DONDA

Since one of the few people giving the public information about Kanye’s anticipated Donda follow-up, Donda 2, already let us know Marilyn Manson has been a fixture during Kanye’s recent studio sessions, the accused rapist’s presence at the listening parties for Ye’s latest album shouldn’t come as a surprise. Earlier this year, Kanye’s collaborator Digital Nas told Rolling Stone “I see Marilyn a lot in the studio. Like, every day I go to the studio, Marilyn is there working on Donda 2.”

And tonight, at the Florida listening party for the record, Manson was front and center with Ye, along with the still-embattled rapper DaBaby, whose recent comments about HIV rubbed plenty of fans — and his own fellow collaborators — as extremely homophobic and backwards. But in Kanye’s world, being chastised by the public is part of an artist’s appeal. Tonight’s listening party took place at LoanDepot Park Stadium in Miami, Florida, and marked the second time Ye brought out both artists for a listening — they also joined him at the original Donda listening in Chicago.

Another takeaway from the night was Kanye sampling his ex-wife Kim Kardashian calling him the greatest rapper alive on SNL, and vocals from the late, controversial rapper XXXTentacion. So needless to say, this album is going to be a doozy. Stay tuned.