Episodes
Part 1 of Jeen-Yuhs detailed Kanye West's drive to get his own record deal. Turns out: that was just half the battle. In Part 2, Ye goes through the hell of actually recording the album. In this episode, we review all of the beautiful moments in Part 2 and how it perfectly sets up the final third of the Kanye documentary trilogy. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube...
Published 02/24/22
We just heard Donda 2!!!! Sort of? Kind of? So...now what? It's a waiting game with Kanye. But until then, we're going to talk about our reactions to the Miami show by taking your questions. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 02/23/22
I don't know if you heard, but...Kanye invited us to Miami (kind of). And we showed up. So now what? We're not sure. But we're going to live it up and see the Donda 2 show while we're here. Oh, and we're going to answer your questions about our potential interview in this AMA! If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 02/22/22
What a glorious day! The first part of the epic 4.5-hour documentary about Kanye West is finally here. And yes, it's just as incredible as we expected. In this episode, we talk about our favorite moments of "jeen-yuhs - act i: VISION." If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 02/17/22
Did you hear the news? One half of the Watching the Throne team has now met Kanye!!! So what exactly happened? How did this fortuitous, wonderful event bless Chris Lambert? Travis learns all about it in this very special episode. Plus, we discuss Kanye's Instagram storm this past weekend. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad...
Published 02/15/22
In one week, the long-awaited documentary about Kanye West hits Netflix. And guess what?! The two directors of Jeen-Yuhs, Coodie & Chike, sat down with Chris for a short conversation about the filming experience and what they hope people take away from the film. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 02/11/22
It's the most wonderful time of the year! No, not Christmas...the Best Kanye West Song Tournament Death Match Extreme!!! In this 2022 version of the tournament, Chris and Travis sit down with their favorite recurring guest Jordan Johnson and vote on which Kanye song is the best. Will blood be shed? Yes. Is this episode way too long? Of course. Will you be infuriated? Undoubtedly. But will you be entertained? We think so. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then...
Published 02/08/22
Just when you thought it was over... That's right. After a long, grueling journey of missed release dates, song changes, and Drake beef, Kanye West finally gave us Donda in 2021. And just a few months later...we're going through it all over again. So is Donda 2 really coming on Feb. 22? What do we know about the album so far? In this episode, we break it all down—and get our hopes up that Donda 2 might actually exist later this month. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode...
Published 02/01/22
JEEN-YUHS has had its Sundance premier. And I got to see it! So here are my initial thoughts about part 1 and some broader thoughts on the trilogy as a whole. We'll get into Coodie, Chike, J Ivy, Ye, what years the documentary covers, when it comes out, other reactions, if fans will like it, and more. #Kanye #JeenYuhs #Genius #Reaction #React NOTE: This episode was originally recorded for our YouTube channel. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our...
Published 01/25/22
As Ye ramps up for Donda 2, he's giving us some great music in the meantime! This week it comes in the form of Eazy, a collaboration with The Game that features production from Mike Dean, Hit-Boy, and DJ Premier. We discuss this classic verse from Kanye, which features a number of great lines and could point towards the direction of his music moving forward. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in...
Published 01/18/22
Donda released just over three months ago. And 27 episodes later...we're exhausted! In a good way :) That's right! It's the season finale of our Donda coverage. For this episode, we look back at our favorite moments and revelations from Kanye's latest masterpiece. And then we rank every single song on the album—which, as you can guess, took a while. Enjoy! If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in...
Published 12/16/21
After 22 long, grueling, enlightening song discussions...we've finally reached the end! Today we're breaking down the final song on Donda's main narrative: No Child Left Behind. We discuss how Kanye and Vory put a cap on the album's thematic threads with this spare, direct, uplifting experience. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad...
Published 12/13/21
During the course of our season-long dissection of Donda, we've penciled in our thoughts. Well, now it's time to write 'em down in pen for our Come to Life episode—and for that, we'll need a little help. For this extra-sized episode, Cole Cuchna from the Dissect podcast joins us to break down what may be the most important song of Kanye's career. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form...
