“Jesus is King” falls short

American rapper, Kanye West, released his ninth studio album titled “Jesus is King” last Friday at noon. The 11 track album was originally set to be released on Sep. 27 but was delayed due to some mixing that had to be finalized.

The gospel theme was an interesting route for Kanye to take and I loved how he added a choir into the album because it brought it together with the overall theme. Kanye did sprinkle his style throughout some of the tracks, so he didn’t lose his sense of identity with this album.

“Selah” was not too bad of a song and I liked how Kanye opened up about his thoughts on his past behaviors that were often criticized by the media. He wanted people to understand that he was trying to be more open about the things that mattered to him. Keeping this thought, he also encourages his fans that are “woke” to wake up and be more open about the things that matter most to them.

“Follow God” continues Kanye’s theme of discussing his past behaviors. The rapper talks about how all he wants is to live his life the right way, but since he’s always in the spotlight, he knows people will continue to annoy his or “push his buttons.” The only way Kanye is able to handle these frustrations was through social media where he is often known for his Twitter rants. Throughout all these problems in his life and realizing how toxic social media can be, he is reminded by the words of his father that his behavior is not “christ-like.”

“Closed on Sunday” talks about Kanye getting his family together and pray. He wants daughters to be kept safe and wants to raise sons and train them in faith. Because of his popularity, Kanye is often exposed to temptations that could hurt him or goes through hard times due to personal reasons. Kanye reminds his audience that he will “bow to the King upon the throne” and give his life to Jesus.

Overall, the album was not bad, but I wouldn’t say it was one of the best albums Kanye has made. Each song on the track has its own moments and I can say this is a very “Kanye” album, but it wasn’t what I was expecting considering he was hyping up this album for months.

Even though this is not my favorite album Kanye has released, I actually admire the courage he put forward into this album by opening up on his past controversial behaviors and how his religion got him through hard times in his life. I know for a fact Kanye has the potential to create another hit album one day, but I don’t think this album really showed what Kanye is truly capable of.

3/5