Consistent with the theme of “Surprise!” there were no leaks for the event leaving many celebrities in attendance along with the average fan the same amount of insight as to what was in store.
The setup was aesthetically clean mirroring that of a minimalist style, just Kanye and a white background spanning the entire floor area of the stadium. All employees of the venue were asked, possibly demanded in ‘Ye fashion, to be dressed in all black while Kanye himself was dressed literally head to toe in a bright red-orange outfit that could be seen from anywhere in the seats. The official merchandise sold out in minutes with shirts going for $120 and have been seen on the secondary market going for anything between $200 to $2,000 in addition to the event posters that folded into fans being sold for up to $50 even though those were given out freely. There have also been a few misguided reports of the prices for concessions. Mercedes Benz Stadium is known for their “Fan Friendly” pricing and this event held true to that reputation. The pictures of $50 for chicken tenders and $40 for hotdogs were accurate but were posted for group pricing, Suite Level to be exact. Outside of that everything else has held up to be exactly as advertised.
The “performance”, if it can be labeled as such, was just as sporadic as the event itself. No one knew what to expect, there were rumblings amongst the crowd that he wouldn’t show or that he had changed his mind last minute. It got to the point where some thought that he simply used the venue as a demonstration to show he had a chokehold on music and had no intentions of showing at all. Luckily my suspicion along with everyone else’s was put to rest just before ten o’clock.
The music itself followed a sporadic pattern of compare and contrast with the lyrics in addition to the tone. The project was laced with an array of proclaimed “Synth Goat” Mike Dean chords, and my personal favorite an organ/piano-laden rhythm similar to a deep south Zaytoven vamp. Over the span of about an hour to an hour and a half there were consistent resemblances to that of a church choir and message of salvation one could find in any Southern Baptist church on a Sunday. In essence, there was a true multi-faceted homecoming for the Atlanta native mostly known for his connection to the city of Chicago.
Considering this was possibly his first event since The Saint Pablo Tour it was honestly a homecoming all around.
Each feature artist verse was met with a bolstering yell of excitement from the fans followed by an immediate silence to hear the rest. From what I could tell in between my own outburst this upcoming project has features from Pusha T, Travis Scott, Playboi Carti, a posthumous Pop Smoke, and last but certainly not least, Jay-Z. I’m sure I missed a few but, to be honest, Jay-Z was and will be the biggest surprise of the catalog. Not only did Jay-Z apparently write the verse mere hours before it was played but this was also the first time anyone has heard the duo on the same song since the Watch the Throne album back in 2011. As far as what that entails no one is certain but what is certain is that the music industry is open to any and everything that could stem from the reunion.
All things considered, I think Kanye did exactly what he came to accomplish. He held a listening party in which he didn’t say a word to anyone and at times you could even see him on his phone while the album was playing as if he was making notes marveling at his own work. He simply floated around the stadium floor while thousands of fans reaffirmed the sentiment that we indeed still love Kanye just like Kanye loves Kanye just like his song from 2016 entitled “I Love Kanye“.
With as much gusto as it started the show abruptly stopped. Many fans stuck to their seats like the end of a Marvel movie with anticipation that there was something more to be showcased but ultimately there was not. In a fashion that only Kanye could display; he came, he saw, he left.
The album was announced to be released on July 24, 2021, which led to an immediate uproar once we all realized it wasn’t going to be released on time or at all for the time being. Rumor has it that he’s still working on it somewhere in Atlanta. Regardless of how true that is, the fact still remains, we want Kanye.
-Malcolm Anderson
Malcolm Anderson is a Cum Laude graduate of Reinhardt University. From the beginning of his education, the ideas of creativity and ever-expanding curiosity were instilled in him. He loves working with children and helping them believe that they can do anything they put their mind to, a lesson he was taught from an early age. Although his focus is on Sports Media, Malcolm has been writing for various mediums over the past few years and aims to expand his repertoire in an effort to reach as many people as possible.
