Kanye West is one of the most controversial musicians working today, but despite his many hurtful comments in the past few years, interest in his work remains incredibly high. Now, an apparently unreleased visual album from the rapper has leaked online, with fans flocking to watch where they can.
A visual album titled Donda: With Child surfaced online recently without warning, and seemingly without any approval from the rapper himself. The project was likely meant to accompany his album Donda, which was released properly in 2021.
Donda: With Child runs for 35 minutes and features music that ended up appearing on Donda, though much of what is heard in the visual changed before West released it through traditional channels.
Fans who know Donda well will be able to hear the differences between the album they listen to regularly and the early edition. For example, the song “Hurricane,” which won West and his collaborators The Weeknd and Lil Baby a Grammy, originally featured Big Sean and Ant Clemons.
Donda: With Child also includes music that was never released by West, which is sure to be of top interest to fans who tune into the album. Some names who have been connected to the title include James Blake, Saint JHN and Travis Scott. The latter rapper used a song from the Donda sessions, “God’s Country,” on his new album Utopia, though West isn’t credited as a featured artist on the tune.
The visual album was directed by Vanessa Beecroft, and it appears that the album was shot in Wyoming, where the hip-hop musician owns a sprawling ranch and where he has been making music and developing other businesses for years. The clip is largely made up of shots of the landscape and sheep, but also includes several models and West himself, which all but proves that this isn’t a fan-made counterfeit.
West is still hard at work on a new album, which will be his eleventh solo project. Details surrounding the release remain scarce, but reports suggest that the rapper may drop the effort sometime soon, though how it will be received by an industry that has largely shut West out after anti-semitic and otherwise offensive statements were shared bot in interviews and online, is yet to be seen.
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