UPDATE: 12:08 p.m. — Kanye West‘s ninth and high anticipated album Jesus is King was officially released around noon (ET) on Friday, Oct. 25, 2019.
Jesus is King is now available through Spotify and Apple Music.
ORIGINAL STORY:
Kanye West, the rapper and music producer, was expected to release his ninth studio album Jesus is King on Friday. However, for the fifth time in the span of a year, the record did not drop.
Five times, starting with the initial release date of Sept. 29, 2018, the Yeezus rapper has promised his fans the new album. Initially, it was known as Yandhi, and was first rescheduled to Nov. 23, 2018, when it was not released.
Throughout 2019, West, 42, fell silent on the album and focused on his Sunday Service performances. He offered no updates on Yandhi whatsoever, leaving many fans confused until Kim Kardashian, his wife, announced that the album — now under the title Jesus is King — would be released on Sept. 27 of this year.
The album was then delayed for a third time until Sept. 29. Though some fans were able to hear a cut of Jesus is King that weekend at a handful of invite-only Sunday Service events, it never ended up being released to the public.
Oct. 25 was then announced as the new release date, and yet Jesus is King is still unavailable. Fans are more upset than ever before and have taken to social media expressing their frustration and disappointment.
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“Dear Kanye West,” wrote one fan on Twitter. “Do you take pride in the fact you constantly lie to your fans?”
“Where’s Yandhi?” they continued. “Where’s the JrE podcast? Where’s Jesus is King? Where’s your pride, man? #Ye #JesusDoesntLikeLiars.”
Here’s what some other Twitter users had to say about the most recent delay:
“Thought i was gonna be playing Kanye tonight, but Kanye played me,” tweeted another user, adding “#JesusIsKing.”
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West even made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! to talk about the album on the day of its scheduled release.
The show, which is usually hosted in its Los Angeles studio, was in Brooklyn, New York for the week, where host Jimmy Kimmel introduced the Gold Digger rapper as a surprise to his audience.
Seemingly frustrated himself, Kimmel, 51, asked: “When is this album coming out? Is it coming out tomorrow?”
WATCH: Kanye West tells Jimmy Kimmel that ‘Jesus is King’ is ‘out now’ in front of studio audience
“It’s gonna be dropping 12 p-… 12 a.m,” replied West.
“So right now,” said Kimmel. “Right now it is available?”
“Oh, it’s out now,” said West with a wide grin.
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Unlike Jesus is King, Kimmel’s interview dropped shortly after midnight.
At 1:18 a.m. ET, West tweeted out to his fans, claiming that he was still working on three mixes for the album.
“To my fans, thank you for being loyal and patient. We are specifically fixing mixes on Everything We Need, Follow God, and Water,” he wrote.
“We’re not going to sleep until this album is out.”
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At 2:50 a.m., American comedian and producer Hannibal Buress shared a short video from West’s studio, which featured a snippet from the album. West is seen in a swivel chair at a desk, staring at a laptop. “Jesus is King snippet,” wrote Buress.
While Jesus is King is still not available, Def Jam Recordings — West’s label — has posted a “Jesus is King” playlist to the artist’s Apple Music and Spotify pages individually. The compilation features 66 songs from West’s catalogue.
A Jesus is King IMAX film was expected to be released in select theatres worldwide along with the album, however it’s unknown if the movie will still be screening.
You can watch the trailer in the video above.
It’s unclear if Jesus is King will be released before Oct. 26. No additional release date has been revealed.