Ye's latest album, “Vultures 1,” debuted at the top of the Billboard 200 charts this week, indicating that the rapper has made much of his career despite a series of anti-Semitic and other hateful statements that alienated him from corporate partners and many other celebrities has retained popularity.
Ye's latest success marks the eleventh time he has topped the charts. According to Luminate, “Vultures 1” generated the equivalent of 148,000 in sales, measured through a mix of album sales, song downloads and streams. With nearly 170 million official streams, most listeners came via streaming.
The high ranking also comes despite allegations that the album – Ye's first since his anti-Jewish tirades in late 2022 – used unauthorized samples from other artists, which, among other issues, caused problems before and after its February 10 release has.
The rapper, formerly known as Kanye West, initially announced the album would be released in December, but the release was postponed multiple times due to reports about Ye problem received permission to sample a Backstreet Boys song and use one Nicki Minaj verse for two tracks that ultimately never made it onto the official 16-track album.
Further challenges arose after Ye and collaborator Ty Dolla $ign previewed “Vultures” at listening parties in Chicago and New York before its release under the name ¥$.
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Ozzy Osbourne wrote on social media that he had denied Ye permission to sample a live performance of 1983's “Iron Man” – “BECAUSE HE IS AN ANTISEMITE AND HAS CAUSED UNLIMITED HORSE TO MANY.”
“He went ahead and used the sample at his album listening party last night anyway,” Osbourne continued. “I DON’T WANT ANY ASSOCIATION WITH THIS MAN!”
Then Spotify removed one of the new album's tracks, “Good (Don't Die),” after Donna Summer Ye's estate accused Ye of copyright infringement for recreating part of her disco hit “I Feel Love” after she had been refused permission.
And the entire album briefly disappeared from Apple Music on Thursday when a music distributor tried to have it removed from the streaming platforms.
Fuga, which was originally hired to distribute “Vultures 1,” said in a statement that it declined to do so late last year “in the exercise of our discretion in the normal course of business.” The company said “a long-time…customer” put the album on streaming platforms anyway, violating Fuga's service agreement. “Therefore, FUGA is actively working with its … partners and the customer to remove 'Vultures 1' from our systems.” Fuga did not respond to a request for comment.
On Thursday evening, multiple news outlets reported that Label Engine, which originally released the album's first two singles, was now responsible for distributing the album.
Despite the album's release blunders, listeners still streamed “Vultures.” His latest album, Coming Home, released just before his Super Bowl halftime performance, surpassed Usher's No. 2 ranking. With sales of the equivalent of 91,000 copies, Usher's ninth studio album achieved its highest placement in the album charts in more than a decade.
Ye's business partners and many of his former fans turned against him when the Grammy-winning artist abruptly descended into public anti-Semitism.
Companies including Balenciaga, Creative Artists Agency and JPMorgan Chase cut ties after Ye wore a “White Lives Matter” T-shirt to his Paris Fashion Week show in 2022 and posted on social media that he ” “Death Con 3” would do. JEWISH PEOPLE.” His net worth fell after he exited his partnership with Adidas – home of his Yeezy shoe line, which accounted for nearly 10 percent of the German sportswear brand's annual sales.
Ye apologized for his anti-Semitic comments last December in a since-deleted Instagram post in Hebrew.
“I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for any 'accidental outburst.' It was not my intention to hurt or humiliate and I deeply regret the pain I have caused,” the post reads. “I am determined to start with myself and learn from this experience to ensure greater sensitivity and understanding in the future. Your forgiveness is important to me and I am committed to making amends and promoting unity.”
When Ye was asked about the same comments in a recent TMZ interview, he replied, “Black people can’t be anti-Semitic. We are Jews.” He also said that he “survived the cancellation” thanks to his skills and fan base, and he dismissed concerns that his work could be removed from streaming platforms because they pay artists so little.
“Vultures” was also less apologetic. In the title track, Ye asks how he could be anti-Semitic if he had sex with a Jewish woman, and in his song “Stars” he mentions that he has “a few Jews on the team now.”