• Record Label: Def Jam
  • Release Date: Jun 18, 2013
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2196 Ratings

User score distribution:
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  1. Jun 18, 2013
    9
    As with all Kanye West's albums the production is on point. The beats range from hardcore electro such as the track "onsite" to hour soulful hip hop sounds found on "bound 2." The album is influenced by many different genres and thats a good thing. Kanye's lyricism isn't the what it used to be on his former albums. That being said i think his minimalist approach used for the lyrics reallyAs with all Kanye West's albums the production is on point. The beats range from hardcore electro such as the track "onsite" to hour soulful hip hop sounds found on "bound 2." The album is influenced by many different genres and thats a good thing. Kanye's lyricism isn't the what it used to be on his former albums. That being said i think his minimalist approach used for the lyrics really works and flows with the beats. All in all a great project. Expand
  2. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Unbelieveable album. Top-notch album with amazing production, and as per usual, Ye's mixture of politics, religion and humour in his lyrics. Put it this way, he made Chief Keef sound good.. And we all know how bad he is!
  3. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    This is truly a work of art that needs multiple listens to fully appreciate it for what it is. Yeezus is a huge creative chance and the only guy who could pull it off with such perfection is Kanye West. Yeezus isn't the Hip-Hop album out on June 18th, but it is the best album.
  4. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    An incredible experimental rap album. Kanye West is the most innovative rapper around and never fails to deliver quality music while changing the genre for the better. Some people dislike West because of his so-called "arrogant" personality, but he really isn't. West speaks his mind and says what he feels is right. Furthermore, an artist's personality should not affect your opinion ofAn incredible experimental rap album. Kanye West is the most innovative rapper around and never fails to deliver quality music while changing the genre for the better. Some people dislike West because of his so-called "arrogant" personality, but he really isn't. West speaks his mind and says what he feels is right. Furthermore, an artist's personality should not affect your opinion of music, which has always been top notch. Expand
  5. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Like every Kanye album...Ye has taken a current trend and twisted it into his own perfection...and like every Kanye album, it's amazing. Kanye has done it again, providing a dark "alternative" album that leaves listeners questioning their first listen, and deeply falling in love every listen after. I highly suggest that everyone listen at least twice, and take in the beautiful music Ye hasLike every Kanye album...Ye has taken a current trend and twisted it into his own perfection...and like every Kanye album, it's amazing. Kanye has done it again, providing a dark "alternative" album that leaves listeners questioning their first listen, and deeply falling in love every listen after. I highly suggest that everyone listen at least twice, and take in the beautiful music Ye has blessed us with. Can't complain about this 10 track album when every song blows you away. Congrats Yeezy, you did it again. 10/10 Expand
  6. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Very experimental hip hop album, but it comes together very well. This album is dark and edgy, especially in the beginning. If you're looking for great lyrical content then this is not the album for you, because the lyrics are average at best, but what this album lacks in lyrical content it excels in production.
  7. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Ok everyone, if you don't like Yeezus, it's either you have a hatred for Kanye, you didn't give it a chance, or you want another college dropout album. Personally I think that this album is great not only for the incredible amount of time Kanye puts in, and not for the unmistakable genius throughout the entire album. This album also proves that Kanye can make any style of music. he hadOk everyone, if you don't like Yeezus, it's either you have a hatred for Kanye, you didn't give it a chance, or you want another college dropout album. Personally I think that this album is great not only for the incredible amount of time Kanye puts in, and not for the unmistakable genius throughout the entire album. This album also proves that Kanye can make any style of music. he had gone from soul to pop to straight up rap to industrial. He has made a great album in every genre of rap. This album is an easy 10, especially when you consider the risk he took in creating a whole new style. He could have easily made another fantastic album like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, but instead, he did his own thing and created my personal favorite album of all time. By the way, the purpose of that American Psycho video was to show that I am a god is not a song about how amazing Kanye is, it's about him going crazy and convincing himself that he is god. Expand
  8. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Listening to this album is the equivalent of licking iggy azalea's clean, then shoving your tongue into the small hair follicle opening (or pore) of your favorite gay porn stars nipple. "I just talked to Jesus, He said what up Yeezus" The sheer imagery of Mr. West calling to the son of god on an iphone makes me cum sperm biscuits. If you give this album anything less than a nuffy
  9. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Essentially, this is Kanye West following the same career trajectory as Radiohead, coming off the highpoint of the masterful OK Computer with the unexpected and momentous Kid A. Although Yeezus has for the most part received all the praise it deserves, ten years from now it will be heralded as both a genre definer and bender, and the artistic highpoint of West's remarkable career.
  10. Jun 18, 2013
    8
    This album moves hip-hop into a new era, its THAT good. Every song brings a new element into the genre, my personal favorites being Send It Up, I am A God, who am I kidding, they all are my favorites. Its not quite as good as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, but it's definitely his 2nd best album to date, 10/10.
  11. 929
    Jun 18, 2013
    10
    West is unquestionably doing whatever he wants here. And whether or not we actually need these 10 mongrel pop songs, it’s thrilling to watch the man discover new ways to stick out his neck. “Soon as they like you, make ’em unlike you,” he growls on “I Am a God,” describing the rope-a-dope methodology that’s made him today’s most complex pop star. (Fittingly, it’s the winning line from aWest is unquestionably doing whatever he wants here. And whether or not we actually need these 10 mongrel pop songs, it’s thrilling to watch the man discover new ways to stick out his neck. “Soon as they like you, make ’em unlike you,” he growls on “I Am a God,” describing the rope-a-dope methodology that’s made him today’s most complex pop star. (Fittingly, it’s the winning line from a song about a perennial self-loather being on a first-name basis with Jesus Christ.)

