Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign’s, known as the duo ¥$, joint album VULTURES 1 has officially debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, per HitsDailyDouble.
Selling 148,000 first-week units, this mark’s Ye’s 11th No. 1 record of his career and Ty’s first-ever No. 1 debut. All 16 tracks charted on the Billboard Hot 100, with “Carnival” eclipsing a Top 3 berth (No. 3).
After two listening events in Chicago (Feb. 8) and New York City (Feb. 9), the 16-track LP appeared on digital streaming platforms just hours after Ye’s NYC show wrapped earlier this month. The album was exclusively available on Apple Music and Tidal upon its release at midnight PST (Feb. 10), but later appeared on all DSPs. Despite being taken off Apple Music for a short period of time, the album still achieved a No. 1 berth.
Set to release three VULTURES volumes in total (with V2 and V3 set for release on March 8 and April 5), V1 highlights a handful of hitmakers in Playboi Carti and Travis Scott (“Fuk Sumn”), Quavo (“Paperwork”), Freddie Gibbs (“Back To Me”), Rich The Kid (“CARNIVAL”), Lil Durk and more. This week, ¥$ shared “Talking / Once Again,” which featured both Ty’s daughter and Ye’s daughter, North West — who joined him on stage during ¥$’s debut Chicago listening event.
As one of Kanye’s most ambitious projects to date — combining the multi-stadium listening events of DONDA with three volumes of new music — Ye seemed to test out these arena shows earlier this month, taking the stage with Travis Scott on the Orlando stop of his CIRCUS MAXIUMS tour. A Kanye West solo album, titled Y3, is also rumored to be in the works, according to Erick Sermon. More stadium listening events are scheduled overseas in Europe, in Milan, Bologna and Paris from Feb. 22 to Feb. 25.
After a barrage of snippets late last year, Ye and Ty previewed early versions of the record during each of the “VULTURES RAVE” events on Dec. 12 (Miami) and Dec. 15 (Las Vegas). While Volumes 2 and 3 are tentatively scheduled for March 8 and April 5 respectively, this is a big if. Notorious for delays, it remains to be seen if West is truly intending on sharing the project in this matter. The album was originally supposed to drop on Dec. 15, and then on New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31).
Its lead single and title track “VULTURES” with Chicago natives Bump J and Lil Durk was premiered on Power 92 Chicago. Both songs, with and without Durk, dropped just a week apart in November 2023, later sharing a full “VULTURES” single pack featuring its alternate “HAVOC VERSION.” A majority of the record was made in a YZY-branded studio in the Saudi Arabian desert in late 2023, as well as throughout each live listening event (Miami, Las Vegas, Chicago, New York).
Ty Dolla $ign’s chemistry with Ye is undeniable on VULTURES, with their last collaboration coming from “Junya Pt 2” on West’s 2021 album, Donda. Before that, they worked together on Dolla $ign’s “Ego Death” (2020) and Ye’s “Everything We Need” (2019), “Real Friends” (2016) and “Only One” (2014).
This is Kanye West’s first release since being dropped from Def Jam in 2021, and interestingly, his first release that leaves cussing uncensored in over five years. Amid this, VULTURES reignites a side of Kanye fans haven’t seen in a long time — and we’re here for it.
LAS VEGAS RAVE (Dec. 15)
Foreshadowed by the release of Playboi Carti’s surprise track “2024” — which features production and a cameo from Kanye West — VULTURES RAVE Las Vegas occurred early in the wee hours of Dec. 15. Starting around 1:30 a.m. PST (4:30 a.m. EST), new verses from Lil Wayne, Lil Durk and an anticipated reunion with Kid Cudi garnered the most praise during Ye’s hazy listening session. The KIDS SEE GHOSTS duo were seen embracing at the after party, as well as previewing a track titled “GUN TO MY HEAD” — their first joint effort since KSG. Yet, Ye and Cudi’s track did not make volume one.
Aside from Ye’s 10-minute long rant, VULTURES is still being fine-tuned — and much like every Kanye West album, it is a living, breathing entity. Clips of the album being worked on live in Vegas were scattered across the internet. It’s clear that ag thag time VULTURES was — and maybe still is — a work in progress, as sample clearances from Ozzy Osbourne, Nicki Minaj (“New Body”) and The Backstreet Boys (“Everybody”) prevented its timely release.
MIAMI RAVE (Dec. 12)
Kicked off by a DJ set from Miami’s own DJ SCHEME, Ye and Ty brought stars in Offset, Kodak Black, Chris Brown, Lil Durk, Freddie Gibbs, Bump J and North West on stage for the performance. Despite starting nearly two hours late, tracks like “River” with Young Thug and “Back To Me” with Gibbs have become quick fan-favorites online. Ye and company played 10 of the LP’s tracks — not including the 3-second snippet of Ye and Playboi Carti’s collaboration.
Admittedly, the live stream was frustrating to watch. Without an aux cord, connection issues, multiple stream links and a 2-hour delay, chaos seems to be at the core of every Kanye West listening event. Whether it was seeing Ye in a black-hooded klan mask or the pump fake on playing the Playboi Carti joint, the good of the party definitely balanced out the bad — kicking off Ye’s VULTURES era unapologetically.