Kanye West is reportedly working on a collaborative album with James Blake.
Fat Money, a Chicago native who worked on Ye’s Donda 2 album, revealed the news on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday (November 15).
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In his post, the rapper and songwriter said he wants West to finish the project before the end of the year, while hyping it up as high-quality music fans around the world “deserve.”
“All I want for Christmas is for Ye to finish dis James Blake album,” he wrote. “The world deserve dis shit smh.”
In addition to picking up credits on Donda 2, Fat Money has worked with top producers like Zaytoven and Cardo. He was also spotted in the studio with Dr. Dre last year.
Kanye West debuted unreleased material with James Blake at a Burberry party during London Fashion Week in September 2022.
Ye surprised attendees by stepping up to the DJ booth and plugging his phone into the aux cord, and playing three new songs.
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After footage of the moment circulated online, James Blake took to social media to provide some context to the music.
“Doesn’t sample ‘always’. It’s new. Also produced it,” he tweeted about one of the songs. “As with the other two. It’s my birthday and @kanyewest is playing tracks we made I’m good for presents thanks.”
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Kanye West previously called the British singer/producer — who has also worked with JAY-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Travis Scott and André 3000 — his “favorite artist” during an interview with Wired 96.5 in 2013.
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The love is mutual as Blake spoke highly about the Chicago rap mogul the following year and revealed they had recorded music together.
“I have a lot of respect for [Kanye], for what he has been releasing for years,” he told the Miami New Times. “We haven’t done a great deal of work in the same room yet, but we’ve done a few things, kind of helped each other with our own music.
“In terms of the actual collaboration for [The Colour in Anything], it looks like we should be able to get something done. I know that there’s a specific song I would like him to be on, and if he can do that by the time my record comes out, that would be fantastic.”
Kanye was even supposed to appear on “Timeless” from Blake’s aforementioned 2016 album, but things didn’t work out.
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“Something was supposed to happen; I don’t really know how to describe how that didn’t work out,” Blake told Pitchfork in 2016. “I wanted Kanye to be on the song ‘Timeless,’ but the verse didn’t materialize. I think a huge swath of things happened in his life, and I just stayed out of it.
“Eventually, the mood of the album changed, and in the end I don’t think it would have fit. But I didn’t say I was working with Kanye just so people would get interested — I really wanted him to be on it.”
Kanye West is also set to drop a collaborative album with Ty Dolla $ign that the latter has said is “coming real soon.”