Published 12/07/21
The truth is only what you get away with, huh? Well, we've got a truth for you: Pure Souls is an awesome song. And not just because the track is a bop—it's because Pure Souls pays off on so many narrative and thematic threads on Donda. In this episode, we break down why Kanye, Roddy Ricch, and Shenseea's pure soul status is such a climactic moment on this album. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast...
Published 12/02/21
For years, Kanye sought stability in his life—and Kim brought that. But now, as they move on from each other, we see Kanye putting those years together into perspective. What happened? And what's next? Lord I Need You is a crucial song on an album where Kanye is at a spiritual crossroads. And we're going to break down every line of this tragic song. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form...
Published 11/30/21
Ah, everybody's favorite song on Donda!! Just kidding—people seem to *hate* Tell the Vision. But we're here to prove why it's an essential track on an album where Kanye is discovering and fueling his spiritual purpose here on earth as Pop Smoke looks on from beyond the grave. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 11/22/21
What Kanye lyricize...we'll analyze! That's right, today we're dissecting New Again—the track that leads us into the final movement of Donda where Kanye, indeed, seeks to be made new again after a trying time in his life. We also discuss the mysterious woman in the lyrics, The Weeknd's possible influence on the song, and a host of other topics that are most definitely (not at all) related to Kanye. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon...
Published 11/19/21
One episode? Not enough for this masterpiece. Based on the hours of discussion we've already had about Donda this season, Jesus Lord has proven to be the most important song on the album. Kanye's verse (which we discussed in Part 1) brought all of the album's major themes to the forefront, and now Jay Electronica will build on those ideas with his lyrical homily and Larry Hoover Jr. will close things out with his plea for social justice. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this...
Published 11/17/21
Just when you thought you had everything figured out...Kanye throws a wrench into EVERYTHING!!! Yesterday we got the "Deluxe" version of Donda, which includes some new songs, changes to old songs, and a complete reworking of the track order. So what do we make of all this? We go through all those changes in this episode and discuss how we feel about the project as a whole. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 11/15/21
Chris takes your questions about Ye's second appearance on Drink Champs and everything that happened during and after that interview. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on our YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 11/12/21
You really thought we could do this in one episode? Nah. Jesus Lord is an epic track. It's the Runaway of Donda—the Sun around which all of the other planets revolve. Jesus Lord gathers all of the album's themes and motifs in a grand setting where Kanye, Jay Electronica, and Larry Hoover Jr. can speak on grief, on spirituality, on achieving social justice in an unfair world. In this episode, we break down Ye's legendary verse. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free),...
Published 11/11/21
Keep My Spirit Alive is a song that's absolutely chock-full of underlying meaning and introspection. The self-awareness of Westside Gunn's verse, Conway the Machine's determination to move on from a near-death experience, Kanye and his mother's ode to KRS-One—it's all there, and it's all beautiful. And in this episode, we break it all down. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast in video form over on...
Published 11/08/21
A classic Kanye interview—it's what we hope and pray for each day. And today...we have one! That's right, Ye went on Drink Champs and talked about a number of topics, from his beef with Drake (and other people he apparently has beef with) to his relationship with Kim to a host of other social and political topics. And yes, he answered every question in the most Ye way possible. On this episode, we take questions from listeners and run through the best parts of the interview. If you'd like to...
Published 11/05/21
In October 2007, Donda West gave an incredible speech where she discussed social justice in the context of both hip hop and her family. And, obviously, that meant talking about her son: Kanye West. Fourteen years later, Ye sampled that speech for the song Donda in the most epic way possible. On this episode, we break down this climactic track and how it kickstarts the final act of the album. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon...
Published 11/03/21
The song Heaven and Hell Is on Earth by 20th Century Steel Band has been sampled dozens of times by the biggest artists in hip hop and R&B—and we can now add Ye to that list. And in classic Kanye fashion, this reference is crucial to understanding both the song Heaven and Hell and the album narrative on Donda. We break it all down in this supersized episode. If you'd like to support the show (and hear this episode ad-free), then join our Patreon community. You can also watch this podcast...
Published 11/01/21