In the 50th year of hip-hop, a slew of developments have marked the event. While the first half of the year gave way to Travis Scott and Metro Boomin for their celebrated rap albums, the latter half is shaping up to be very eventful. Close on the heels of Nicki Minaj releasing her sequel to ‘Pink Friday’, Kanye West came charging in with ‘Vultures’ alongside Ty Dolla $ign. The hotly anticipated album landed with a bang but soon dispersed in a bubble of disappointment for the fans.

At a time when tracks from the rapper are yet to land on streaming platforms or physical stores, some have taken to wondering what the rave back in Miami was all about.

Kanye West listening parties make way for a wave of raves

The legacy of Kanye West remains unshaken with a staggering haul of 24 Grammy Awards and over 160 million records sold and counting. The climb to success from a freestyle rapper to one of the biggest names in the industry came with mercurial fandom for Ye. Over the years, to better understand as well as sculpt his tunes specifically for his listeners, the ‘Flashing Lights’ singer took to listening parties. The event which began with 2019’s ‘Jesus Is King’ previewed yet-to-be-released songs for fans worldwide to listen and provide feedback to.

Reportedly, the rapper and his team would then actively use the inputs in attuning the tracks for record-smashing success. In 2021, Kanye West famously gathered a 20,000-odd crowd with a minimal announcement at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta for ‘Donda’. The celebrated album would see even more such previews with another in the same city and more in Las Vegas and Chicago. The resulting consensus not only fanned popularity, but also worked as quality control.

In the latest such instance, for his upcoming collaboration with Ty Dolla $ign, Kanye West took a similar route for ‘Vultures’. However, instead of a listening party, the event promoted itself as a rave. Yet, the reason stands more than just cosmetic. A rave usually refers to a live event with a DJ, music, a low-key venue such as a warehouse or basement, flashing lights, and no-holds-barred high-octane emotion and dance. Meanwhile, a concert stands more regulated and utilizes several vocalists, instrumentalists, and singers collaborating live on stage.

Thus, the recently concluded event in Wynwood Marketplace in Miami was definitely more along the lines of a rave than a traditional concert. From the hush-rush announcement, live glitches, and impromptu arrangements, the rebranding bears sense. Soon after, another event of similar stature played out in Las Vegas with more apparently on the tow.

In the meantime, while appeasing on one end, run-out patience adorned fans on the other.

Ye lists Vultures for imminent release only to pull them back

Amid much fanfare and fervent response to the Miami rave, ‘Vultures’ made way for a track-list release on Apple Music. The entire list of songs was available to pre-save with promises of going live on 15th December. However, much to the chagrin of fans, the entire catalog stood pulled back soon after. A wave of reactions flooded social media with fans demanding an answer and expressing their displeasure.

Regardless, fresh updates hinted at the rapper and team taking ‘Vultures’ offline to perform a quality check. In all likelihood, user feedback and audio enhancements would make their way before a final release. Meanwhile, a fresh new song from the upcoming album landed leaked previews. As of now, there is no official word on a release, nor is there another track-list update on major platforms. All lies in Ye’s hands to land his album either in 2023 or 2024.

What are your reactions to Kanye West terming his ‘Vultures’ preview as a rave instead of a listening party? Let us know in the comments below.