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Certain artists produce music that serves as markers in time and culture. Artists like Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Jay-Z, and many others have hits that will take people to a specific memory and help define moments. Although his actions may sometimes overshadow his music, Kanye West can be added to that list of artists. West is a Chicago native that entered the music scene, writing and producing music for major artists. He would go on to establish a solo career that had mainstream success with songs like “Flashing Lights,” “Gold Digger,” and “Good Life.” Throughout his career, the 45-year-old has earned several Grammy Awards with four Billboard number-one hits and 20 top-ten hits on the charts. And this success was based on a formula West had in mind for changing the hip-hop landscape. His creativity was beyond limits, even from the start of his career. “Pop music has a lot of instrumentation, and I brought that to hip-hop,” West explained in a 2004 Complex interview. “I want...
The presence of Ye, or Kanye West, has been felt all over our social media timelines as of late. The rapper’s come-up story took over as a long-running trending topic after the release of his Netflix documentary, “jeen-yuhs.” As previously reported by AfroTech, his friends and filmmaker duo Clarence “Coodie” Simmons and Chike Ozah created the project that was 20 years in the making. Although the documentary gave new insight into West’s story, three parts still aren’t enough time to learn about the Hip-Hop phenomena. Now, to dig deeper into Mr. West, his journey is being turned into a college syllabus. Complex Canada reports that an online university course dedicated to West — “Kanye vs. Ye: Genius by Design” — will be offered at Concordia University in Montreal. Two hundred students will be taught about “the evolution of the iconic rapper’s artistry, controversy, and cultural impacts” by by MC and professor Yassin “Narcy” Alsalman, who previously led courses on A Tribe Called Quest,...
Hollywood Unlocked’s Jason Lee has a new gig. In an exclusive report for Variety, it was revealed that the blogger landed a job on Kanye West’s media team. The outlet confirms that Lee will head up Ye’s media and partnerships team. As can perhaps be expected, Jason Lee shared the news with the outlet before West made it official. “I think after the interview on Hollywood Unlocked, it was clear that we had an aligned vision for leveling the playing field in the media,” he said to the outlet exclusively. “ Ye voiced a vision for a company he was building, and that media was an arm of that, and he felt that I could be an asset.” This isn’t the first time that Lee has worked with West in such a capacity. He served as the media consultant for the “Donda 2” launch, and he was also responsible for West’s hiring of the DKC publicity firm back in February 2022. However, Lee also made it clear that despite his newfound role with West, he wouldn’t be shutting down Hollywood Unlocked....
Coodie and Chike reportedly got a nice payday for the Kanye West documentary. And it took them more than 20 years to get it. According to the New York Daily News, Coodie and Chike reportedly received $30 million for the “jeen-yuhs” documentary, a hit doc that is currently streaming on Netflix about Kanye West. Billboard also reports that it took the filmmaking pair more than 20 years to finish the doc thanks to the filmmakers’ surgical precision in documenting nearly every aspect of the “808s and Heartbreak” rapper’s life. And while a source familiar with the production told Entertainment Tonight that the acquisition figure is inaccurate, what’s clear is that “jeen-yuhs” details aspects of West’s life that were previously unavailable to his fanbase and the general public. Coodie and Chike used home videos, never-before-seen footage, and other exclusive content to chronicle West’s rise. From the car accident that caused him to get a whole new mouth to the passing of his beloved...
Kanye West continues to show why he’s truly a genius. As someone who does it all, the rapper’s Stem Player — what he calls the “first Yeezy Tech product” — has brought in $2.2 million in sales in one day thanks to his latest album, reports HYPEBEAST. Per Kanye West, the move to release his music via his Stem Player platform rather than streaming services such as Apple Music, Spotify, or TIDAL caused him way more monetary gain. “To earn the $2.2 million we made on the first day on the stem player the album would have had to stream 500 million times,” Kanye West shared. “We did more revenue on Stem Player, without the album even being out than we would have done with the album being out on streaming.” Just months following the release of “Donda,” Kanye West revealed that he would release “Donda 2” exclusively via his Stem Player. And, according to the “Jesus Walks” emcee, this was because the percentage that artists receive on streaming platforms is significantly low. “Today artists...
Kanye West is known for thinking outside of the box. And, with his next album “Donda 2,” things are no different. Ahead of its release on Feb. 22, Kanye West took to Instagram to announce it will not be available on streaming platforms such as Apple Music, Amazon, Spotify, and YouTube. But, the album will be available for streaming on his $200 stem player that AfroTech previously reported allows fans to “customize any song.” “Donda 2 will only be streaming on my own platform, the stem player. You can download new music from stemplayer.com. You can play 4 different elements of the track: vocals, drums, bass and music. It also has a MP3 player available. We currently have 67,000 available and are making 3,000 a day,” Kanye West wrote via Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/tv/CaHAZv4ju7N/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link If you are wondering why the sudden move to venture away from streaming giants, West revealed his disdain for the “oppressive system.” “Donda 2 will only be available on...
