Donda 2 is only days away from dropping. The project will also be the 11th studio album from iconic Chicago artist Ye. Fans have been highly excited about the album since its announcement back in January. However, a recent statement from Ye may put a damper on the much-anticipated drop.
Kanye v. Streaming Services
The most popular music streaming services, including Apple Music, Spotify, TIDAL, and YouTube, will not house “Donda 2.” To gain access to the album, fans will also have to buy a $200 Stem Player directly from the rapper.
Artists bumping heads with streaming services is also nothing new. India Arie just recently spoke in protest of Spotify for paying artists a tiny fraction of a penny in exchange for a stream. Regardless, Ye’s approach is highly unconventional. Earlier this week (Feb. 17), Ye posted a video on Instagram of the Stem Player device in action and a caption explaining his decision. Consequently, the internet quickly reacted.
“”Donda 2″ will only be available on my own platform, the Stem Player. Not on Apple, Amazon Spotify, or YouTube,” Ye started. “Today, artists get just 12% of the money the industry makes. It’s time to free music from this oppressive system. It’s time to take control and build our own. Go to stemplayer.com now to order.”
The declaration then came with an unnamed track playing in the video. Presumably, this song will then appear on Donda 2.
The Yeezy Stem Player is a music-playing device that came out back in August last year. Its official website also boasts advanced features. Apart from Donda 2 availability, they include “control vocals, drums, bass, and samples, isolate parts, add effects, 4 channel lossless audio mixing, real-time loop, and speed control.”
The Fans Aren’t So Sure About Donda 2 Anymore?
Kanye’s strange decision also garnered a mixed reaction from his intensely loyal fan base. While many weren’t willing to shell out the $200, others maintained respect for West as an artist and defended his choice. As a result, the announcement sparked somewhat of a debate amongst music fans.
i love kanye but $200 for an album is insane
— kira 👾 (@kirawontmiss) February 18, 2022
Kanye releasing Donda 2 exclusively further confirms that everything crazy on instagram is 100% album promotion. Essentially he is selling his album for $200 and trying to prove his value as the best marketer in the world. And I would bet anything its gunna sell out
— Danny Sclaf (@SclaffyTaffy) February 18, 2022
Kanye charging $200 for DONDA 2 ??? get ya money but I'm wait on distribution from Zippyshare records.
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) February 18, 2022
Kanye charging $200 for DONDA 2 ??? get ya money but I'm wait on distribution from Zippyshare records.
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) February 18, 2022
Why would you not support this? You’d rather one of your favorite artists continue to get ripped off and not try and do anything about it? If he is successful it could force Spotify to re-examine how poorly they currently compensate artists for streams.
— Adam W (@adamwehib) February 18, 2022
Which side are you on? Do you think Donda 2 is worth the purchase, or will you be sitting out this era of Ye?
Dreema Carrington|IG @dr3amgirl79|Twitter @notdreema
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