Kayne West & Ty Dolla $ign ‘Vultures Vol. 1’ Review: I miss the old Kanye
After a long, painful wait, Kanye West has finally decided to release his collaboration Vultures Vol. 1 with Ty Dolla $ign. The pair made an unexpected duo, combining West’s alternative hip-hop style with Ty’s RnB prowess. The album was originally meant to drop on December 15th, although this was not the case, and then further postponed to New Year’s Eve of 2023, which also did not happen due to issues with obtaining sample clearances. At this point, most Ye fans gave up on their hopes and dreams, expecting Vultures never to be released after countless leaks and teasers. However, the date he chose, February 9th, made sense to old-school Kanye fans considering 20 years ago he released his debut album College Dropout on this date. Unlike that album, Vultures saw a new side to Kanye’s endless musical talent, providing a more trenches and demonic feel.
Despite being in a time of controversy, facing backlash based on numerous antisemitic remarks online, West managed to assemble plenty of big names to be associated with him on the album, including Playboi Carti, Chris Brown, Travis Scott, and even producers like Timbaland and James Blake. Vultures Vol. 1 was announced to be the first instalment of a three-volume series as alluded to in a trailer released on January 24th. Seeing how these albums progress and relate to each other will be a top priority for the Kanye West fan base.
Throughout this album, West’s lyrical genius is largely toned down from previous projects
The song ‘Vultures’, released as a single before the album, raised concerns for fans about West’s intentions regarding the album. A bold, harmonising intro by Ty Dolla $ign sets the tone, followed by verses from Bump J and Lil Durk. West’s verse later in the song caused the most commotion as he states controversial lines. Including these lyrics raises the question of whether West wants anyone to forget about his controversial history and antisemitic antics on Twitter. This single was concerning nonetheless, conjuring a sense of anxiety for the potential outrageous claims to come on the album.
Throughout this album West’s lyrical genius is largely toned down from previous projects, allowing Ty to enter the spotlight with his vocal talent. On songs such as ‘Beg Forgiveness’, the combination of Chris Brown and Ty’s RnB styles makes the song passionate and gives an almost gospel vibe. The features on this album fit the aesthetic of the songs extremely well, with Playboi Carti appearing on two songs: ‘CARNIVAL’ and ‘FUK SUM.’ Both have demonic, grunge-style beats which complement Carti’s ‘rage’ style. Both songs saw unexpected features: with Rich the Kid appearing on ‘CARNIVAL’ and Travis Scott providing the finishing touches on ‘FUK SUM.’
The unexpected features don’t stop there, with Freddie Gibbs on the song ‘BACK TO ME’, arguably rapping the most impressive verse on the album along with Ty’s infectious hook. The most unconventional feature was West’s 10-year-old daughter North West featuring in the song ‘TALKING’, bringing an abstract, nursery rhyme-type flow to her short but impactful verse.
Ty’s smooth, melodic voice balanced out West’s unusual rapping style
The presence of these tracks is evidence West is attempting to evolve even further as an artist by testing new methods of making music. The reactions to this have been mixed, with some begging for Volume 2, and some reminiscing on old Kanye and longing for him back. However, Kanye aimed to please all with this album, showing his old style emerging on songs like ‘BURN.’ This song, although less than two minutes long, was an old Kanye West fan’s heaven, with Ty on the hook and West rapping like he used to at the start of his career. This song has a College Dropout feel to it, with an old-school flow combined with a catchy chorus. Additionally, on ‘CARNIVAL’, remnants of West’s 2010 album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy have been spotted, with the beat being partly reused from the song ‘Hell of a Life.’
Overall, Vultures Vol. 1 sees a new style of West. Joining forces with Ty Dolla $ign was certainly unexpected, however, the collaboration worked better than most anticipated. Ty’s smooth, melodic voice balanced out West’s unusual rapping style. Due to how different it is, with very few signs of old Kanye, many fans have not been keen at all, claiming Ty overshadowed West, as well as the features saving the tracks. Whether this is the case or not, West and Ty have grabbed our attention with this project, and by promising a trilogy they are ensuring even more people tune in to listen to the next albums dropping later this year. For a Kanye West project, compared to his previous work like The Life of Pablo and Graduation, which are rap classics, this album does not meet those standards.
Recommended Listening: ‘BURN’, ‘FUK SUM’ and ‘BACK TO ME’.
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