There were three public listening parties held for Kanye West's tenth studio album Donda (2021) that were held in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, and Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois. The concerts were held between July and August 2021. They are collectively known as the Donda listening parties, or Donda LPs for short.
Ye had previously had listening parties for Jesus Is King (2019) in fall 2019, and would go on to have just one for Donda 2 (2022) in February 2022.
Las Vegas[]
The first listening party was held at ChurchLV in Las Vegas on July 19, 2021, from 6:30 to 8pm.[1] The show required registration and was invite-only.[2] Given the exclusive nature of this show, this is the one with the least footage. Of the photos and videos shared online, Ye was shown by himself donning a facemask playing music off his laptop, not singing.[3][4] This is a practice that was largely consistent with the later shows.
Setlist[]
Bolded entries may not be labeled correctly. Adapted from a Reddit post and may not be in proper order[5]:
- Come To Life
- South Carolina (ft. Pusha T)
- Hurricane (ft. Lil Baby)
- Moon (ft. Don Toliver)
- Life Of The Party
- New Again
- Never Abandon Your Family
- This Is The Glory
- Daylight (ft. Vory)
- Keep My Spirit Alive (ft. Conway, the Machine, Kaycyy, & Westside Gunn)
- 24
- Lord I Need You (ft. Pusha T)
- God Got Me
- God Breathed (ft. Vory)
- Donda Chant
- Praise God (ft. Baby Keem)[6]
- No Child Left Behind
- Jesus Lord
Atlanta (1 of 2)[]
The first public listening party for Donda was at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, which eventually served as the site for the second listening party as well. At this show, Ye donned a red puffer vest and a black mask as he walked around a stage that was entirely white for most of the program[7], though it was changed to feature some visuals sporadically throughout the show.
The show itself also started very late, past its original schedule, prompting some fans to think he'd just cancel the show.
Setlist[]
Bolded entries indicate they may not be correct. Adapted from RateYourMusic[8]:
- 24
- South Carolina (ft. Pusha T)
- Junya (ft. Playboi Carti)
- Remote Control
- Praise God (ft. Travis Scott & Baby Keem)
- Welcome to My Life
- Hurricane (ft. Lil Baby & KayCyy Pluto)
- Moon (ft. Don Toliver)
- Jonah (ft. Vory, Lil Durk & Ty Dolla $ign)
- Pure Souls (ft. Roddy Ricch)
- New Again
- Tell the Vision (ft. Pop Smoke)
- God Breathed (ft. Vory)
- No Child Left Behind (ft. Vory)
- Jail (ft. JAY-Z)
Track Versions[]
- "24" was over six minutes long.
- "Moon" did not yet feature Kid Cudi.
Atlanta (2 of 2)[]
Ye had moved into the Mercedes-Benz Stadium[9], spotted attending an Atlanta United soccer game on July 24.[10] Starting the morning of the concert on August 5[11], a livestream showed Ye working on the album, conversing with other artists and celebrities (including Chance The Rapper, Steve Lacy, and Vic Mensa)[12], working out, and even sleeping.[13][14]
The concert began at 9:30pm and once again featured Ye standing center-stage in a mask (this time in an all-black outfit) and not singing out loud at all. His room was recreated on stage as well. On the final song, "No Child Left Behind," Ye was elevated to the ceiling of the stadium by harness, seemingly referring to ascending to heaven.[15][16]
Setlist[]
Ye had shuffled the setlist and made changes to some tracks, breaking apart the speculated Hurricane to Moon as outro chain; making "No Child Left Behind" the closing track; adding Kid Cudi to "Moon"[17];
Adapted from a Reddit post[18]:
- South Carolina (ft. Pusha T)
- Moon (ft. Don Toliver & Kid Cudi)
- Praise God
- Ok Ok
- Junya
- Jonah
- Heaven and Hell
- Off the Grid
- Remote Control
- Donda Chant
- New Again
- Pure Souls
- Keep My Spirit Alive
- Never Abandon Your Family
- Jesus Lord
- God Breathed
- Tell the Vision
- Jail
- Lord I Need You
- Hurricane
- 24
- No Child Left Behind
Track Versions[]
In alphabetical order:
- "Moon" now includes Kid Cudi and Ye vocals.
