Normally, on New Music Friday, new albums will be available on DSPs like Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal at 9 pm PT or midnight ET. However’ Kanye West’s album releases are usually anything but normal. This Friday, March 8, he’s supposedly releasing Vultures 2, his joint album with Ty Dolla Sign, after turning the original Vultures into a three-album project last month (which was also when he revealed its new release date).
You might not want to plan on staying up to check out the new project, though. After all, Kanye hasn’t released a single project “on time” in the streaming era, and the rollout for Vultures has been anything but smooth. An initial release date in December was pushed back — without advance notice or much explanation from Mr. West — then pushed back again a few weeks later.
After announcing his three-part plans for the reimagined Vultures, Kanye did manage to meet his self-imposed deadline for Vultures 1, but it was released several hours after midnight to the chagrin of his most loyal fans. Even then, there were problems; on Spotify, the album is missing a song due to a copyright infringement complaint from the estate of Donna Summer, while the album isn’t even available on Apple Music after its distributor claimed West had pushed it through via a third party after his partnership offer was rejected.
That means Vultures 2 may not even hit any DSPs unless West and Ty have another trick up their sleeves. However, Vultures 1 managed to debut at the top of the Billboard 200 despite its issues, so don’t be surprised if FUGA changes its tune — after all, like the man said, cash rules everything.
(@mosthiphop) 