Being a source of inspiration for fellow artists is at the heart of Kid Cudi’s latest venture in the tech space. In 2020, the rapper co-founded Encore, an interactive live performance app that helps artists further connect with their fans. Now, in 2022, the platform has officially launched and made its debut on app stores, according to a press release. “My number one priority has always been inspiring others and providing them the space to tell their own stories in an authentic and meaningful way. We created Encore as a space for artists to share their art, build community, while also being able to pay their rent,” Cudi shared in a statement. The announcement of Encore’s launch comes in after the raise of $9 million in seed funding led by Battery Ventures, the press release details. Other investors included 468 Capital, Parade Ventures, Nomad Ventures, Moving Capital, Kayak Ventures, and Gaingels.
If you’re wondering what happened to the bear costume from “The College Dropout” era, look no further! When one thinks of Kanye West and “The College Dropout” album, the image of the bear that graced the cover may ultimately come to mind. Now fans will potentially be able to get their hands on it thanks to designer Sam Hansen. Per Complex, following an interview on the origins of “The College Dropout” bear with Hansen, Andrew Barber of Fake Shore Drive has unlocked a new discovery on what could now be a collector’s item. In an all-new sit down with Eric Arginsky, the person who worked closely with Ye and others, Barber learned that there was an abandoned effort to bring a plush bear line to the surface to promote the album. Since that line never saw the light of day, Arginsky ultimately landed ownership of the costume. In fact, it isn’t even the original costume from the cover as he explains that Ye’s team was never able to secure a deal with the school to gain possession of the...
Amber Rose Levonchuck may have started her career as the girlfriend of rapper Kanye West, but she’s proven that she’s far more than just attractive arm candy. After failed attempts at being a stripper and a crack dealer (she told Van Lathan that she tried to be a drug dealer but “wasn’t successful”), Amber Rose decided to make an impact in a much bigger way. Although she initially tried her hand at fashion design and music, she ultimately became known for changing the conversation around sexual assault with her annual “SlutWalk.” An offshoot of the original Canadian movement, which began in 2011, the SlutWalk in Los Angeles emphasized the importance of respecting women’s bodily autonomy. It opened the conversation for women to talk about their sexual experiences freely and honestly, without fear of shame or reprisal. And it demanded that women’s trauma — especially sexual trauma — have a relevant place in the larger conversation against sex and violence. These moves, combined with...
Lil Durk initially got a cult following back in 2013, when he dropped his “Signed to the Streets” mixtape series. The Chicago native would eventually earn a record deal from Def Jam Records — before realizing that he needed to not only step out on his own, but diversify his business investments. Recently, in an interview with AfroTech, OTF’s manager Ola Ali explained why it was important for its labels’ artists — including Lil Durk, himself — to diversify their investments, and specifically start investing in the gaming industry. “I believe during the pandemic people paid attention to opportunities they might have overlooked before the shutdown. I know I did, and the gaming/streaming arena was one of them,” he tells AfroTech. “Pre-pandemic I don’t think I had the chance to play a video game in the last 15 years. I had no interest, and definitely didn’t have the time, but sitting at home every day brought about a new way for one to entertain themselves. This led to not only our team...
Kanye West continues to be a force across all entities. From “Donda” the album to a school, the Hip-Hop icon and businessman continues to put in work to keep his mother’s legacy alive. This time, TMZ reports that the “Jesus Walks,” emcee filed a trademark for his company to place “Donda” on various tech line products. From the looks of it, West is well on his way to building an empire and will honor his mother along the way. As previously reported by AfroTech, West recently made a move to possibly open a school in hopes of making his stake in the world of education. Now the Chicago-native and father of four has taken a page from Apple’s Steve Jobs and plans to solidify the rights to place “Donda” across electronic products including audio speakers, surround sound systems and tablet computers. He reportedly has plans to feature his mother’s name across wearable computers like protective flip covers for tablet computers, smart glasses, smartwatches and wearable activity trackers. “If...
At last, Kanye West’s “Donda” album has finally arrived. And in less than a day, it’s already managed to break streaming records on platforms like Spotify. According to a report from Chart Data, the billionaire artist’s tenth studio album had one of the biggest first day debuts of all-time on Spotify’s global chart, raking in nearly 100 million streams within 24 hours of releasing. The record-breaking streaming numbers could be largely attributed to West’s extravagant Apple Music listening events and unorthodox methods of promoting the album via fans and social media. While West’s latest Instagram post alleges that his record company, Universal Music Group — parent company of Def Jam Recordings (who the artist is currently signed to) — released his album without his approval, it still managed to have a wildly-successful Sunday morning release. https://www.instagram.com/p/CTK6NChoUIp/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link News of West’s history-making debut arrives just days after his third...