Chicago[]
Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois, was the site of the final Donda listening party in which Ye was joined by features on the album including DaBaby, Marilyn Manson, Shenseea, and more. The set had included a recreation of his childhood home in the city on a mound, surrounded by fences that were met with performers and cars parked outside.
At the end of the concert, Ye pretended to had set himself on fire as part of an emotional reveal of the new track "Come To Life." After that, his ex-wife Kim Kardashian emerged in a wedding dress and walked towards Ye before the show concluded.
Setlist[]
Once again some alterations were made to the tracklist and the tracks themselves. Ye included JHE Rooga's "GD Anthem"; removed Kid Cudi from "Moon" (which came with backlash from fans); added a meme outro to "Remote Control"; and included a new song titled "Come To Life." Bolded entries might not be labeled correctly. Tracklist adapted from RateYourMusic[19]:
- Donda Chant
- Jail
- God Breathed
- Off the Grid
- Hurricane
- Praise God
- We Made It
- Ok Ok
- Junya
- Believe What I Say
- 24
- Remote Control pt 2 (“Globglogabgalab” Outro)
- Moon (ft. Don Toliver)
- Heaven and Hell
- Keep My Spirit Alive
- Jesus Lord
- New Again
- JHE Rooga - GD Anthem
- Jonah
- Lord I Need You
- Pure Souls
- Come to Life
- No Child Left Behind
Notes[]
- "Remote Control" featured an extended outro featuring the "Globglogabgalab" meme. This was shortened on the album's release, but the full version was made available on the deluxe as "Remote Control pt 2."
- "Moon" no longer featured Kid Cudi. This was changed on the album's release.
References[]
- ↑ https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/kanye-wests-alleged-secret-listening-party-invite-leaks-fans-say-donda-is-coming-news.135923.html
- ↑ https://twitter.com/CDdenimflow/status/1416724085975904257?s=20
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donda#Listening_events
- ↑ https://variety.com/2021/music/news/kanye-west-donda-new-songs-las-vegas-video-1235022648/
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/WestSubEver/comments/on86is/donda_lp10_listening_party_detailed_review/
- ↑ https://twitter.com/thelifeofpanblo/status/1416983221967917056?s=20
- ↑ https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2021/07/22/kanye-west-debuts-donda-west-album-atlanta-listening-party/8062969002/
- ↑ https://rateyourmusic.com/release/unauth/kanye-west/july-22nd-donda-listening-event/
- ↑ https://www.tmz.com/2021/07/24/kanye-west-hunkers-down-mercedes-benz-stadium-finish-donda-album/
- ↑ https://twitter.com/PhotosOfKanye/status/1419035351780405249?s=20
- ↑ https://twitter.com/AppleMusic/status/1423147908136939522?s=20
- ↑ https://www.nme.com/news/music/kanye-wests-second-atlanta-donda-playback-event-reveals-new-features-from-kid-cudi-and-the-weeknd-3012619
- ↑ https://thefalconswire.usatoday.com/2021/08/05/atlanta-falcons-kanye-west-mercedes-benz-stadium/
- ↑ https://variety.com/2021/music/news/kanye-west-countdown-to-donda-livestream-1235035384/
- ↑ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kanye-west-donda-album-1202235/
- ↑ https://www.vogue.co.uk/news/article/kanye-west-donda-demna-gvasalia
- ↑ https://uproxx.com/music/kid-cudi-final-mix-donda-collab-kanye-west-don-tolliver-moon/
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/Kanye/comments/oyz0tc/tracklist_from_new_listening_party_couldnt_get/
- ↑ https://rateyourmusic.com/release/unauth/kanye-west/donda-listening-event-3/