VULTURES 1 by Ye

By Robbie Lloyd Howard IV

Rap Journalist

YEEZY season is in the air. On Jan. 10, 2024, at 2 a.m., Ye, formally known as Kanye West, and Ty Dolla $ign dropped their highly anticipated album VULTURES 1. Best of all, when I saw that notification on my phone that this album had dropped, I quickly ran to Apple Music. After many delays, sample clearance issues and listening events, this was worth the wait.  

Before we get to the music, let’s look at the rollout for VUTLTURES 1. In classic Kanye fashion, the rollout was chaotic. Similar to his DONDA, where he held three once-in-a-lifetime listening parties, and The Life of Pablo, where we saw the rise of Yeezys and also had the iconic Madison Square Garden event. 

In contrast to these previous events, this time the feeling was like radio silence, and for a while, this album felt like it [the album] was going to be another addition to Mr.West’s scrapped album collection. Then, as time went on and more news and more active social media activity came from Ye and Ty Dolla $ign, the anticipation was there for the album to drop. 

Although we didn’t get an official release, per usual, the month of Jan. 2024 was possibly the most important month for VULTURES 1 and possibly VULTURES 2 and 3. We had more sightings of Kanye and Ty Dolla $ign film snippets of music videos for the album. Then we had two listening events on Feb. 8 and Feb. 9. However – without warning – VULTURES 1 dropped on Feb. 10.  

On my first listen-through, I was excited. The album didn’t sound like a normal rap album to me, and I like that, personally. I like artists who go out of their comfort zone and make something that blows minds. That’s why Yeezus is my top Kanye album of all time. But VULTURES 1 might take the throne, as the album has that Yeezus feeling mixed with the DONDA atmosphere.   

Instrumentally, all the producers did their thing and went crazy. In the third song on the album, “PAID,” you get this house rap beat. I could see this being played at a dance club. And on the 12 track, “CARNIVAL,” I was speechless listening to this beat for the first time. In the beginning, you have this group of British people chanting like they are at a soccer game, and then the 808s hit, and you’re just going to feel like you’re Batman saving Gotham City. It’s just too crazy of a beat to ignore. 

And lastly, right after “CARNIVAL,” we have “BEG FORGIVENESS,” I was astonished through my first listen. There are two parts to this beat. In the first part, you feel like you are gliding through the beat with Chris Brown leading you as the song gets to the 3:30 mark, this choir comes in chanting and you hear Kanye pouring his soul out. 

The instrumentals on this album are top-tier. Lyrically, I wouldn’t say this album was the best. The album felt like a lot of Kanye being narcissistic and trying to justify himself with his infamous rants from Oct. 2022. 

The lyrics often called back on those impassioned rants, weaving them into nearly every song. While this aimed to infuse depth, the lyrics sometimes detracted from the overall mood of the tracks. But we also got some features from a variety of artists. 

Rich the Kid, Playboi Carti, Chris Brown and many more artists featured on the album. The variety of artists gave the album an interesting feel, as you couldn’t expect the lyrics to be linear and consistent with the main motif of the album. While the album showcased a diverse array of featured artists, the lyrical content often seemed overshadowed by his past rants, lending a narcissistic undertone to many tracks. 

In conclusion, personally, VULTURES 1 a 7.5/10. A lot of people have mixed thoughts about this album, and that’s okay because music is heavily subjective, and what might be the best thing your ears have touched might not be pleasing to others, especially with Kanye West, who is known to be very controversial. Nonetheless, though I’m very pleased with VULTURES 1 and am excited for volumes two and three to drop on – hopefully.