History Music / Yeezus

The album debuted at number one on the US ''Billboard'' 200, selling 327,000 copies in the first week of release, while also topping the charts in numerous other countries and receiving a UsefulNotes/GrammyAward nomination for Best Rap Album. It has since been certified double platinum.

* MinimalisticCoverArt: Probably the most minimalist album cover of all time: ''there is no album cover''. Just a sticker (that may or may not have "YEEZUS" written on it) and that's it; according to West, the idea behind the packaging was to act as an open-casket funeral for the UsefulNotes/CompactDisc, which by that point had fallen far in mainstream prominence compared to digital downloads and streaming. Fitting this, releases of the album on the latter two formats simply use a scan of the CD packaging as their artwork.

The end result was a unique musical experience making for [[NewSoundAlbum some of the most abrasive and eclectic content in a Kanye album yet]], incorporating genres such as industrial, dancehall, acid house, electronica, punk, and Chicago drill.

West gathered [[AllStarCast a slew of collaborators]] for production on the album including Music/DaftPunk, Music/{{Skrillex}}, Music/KidCudi, Music/ChiefKeef, Music/{{OFWGKTA}}, Music/TravisScott and [[Music/WuTangClan RZA]], and was influenced by minimalist design and architecture when making the album, reportedly visiting a furniture exhibit at the Louvre multiple times for inspiration. His views on the album were especially perfectionist, and he ended up enlisting the help of Music/RickRubin as an executive producer just over two weeks before its due date to strip down its soundscapes.

* SelfParody: By the time of ''Yeezus'', Kanye seems to have realized how comically overblown his ego is. While a number of the songs are completely serious (such as "New Slaves" and "Black Skinhead"), some of the other songs on the album take common rap boasts and make them as over-the-top as possible, such as the line above under {{Corpsing}} and this entry, also from "On Sight":

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: The collaborators that Kanye enlisted for work on this album. According to Wikipedia, there were ''23'' people (some of them listed above).

[[caption-width-right:350:''I just talked to UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} / He said "What up, Yeezus?"'']]

Immediate reception towards the album saw a sharp case of CriticalDissonance; while critics adored its direction, the public was heavily divided over it. However, [[VindicatedByHistory time has shifted leagues more people onto the positive side]], and it's now considered one of the best works of the 2010s. It is currently ranked at #269 on the most updated version of ''Magazine/RollingStone''[='=]s [[UsefulNotes/RollingStone500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime2020 500 greatest albums of all time]].

%%* OutOfGenreExperience: ''Yeezus'', if you're one of the people who classify it as IndustrialMetal.

* SillyLoveSong: ''Bound 2'', the closing song of the album, is this. It's a soulful, warm track dedicated to Kim Kardashian.
* TextlessAlbumCover: The album has no cover and the actual sticker put on the album case has no text on it (except on some occasions, in which "YEEZUS" will be written on it in marker).

* MinimalisticCoverArt: Probably the most minimalist album cover of all time -- ''there is no album cover''. Just a sticker (that may or may not have "YEEZUS" written on it) and that's it.

Immediate reception towards the album saw a sharp case of CriticalDissonance; while critics adored its direction, the public was heavily divided over it. However, [[VindicatedByHistory time has shifted leagues more people onto the positive side]], and it's now considered one of the best works of the 2010s. It is currently ranked at #269 on the most updated version of Music/RollingStone500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime.

West gathered [[AllStarCast a slew of collaborators]] for production on the album including Music/DaftPunk, Music/{{Skrillex}}, Music/KidCudi, Music/ChiefKeef, Music/{{OFWGKTA}}, Music/TravisScott and [[Music/WuTangClan RZA]], and was influenced by minimalist design and architecture when making the album, reportedly visiting a furniture exhibit at the Louvre multiple times for inspiration.

His views on the album were especially perfectionist, and he ended up enlisting the help of Music/RickRubin as an executive producer just over 2 weeks before its due date to strip down its soundscapes. The end result was a unique and abrasive musical experience, incorporating genres such as industrial, dancehall, acid house, electronica, punk, and Chicago drill.

* BlackmailIsSuchAnUglyWord: In "Hold My Liquor":
-->Slightly scratch your Corolla\\
Okay, I smashed your Corolla
* BlasphemousBoast: "I Am a God". Reasoned for quite well if you look at Psalms 82:6:

** Although one does quirk an eyebrow as the song at times would say "I Am a God (feat. '''God''')".

--->"Then she came like '''[[TheImmodestOrgasm AAAAAA-A-A-A-AH]]'''"

* EarnYourHappyEnding: After 9 loud and abrasive tracks, the album closes with "Bound 2", which is more similar to production from Kanye's older albums.

* MetalScream: Several times, most notably "I am a God" and "Black Skinhead." Live performances take this to another level.

* MoodWhiplash: After the dark, thematically heavy industrial tracks that compose most of the album, comes ''Bound 2'' which is... a heartfelt SillyLoveSong dedicated to his now-wife Kim Kardashian and a GenreThrowback to his earlier chipmunk soul material.

* OutOfGenreExperience: ''Yeezus'', if you're one of the people who classify it as IndustrialMetal.
* {{Sampling}}: ''Yeezus'' includes samples from Hungarian progressive rock band Omega, the Holy Name of Mary Choral Family, Nina Simone, and Beenie Man, amongst several others.