just as contorted and wild as the pains of loss and grief, and giving it a brighter resolution with a sense of solace.â
Also notable was the albumâs surprise Jay-Z feature, marking the first time the two have collaborated on a song since Drake’s 2016 track âPop Styleâ.
The hotly anticipated release of âDONDAâ was confirmed earlier this week in a commercial for Beats By Dre, previewing the track âNo Child Left Behindâ in a clip starring US athlete ShaâCarri Richardson. The ad followed an announcement for the listening party delivered by longtime Kanye collaborator Pusha T.
West then shared a partial tracklist for the album, featuring tracks âOff The Gridâ, âKeep My Spirit Aliveâ and âLord I Need Youâ.
At the time of writing, âDONDAâ is still yet to be released. According to Theophilus London, West âstill has verses to finish and a bunch of new features today just based off the roll out hypeâ, teasing a last-minute teaming with Rick Rubin to finalise the LP for its (hopefully) imminent release.
Sources reportedly told Billboard that West is set to bring âDONDAâ to the live stage this weekend with a performance at the Rolling Loud festival in Miami on Sunday (July 25).
The post Atlanta officially declares July 22 to be Kanye West Day appeared first on NME.