    “Yeezus” has already been branded as West’s ugliest album, but he’ll always be a populist at heart, incapable of releasing anything truly repulsive. For all of the charred melodies and serrated rhythms on “Yeezus,” this is still luscious electronic music sculpted into elegant shapes that only signal threat. French dance music duo Daft Punk and studio sage Rick Rubin were called on to collaborate, helping West evoke hip-hop’s icy, electro roots while echoing the sly, synthetic snarls of Depeche Mode and Nine Inch Nails.

    There’s still plenty of ugliness scribbled on West’s lyric sheet. He plumbs the depths of his id like a knife scraping the bottom of the peanut butter jar. He turns civil-rights-era mantras into gross pillow talk that no human should ever utter in real life. He promises to get the club “shaking like Parkinson’s.”

    “Black Skinhead” crams all of this attitude into one dystopian, Gary Glitter-ish jock jam that would be perfect for the stadium scene finale of “Akira,” the legendary Japanese anime film that West adores. “I keep it 300 like the Romans,” he spits during the refrain, a boast that blurs fantasy and reality, Hollywood retina candy and Chicago gang violence. (“300” is slang for Chicago’s Black Disciples street gang, as well as the title of a 2007 action flick in which ancient soldiers bathe one another in CGI blood.)

    Despite a handful of arresting quirks and kinks, the lyrics on “Yeezus” are West’s least refined and probably his least compelling. But they don’t feel lazy so much as drunk on bitterness. After engineering something as magisterial as his 2010 opus “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,” this is West at his most wasted, stumbling through rubble.

    It’s all over in about 40 minutes, instantly provoking questions about legacy. The last time West took a risk this great, with “808s & Heartbreak,” he taught hip-hop about the potency of vulnerability and ended up paving a four-lane highway for Drake, Kid Cudi, the Weeknd and Future. Will “Yeezus” teach a rising generation of rap stars to melt poison from their frozen hearts?

    And how will the auteur himself reconcile the unholy mess he’s been making? “Yeezus” might blow our collective hair back for the summer, but West has to live with these tunes for the rest of his life. His girlfriend, Kim Kardashian, delivered a daughter Saturday. How do cynicism and self-obsession jibe with being a dad?

    In addition to keeping us thinking about him, West’s music always keeps us thinking about the future. He’s a visionary who’s managed to tweak the serial rhythms that dictate so much of our pop culture diet. He doesn’t do cliffhangers. He jumps off.
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  12. Jun 18, 2013
    8
    i'm gonna break down each song and what i think. i have listened to all kanye west albums and i listen to many types of music to to get where i'm coming from.

    #1. on sight: i just wasn't feeling this track i actually think the beat is kinda boring i always skip this track 4/10 #2. Black Skinhead: another track i'm just not feeling but i don't think its a bad track i can listen to it
    i'm gonna break down each song and what i think. i have listened to all kanye west albums and i listen to many types of music to to get where i'm coming from.

