![]() The record was described as “living, breathing”, and changes were made multiple times post-release. Kanye Dropped More Album Tracks Prior to the Album’s Release than any other Album in his CareerĪn argument could be made that Kanye released so many Life of Pablo tracks prior to the album because he was anxious or worried about the quality. “Wolves”, “Fade”, “Facts”, “Real Friends” and “No More Parties In L.A.” all came out just before the album. He featured on, or performed as a lead artist, a lot of tracks prior to the album, which also contributed to him performing the second most words ever prior to an album, though a lot of this has to do with him releasing a lot of The Life of Pablo tracks just before the album dropped. There is no real narrative hidden in the major data prior to the album, and for the first time, Kanye’s intent wasn’t 100% clear. Inconsistent, to put it mildly… Most of The Life of Pablo’s statistics are distributed throughout Kanye’s discography, with no recognizable trends or themes:Īll of these statistics don’t really add up to anything. Related Sauce: Meet Every Member of BROCKHAMPTON The Life of Pablo’s Data is Inconsistent with Kanye’s Discography Never has Kanye had such a splashed sonic palate, or created such a seemingly random and disjointed listen. Samples lurch from overpowering the entire song (“Father Stretch My Hands Pt 2”, “Famous”, “Facts”), to being wonderfully complimentary (“Saint Pablo”, “Fade”, “No More Parties In L.A.”) to being nearly imperceptible (“Wolves”, “Freestyle 4”). 2” by sampling Desiigner’s track “Panda”, a track that debuted at 96 on the Hot 100, and hit number 1 thanks entirely to its placement on The Life of Pablo. And Kanye single-handedly creates an entire career for Desiigner on “Father Stretch My Hands Pt. On “Famous”, he manages to increase the momentum of an already out-of-control track with “Bam Bam” by Sister Nancy. He grabs the menacing noise from Jay-Z’s gritty 1997 track “Where I’m From” to spit his most honest and insular track ever, the late-addition “Saint Pablo”. Ye’s use of samples on The Life of Pablo are at times discordant, grating, used to create texture and to change mood and feel downright odd at times. Those beats were warm and consistent, and almost calming. Kanye’s first 3 albums utilised sped-up soul to cultivate beautiful, lush soundscapes for R&B singers to croon on, and Kanye to spit honey over. The Data Kanye Uses More Unique Samples On The Life of Pablo Than Any Other AlbumĪnd yet, The Life of Pablo sounds nothing like Kanye’s early work as a producer, when he brought sample-based beats to mainstream audiences. If you think all of this is confusing, just wait till you see the data… He also claimed “Life of Pablo is a living breathing changing creative expression”, and actually began changing the album post-release, including updates to “Wolves” and adding new song “Saint Pablo”. He said release dates were “played out”, then he created a massive Madison Square Garden release day listening session to tie in with a fashion show. The only precise goal Kanye sets and carries out relates to the roll-out. More samples are used, but they don’t sound as enticing as some of his work earlier on in his career as a producer. Sounds and thoughts change on a whim, elements of every prior Kanye solo album pop up in unexpected places, creating new junctures and new juxtapositions. Such a broad statement lends itself to the splattered canvas The Life of Pablo is. Songs… cook out music that just feels good… This album’s just embracing the music, embracing the joy, and being of service to the people.” ![]() Kanye told The Breakfast Club that The Life of Pablo would be “Bars. Thus far in this series, every Kanye solo album has had an intent, a clear focus, a mission statement that Kanye identified and prepared for, and almost perfectly executed. ![]() ![]() Hypothesis: The Life of Pablo is Kanye’s most Confusing, Hard to Place Album The rest of the Yeezy Season Series can be found here. The numbers behind The Life of Pablo are fascinating and help paint a picture of Kanye’s most confusing (and arguably most creative) project, 2016’s The Life of Pablo. Does the data from the 60 weeks prior to its release shed some light on Kanye’s intent for this enigmatic album? What will be TLOP’s ultimate role in his discography? Each era had its own characteristics and promotional strategies that evolved as Kanye himself did. With Yeezy Season 8 in full effect, Ben “Data Daddy” Carter is taking a closer look at the rollout for every single one of Kanye’s albums thus far. Just three years later, Kanye dubbed his newest project a “living, breathing, changing creative expression” and left us all scratching our heads, stuck back in the past yet again. After Kanye West released the most experimental album of his career in 2013, one thing was clear: the industry had some major catching up to do. ![]()
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