Yeezus
"Kanye West’s Industrial Fury Unleashed"
"Kanye West’s Industrial Fury Unleashed"
Released June 18, 2013, via Def Jam and Roc-A-Fella, Kanye West’s Yeezus, a 10 track, 40 minute industrial blast, hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 327,000 first week units. Co-produced by Rick Rubin and Mike Dean, it’s 3x Platinum by 2025 with 3.8 billion streams, a red toned rebellion born in a Paris loft.
Kanye, with Rick Rubin, Mike Dean, Daft Punk, and Hudson Mohawke, forged Yeezus in a Paris loft. On Sight erupts with synth screeches, Black Skinhead pounds with tribal drums, Bound 2 twists Ponderosa Twins into glitchy romance. Rubin’s cuts strip it raw, a red toned shift from MBDTF’s sheen, shaping Travis Scott and Death Grips.
A red slashed clear case, crafted with Virgil Abloh, screams Yeezus’s ethos: defiance and liberation. Black Skinhead rages “I’m a king,” dismantling racial chains, New Slaves snarls at consumerism, I Am a God struts, Blood on the Leaves melds Nina Simone with ruin. It’s Kanye’s red toned sonic revolution.
Yeezus ignites with Frank Ocean’s ghostly New Slaves outro, Chief Keef’s raw Can’t hold my liquor on Hold My Liquor, Kid Cudi’s hums on Guilt Trip, and Justin Vernon’s wails on I’m In It. They fuel Kanye’s red toned chaos without stealing the throne.
Black Skinhead and Bound 2, thundering drums and warped soul hook instantly, a red toned entry to Kanye’s industrial rebellion for fresh ears.
On Sight and I Am a God, abrasive synths and blasphemous swagger plunge deep, rewarding fans with Kanye’s rawest red fury.
Guilt Trip and Send It Up, glitchy beats and layered snarls glow red, treasures for those who dig beneath.
Black Skinhead (Live 2025), a March 2025 anniversary set reignites this red toned anthem with live chaos, gripping fans in 2025.
College Dropout (2004) sparked with soul, 808s & Heartbreak (2008) chilled with auto-tune, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010) soared maximalist. Post-Watch the Throne (2011), Yeezus torched it all, industrial and lean, setting the stage for TLOP (2016) and Donda (2021).
Pitchfork’s 9.5/10 dubbed Yeezus disruptive, Metacritic’s 84 echoed praise. With 3.8 billion streams by March 2025, a Black Skinhead live surge in 2025 cements its red toned spark, inspiring Travis Scott’s Rodeo and Death Grips’ chaos.
Yeezus nabbed two 2014 Grammy nods, its 3x Platinum and 3.8 billion streams by 2025 cementing Kanye’s red toned legacy.
| Category | Year | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Best Rap Album | 2014 | Nominated |
| Best Rap Song (Black Skinhead) | 2014 | Nominated |
| Album | Highest Charting Song | Peak Position | Streams (as of 2025) | Certification | Units Sold |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MBDTF (2010) | Runaway | 12 | 4.2B | 5x Platinum | 5.1M |
| Yeezus (2013) | Bound 2 | 12 | 3.8B | 3x Platinum | 3.2M |
| Album | Certification | Units (Millions) |
|---|---|---|
| The College Dropout (2004) | 4x Platinum | 4.0 |
| Late Registration (2005) | 4x Platinum | 4.2 |
| Graduation (2007) | 6x Platinum | 6.1 |
| 808s & Heartbreak (2008) | 3x Platinum | 3.7 |
| MBDTF (2010) | 5x Platinum | 5.1 |
| Yeezus (2013) | 3x Platinum | 3.2 |
Data sourced from Billboard, RIAA, Spotify, Pitchfork, and Metacritic, verified as of March 2025.