Popstar, designer and rapper Kanye West released his debut “gospel” hip hop album, “Jesus is King,” on Oct. 25. This album comes in the aftermath of his recent “rebirth” into Christianity. Kanye has also led worship services and made appearances in churches around the country. Members of the Milligan community reacted to his recent actions and new music.
In the first week of the Def Jam Record Company’s released album, “Jesus is King” had 197 million streams and 109,000 copies sold. These high sales propelled the album to a number one ranking on five different billboard charts- a historic mark. He also occupied the top ten slots on both the Hot Christian Songs and Hot Gospel Songs charts; he is the first artist to ever do so.
Before the music was released, however, West came out publicly with his “rebirth.” In the process, he hosted Sunday Services at different locations across the United States. He also participated in interviews where he talked about his newfound life with Jesus Christ.
These events have caused West to be a new, dramatic figure in Western Christianity. This almost immediate impact has the Milligan community wondering about the rapper. Associate professor of Bible Mark Matson and professor of cinema Kenny Suit both discussed their perspective on West’s recent actions and his impact on the Church.
“I have no idea whether West’s conversion was genuine,” Matson said. “ I am always happy to hear the name of Jesus praised, but true conversion is more a matter of slow changing of one’s whole life toward service, toward humility, toward imitating one’s life after Jesus. A record album is not a clear indication of these real signs of being united with Christ.”
Humility is a word that Suit also mentioned as a key indicator of a Christian’s life. “I don’t know that Kanye has a lot of that. But if he starts to get more humble, to me, that will be a sign that his faith is sincere,” Suit said.
In the meantime, West has already reached a massive amount of people with his music, Sunday Services and other church appearances. Nonetheless, Matson and Suit both agree that a true walk with the Messiah takes time.
But what does this mean about what West has done up to this point?
“I think the worst thing for a new Christian is to try to lead a ministry,” Suit said. “A new Christian, like Kanye, should hunker down, study the Scriptures, pray and discipline their flesh.” Matson mentioned that celebrity Christians should spread the gospel through “what they do rather than what they say.”
While West’s position in the church is up for debate, his music is still a point of interest for Milligan students.
“I am not surprised by the quality of the production since he has been super consistent over time,” senior Ronan Philippot said. “He is just able to reinvent himself every time he comes out with a new project.”
Senior Tons Ferguson not only agrees that the music’s production was one of his favorite parts, but also that it had a special connection to his personal life. “When it comes to the music, it did not take long for it to grow on me,” Ferguson explained. “A lot of the instruments/instrumentals used in the production of the music made me think of church back home, and if I closed my eyes while listening, I could envision myself being in a service back home.”
The new evangelical message from the album was more than just something different and new from West. “Obviously this isn’t one of those ‘traditional” gospel’ albums that we may expect from artists such as Kirk Franklin or Donnie Mclurkin. But it still is a gospel album that represents the evolution of music,” Ferguson added.
From the album sales to the amount of people paying attention to Kanye West, one can only wait and see what comes from West and his new Christian life.
Headline photo: The “Jesus is King” album was released Oct. 25 and set many musical records soon after its release.