    #1. on sight: i just wasn't feeling this track i actually think the beat is kinda boring i always skip this track 4/10

    #2. Black Skinhead: another track i'm just not feeling but i don't think its a bad track i can listen to it without the urge to skip 7/10

    #3.I Am A God: This is where the album starts for me the track jump right into hard bass and has the most classic line and funny line on the album "hurry up with my damn Croissants" the screams are a bit disturbing 9/10

    #4. New Slaves: strong track sick beat with barely any drums and kanye delivers his lines perfectly my personal favorite 10/10

    #5. hold my liquor i like this song but there's nothing to make it really stand out from other tracks 8/10

    #6. im in it: ahh this song is okay to me few good lines and okay beat i cant really understand what the high pitch singer is saying overall the song feels kinda sloppy 7/10

    #7.blood on the leaves: i think this track is a banger, one of my favs i play over and over again 9/10

    #8.guilt trip: feeling the beat alot. the lyrics are okay, song samples pusha t blocka. kid cudi comes in at the end and pulls the song together 8/10

    #9. Send it up: i can see how people could not like this song, its nosiey as i actually think this track is a club banger( maybe not in any hood or real hip hop clubs) king Louie going off Last night my came in twos and they both suck like they came to lose". i listen to a lot of dub step so the synth is not that annoying to me :-P 9/10

    #10 bound 2: i think its a all round classic yeezy track not to much to say about 9/10

    Overall i give the album a 8 its not like his last album which i think was his best work but it's still a interesting listen. takes a few plays to start feeling this album you gotta listen to each song before you can get a feel of the album don't just scrim though it
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  13. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Every song on this album is worth tons of listens. Imagine taking Kanye West's entire discography, weeding out all of the bad parts (excluding lyrics), then mashing them together in a rapid-fire listening experience. Teamed up with Daft Punk, the same people who made his megahit "Stronger" work, Kanye once again uses their abstract electronic production to great use on four-five tracks.Every song on this album is worth tons of listens. Imagine taking Kanye West's entire discography, weeding out all of the bad parts (excluding lyrics), then mashing them together in a rapid-fire listening experience. Teamed up with Daft Punk, the same people who made his megahit "Stronger" work, Kanye once again uses their abstract electronic production to great use on four-five tracks.

    On Sight is quite possibly the greatest opener for an album ever. The beat and flow just immediately catch your attention and drag you in. Not to mention there's a cool interpolation of "Stronger" at the end.
    Black Skinhead is the most obvious representation of angry Kanye. The instrumental is astounding and the lyrics are among Ye's best. Same thing with New Slaves.
    I Am a God is boastful and obnoxious (HURRY UP WITH MY DAMN CROISSANTS!) but at the same time mesmerizing.
    Only Kanye West can make a Chief Keef and Juston Vernon collaboration work. Hold My Liquor is that uber-catchy dark collaboration with three completely different hooks.
    I'm In It is twisted porn in music. The hook's singer is hysterical, and his verse is the fastest on the album but also hardest to understand with the accent. Kanye raps about eating Asian with sweet and sour sauce, too, so that's relatively funny.
    Blood on the Leaves is everything good about 808s and Heartbreak, with Guilt Trip as its little cousin of a song.
    Send it Up is loud. Not in the instrumental or the rapping, but Mr. Rick Rubin did quite a lot to the hook's volume. Why? Makes no sense if you listen to the song, but OK. Song is catchy but weak.
    Bound 2 is retro Kanye. He ends this album where he began but also provides a conclusion. The production samples a soul song just as Kanye did in his yesteryears. The amazing thing about this track, though, is that Kanye West's instrumental says that he's "bound to fall in love!" and his lyrics detail his struggle throughout the years relating to his relationship with Kim Kardashian. This track shows the journey Kanye has taken and where he has ended up over the years.

    Beyond the bragging, beyond the ego, beyond the award-show thief, you have Kanye West: a jazz/soul loving, heartbroken man who has finally found love.
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  14. Jun 27, 2013
    4
    Initially this album sounds amazing. The minimal production, the intensity it's a giant middle finger.
    I loved Black Skinheads and New Slaves. However, aside from those tunes you're mostly going to find lyrics about Kanye's dick and how he likes to put it places.
    The lyrical content is severely lacking. This is a nasty record that could use some more soul, or at least something to say.
  15. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Ground breaking album in hip hop, Kanye pushes the barriers of rap even further! Production is next level and Ye proves hes on a level of his own. Only downfall is the album is over before you know it.
  16. Apr 30, 2014
    0
    "I just talked to Jeezus, he said, "WHAT UP YEEZUS??!" I said, **** im chillin, tryna stack these millions" (Car crash sonic disaster blares in the background)
    I AM A GOD, I LIKE MASSAGE'S, KIM OPEN MY DAMN GARAGE, I LIKE RESTAURANTS, I AM A GOD!

