Kanye West releases new surprise Christian album 'Emmanuel' with ancient, Latin sounds
Kanye West continued his tradition of releasing new Christian music on Christmas Day this year with a surprise release of Emmanuel.
The five-song project follows up West’s 2019 holiday release, Jesus is Born, which skyrocketed to No. 1 on the gospel charts.
Emmanuel is defined in Scripture as “God with us.”
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us," Matthew 1:23 (KJV) states.
The musical composition is comprised of ancient and Latin inspired music. The EP is only 12 minutes in length and was written and executive produced by West.
Emmanuel was performed by the Sunday Service Choir complete with a choral vibe. Similar to Jesus Is King, the new album is pegged a “celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ” according to Deadline.
The faith-themed release continues to promote West’s new “born again” narrative.
In 2019, everything changed for the fashion innovator and he began his Sunday Service events featuring a gospel choir that reimagined mainstream songs with Christian lyrics. The “Jesus Walks” rapper became a born-again Christian during this process and traveled with his choir worldwide to share of his newfound faith.
Billboard named West the Top Gospel Artist of 2020.
West also repeated his 2019 triumph with his album Jesus is King. The album, released in 2019, was the entertainer/fashion mogul’s first gospel album. At the time, Jesus Is King topped the Gospel Albums, Christian Albums and the all-genre Billboard 200 charts. The 27-minute long album has now spent more than a year at No. 1 and took the top Billboard spot again for 2020’s Top Gospel Albums.
The Yeezy founder was also named the Top Male Gospel Artist this year.
