Is Kanye West Bound 2 take home another Grammy?
The 44-year-old artist—who already has a whopping 22 trophies—is heading into the 64th annual award show with five nominations. Not only is Kanye's 10th studio album, Donda, up for Album of the Year and Best Rap Album, but his hits "Jail" and "Hurricane" are also in the running for Best Rap Song and Best Melodic Rap Performance, respectively. What's more, Kanye co-produced a song on Lil Nas X's Montero, another contender for Album of the Year.
Fans will have to tune in to the Grammys on April 3 see if Kanye wins—or even attends. The last time the rapper came to the ceremony was in 2015, and quite a few things have changed since then. For starters, while he and Kim Kardashian packed on the PDA on the Grammys red carpet seven years ago, the two have since split. The reality star was declared legally single in March and is now dating Pete Davidson.
If Kanye does come to the Grammys, he may not be taking the stage to perform. According to his rep, Kanye's Grammys set was canceled by the show's organizers after his recent online activity. (The Recording Academy hasn't ever listed Kanye on this year's Grammy lineup).
Ahead of music's biggest night, here's a recap of some of the lyrics from Donda.
On the track, Kanye raps, "Heated by the rumors, read into it too much / Fiendin' for some true love, ask Kim, 'What do you love?' / Hard to find what the truth is, but the truth was that the truth suck / Always seem to do stuff, but this time it was too much."
Kanye also raps, "Here I go actin' too rich, here I go with a new chick." While he does not name the mystery woman, the album was released more than two months after the rapper was spotted vacationing with supermodel Irina Shayk. The two cooled things off after a couple of months.
A source close to her told E! News, "It was never serious. [Kanye] wanted to pursue something with Irina that wasn't going to happen. He got very busy with work, and they were in different places. It kind of fizzled out from there. They are still friendly and there's a lot of mutual respect. It just was never going to turn into a full-blown relationship."
Also on "Hurricane," Kanye references the Southern California home he and Kim bought in 2014 and later renovated to feature a mostly white interior. Architectural Digest featured it in a 2020 issue, alongside an interview with the duo.
"Architectural Digest, but I needed home improvement," Kanye raps. "Sixty-million-dollar home, never went home to it."
In 2019, Kanye purchased a $14 million ranch in Wyoming. He later spent much time there. In January, a month before Kim filed for divorce, a source told E! News that it had gotten to the point where the pair hadn't spent time together as a married couple in months, adding, "They've seen each other for the sake of the kids but have been living separately. Kim knows the marriage is over. She's known for a while."
"Off the Grid" includes the lyrics, "Had to move away from people that's miserable" and "We off the grid, grid, grid / This for my kid, kid, kid, kid / For when my kid, kid, kids have kids / Everything we did for the crib."
On this track, Kanye raps, "I pray that my family they never resent me / And she fell in love with me as soon she met me."
On the track, Kanye sings, "Brought a gift to Northie, all she want was Nikes."
"When you said give me a ring, you really meant a ring, huh?" Kanye raps. "Turned out to be more than just a fling, huh?"
The song also contains the lyrics "You know you'll always be my favorite prom queen."
On the track, Kanye raps, "But you came here to show that you still in love with me."
"Cussin' at your baby mama," Kanye raps. "Guess that's why they call it custody."
He and Kim have yet to finalize their divorce. Both are seeking joint custody of their kids.
On the song, Kanye alludes to a relationship break or breakup. The track includes the lyrics, "Startin' to feel like you ain't been happy for me lately, darlin' / 'Member when you used to come around and serenade me, woah / But I guess it's gone different in a different direction lately / Tryna do the right thing with the freedom that you gave me."
On "Jail," Kanye sings, "Guess who's getting 'exed? / You made a choice that's your bad, single life ain't so bad."