    This is what critics like these days huh. Smh.
  17. Jun 18, 2013
    9
    Kanye tries to do something different with each of his albums. His last solo album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, is a masterpiece. I don't think he'd be able to create an album just as good as MBDTF just yet. However, Yeezus is definitely welcomed and a fresh listen. It's different, experimental, and wild. The production is phenomenal and the lyrics always have those hidden meaningsKanye tries to do something different with each of his albums. His last solo album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, is a masterpiece. I don't think he'd be able to create an album just as good as MBDTF just yet. However, Yeezus is definitely welcomed and a fresh listen. It's different, experimental, and wild. The production is phenomenal and the lyrics always have those hidden meanings you gotta search for, just like any other Kanye album. The album starts off strong with colab productions between Kanye and Daft Punk. The final track, Bound 2, is an ode to his old style (College Dropout/Late Registration) with some new spice, and is a great ending to the total 40 minutes this album will give you.

    Of course, this album isn't for everyone. It's darker than anything he's put out before. My first listen, I didn't feel the album. But now, after listening to it much more, I can definitely saw this album is worthy of a 9. People who don't like this album are just scared of experimentation and change.
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  18. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Hurry up with my damn croissants.
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    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . :hah:
  19. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Yeezus is an evolved feature of the sounds and ideas from many of his past projects. The production that comes with Yeezus is a perfect pairing for the emotion and intesity that Kayes brings to the table.
  20. Jun 18, 2013
    9
    Yeezus proves to be a raw, visceral, and brash album that takes its place in Kanye's discography as one of his best. Kanye uses some of his most interesting samples yet in creating this mechanical-esque masterpiece.
  21. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Innovation in hip hop amazing album do not listen to the haters they are just late comers and are gonna love it in the end! this album changes everything you thought you knew hip hop it will blow your mind.
  22. Jun 18, 2013
    10
    Yeezus.
    This album obviously isn't for the faint of heart, or those who enjoyed the vast orchestras of MBDTF. Kanye West takes a hard left in his music career to a minimalist-based but hard driven music style. This album is like 808's and Heartbreak meets Random Access Memories(Daft Punk) with a dash of Toxicity(System of a Down). Yeezus isn't for everyone, but if it is for you, it will
    Yeezus.
    This album obviously isn't for the faint of heart, or those who enjoyed the vast orchestras of MBDTF. Kanye West takes a hard left in his music career to a minimalist-based but hard driven music style. This album is like 808's and Heartbreak meets Random Access Memories(Daft Punk) with a dash of Toxicity(System of a Down). Yeezus isn't for everyone, but if it is for you, it will fulfill every single one of your music dreams.
    Track Ratings:
    On Site 7/10( Far too much energy, but respectable seeing where the album comes from), Black Skinhead 10/10, I am a God 9/10, New Slaves 10/10, Hold my Liquor 10/10(Potential Single), Im in it 9/10, Blood on the Leaves 10/10, Guilt Trip 9.5/10, Send it Up 10/10(Definite Dance Track), Bound 2 10/10(College Dropout 2 Anyone?)
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  23. Jul 30, 2013
    10
    Expect the unexpected. Open your mind. Free your mind of any prejudices. Be open and listen to the lyrics closely. Kanye is here to speak his mind in a very raw way. It's industrial in sound and very punchy in it's delivery. This isn't for the laid back listen. But it can be once you are used to it. It's different from his previous albums but there are familiar elements mixed in. KanyeExpect the unexpected. Open your mind. Free your mind of any prejudices. Be open and listen to the lyrics closely. Kanye is here to speak his mind in a very raw way. It's industrial in sound and very punchy in it's delivery. This isn't for the laid back listen. But it can be once you are used to it. It's different from his previous albums but there are familiar elements mixed in. Kanye West is still in top form here. The good far outweighs the bad. It's hardcore Kanye.....but spoken through....well....YEEZUS. Expand
  24. Jul 22, 2013
    10
    After the Picasso-art of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Kanye West reinvents itself again, with an album much more Hip-Hop and Minimal than MBDTF thet reminiscent in some ways Watch The Throne and 808s & Heartbreak. Songs like On Sight, Black Skinhead and Blood on the Leaves are examples of good and innovative production, that's right, the production that perhaps on this album is theAfter the Picasso-art of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Kanye West reinvents itself again, with an album much more Hip-Hop and Minimal than MBDTF thet reminiscent in some ways Watch The Throne and 808s & Heartbreak. Songs like On Sight, Black Skinhead and Blood on the Leaves are examples of good and innovative production, that's right, the production that perhaps on this album is the most innovative of the year with Daft Punk, No.ID, 88 Keys and Kanye same in the height of the form. In conclusion, Yeezus of abstract-art is an album of pure genius that we have never heard. A classic to remember for many, many years. Expand
  25. Jul 5, 2013
    10
    This is the first time, I am reviewing a brand new album. I usually take some time to get used to an album but some albums are such that they stick with you even when you listen to them just once. After listening to this album nearly seven times now, I think I am in a position to review it properly. Basically its great!!

    Yes, he is back with his 6th album. By this time as a fan I knew
    This is the first time, I am reviewing a brand new album. I usually take some time to get used to an album but some albums are such that they stick with you even when you listen to them just once. After listening to this album nearly seven times now, I think I am in a position to review it properly. Basically its great!!

    Yes, he is back with his 6th album. By this time as a fan I knew that this album like all his other albums has to be different or break some trends and most likely set a few new trends. 3 years after creating arguably one of the greatest rap albums of all time. He is back again doing what he does best, defy the norms and he still refuses to make the rap albums that everybody else seems to make. Its only been 3 days since the album was released but I can say this with full conviction:

    I took notice of this genius when I heard his second album: Late Registration. Shortly, its my favourite rap album of all time.

    With this album, Kanye West de-constructs the rap/hip-hop conventions, chops them up and makes something that’s sonically akin to Massive Attack’s: “Mezzanine” than say, any of his other albums. He created his own genre twice before with “808s & Heartbreak” and “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” and this one is inventive and different in the same vein as these two albums.
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  26. Jul 21, 2013
    10
    Kanye does it again. Yeezus is a triumph of unparalleled musical imagination, created by the ultimate music nerd who thinks nothing of genres and styles and gleefuly mashes everything he wants like a mad alchemist, creating an unholy concoction that works even though it really shouldn't. Who else would even dare to have Bon Iver's Justin Vernon and Chicago drill poster boy Chief Keef singKanye does it again. Yeezus is a triumph of unparalleled musical imagination, created by the ultimate music nerd who thinks nothing of genres and styles and gleefuly mashes everything he wants like a mad alchemist, creating an unholy concoction that works even though it really shouldn't. Who else would even dare to have Bon Iver's Justin Vernon and Chicago drill poster boy Chief Keef sing on the same track? Who would imagine that you could mix TNGHT and Nina Simone? Who would slap a hefty chunk of a track by a 1970s Hungarian prog rock band at the end of his own composition and then sing all over it? Only Yeezus. Expand
  27. Jun 19, 2013
    9
    Yeezy has done it again and like all his previous albums its something totally different than the others.... The music production is exceptional his lyrics darker than ever. Kanye West always pours his heart and effort into each album and this was no exception and in this one Kanye is at his best creativity efforts lyrical, musical and promotion wise. This album although is a great pieceYeezy has done it again and like all his previous albums its something totally different than the others.... The music production is exceptional his lyrics darker than ever. Kanye West always pours his heart and effort into each album and this was no exception and in this one Kanye is at his best creativity efforts lyrical, musical and promotion wise. This album although is a great piece of work isnt as good as MBDTW but still a Kanye album is a Kanye album. I just dont get all the ignorant haters.... Expand
  28. Jun 20, 2013
    9
    I honestly think this album goes right over people's heads............................................................................................
  29. Aug 28, 2013
    0
    I can't understand where all of the positive hype about this album is coming from. I understand how original Yeezus is and all the risks 'Ye took in releasing this with no true single and such... I get it. However, that doesn't instantly forgive the abominable lyricism of this collection of songs. Kanye used to produce and write some of the most inspirational and well produced music in theI can't understand where all of the positive hype about this album is coming from. I understand how original Yeezus is and all the risks 'Ye took in releasing this with no true single and such... I get it. However, that doesn't instantly forgive the abominable lyricism of this collection of songs. Kanye used to produce and write some of the most inspirational and well produced music in the hip hop genre. Now he takes a leap of faith that falls incredibly short and people are loving the fact that he jumped, not the music itself. It is definitely original and it pushes the boundaries, but none of these songs are songs that you can really listen to and enjoy.... Expand
  30. Feb 23, 2015
    0
    It's because of this album's metacritic score I've decided to kill myself. As long as albums by Drake and Kanye are getting higher ratings than great artists like Eminem I don't want to live here. Lyrically his album is trash. Kanye used to be decent but now he's just horrible.
Metascore
84

Universal acclaim - based on 46 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 43 out of 46
  2. Negative: 1 out of 46
  1. The Wire
    Dec 10, 2013
    50
    His concerns are serious--consumerism, race, fame, relationships--but he rarely addresses them with the craft or focus they deserve. [Sep 2013, p.66]
  2. Q Magazine
    Aug 20, 2013
    80
    Contradiction incarnate, Yeezus is Kanye's most Kanyeish LP yet. [Sep 2013, p.103]
  3. Mojo
    Aug 13, 2013
    80
    Nasty, brutish, short, and wholly compelling, Yeezus begs only one question: where next? [Sep 2013, p.89]