Kanye West is an unpredictable guy. Fans can never predict what he's going to do or say next, and his recent appearance on The Download podcast was a startling reminder. He claimed he would have sex with Michelle Obama, called J. Cole a "p**sy" and vowed to ruin Drake's career. He did, however, take some time out to discuss artists he was a fan of, and felt deserved their fame. One of these artists was Chris Brown. At a seemingly random interval in the interview, West asserted that Brown was a "god" in the music industry.
The topic came about when Kanye West talked about restrictions within the music industry. He theorized that truly great artists have had a harder time breaking through due to the machinations of "middle men." He even referenced his own verse on the song "Carnival," which name drops Brown. "I'm the new Jesus, bitch," West rapped. "I turn water to Crist, this for what they did to Chris. They can't do sh*t with this." In the emcee's estimation, Brown is one of the aforementioned "greats" that deserves to thrive. "Chris is a god," he asserted.
This is not the first time Kanye West has spoken in Brown's defense. He asked fans to forgive the R&B singer shortly after he was charged with assaulting Rihanna in 2009. "Can't we give Chris a break?" he asked during his VH1 Storytellers performance. "I know I make mistakes in life." West also gifted Brown with a YEEZY truck in 2020. The truck came with a written letter that read: "Congratulations to Chris, 20 years in the game you have overcome many hurdles and obstacles, you deserve the recognition for all the hard work you have put in."
The affection Kanye West and Chris Brown have for another contrasts with some of their other high profile relationships. Both men are involved in feuds with other hip-hop superstars, and have dropped diss tracks in the last week. West released a remix of the Future and Metro Boomin smash single "Like That," which took at Drake, while Brown bombed on Quavo with "Weakest Link." Both disses were well received, with many feeling that Chris Brown delivered the decisive blow in the Quavo feud. The muted response to Quavo's "Over Hoes & B*tches" all but solidified this theory. West, meanwhile, is still at war with the 6 God.
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Nirvana‘s social media accounts have shared the four-page letter Steve Albini sent to them, proposing that he produce their landmark album ‘In Utero’.
Today (May 9), Nirvana’s X (formerly Twitter) account published the four-page proposal, in which Albini wrote of his approach and methodology to music and how he planned to handle the recording of ‘In Utero’.
The post comes after it was revealed yesterday (May 8) that Albini had died at the age of 61 due to a heart attack. The legendary producer and musician’s death was confirmed by his recording studio, Electronic Audio.
In Albini’s four-paged proposal, he famously declared that “if a record takes more than a week to make, somebody’s fucking up”.
“I think the very best thing you could do at this point is exactly what you are talking about doing: bang a record out in a couple of days, with high quality but minimal ‘production’ and no interference from the front office bulletheads,” he wrote. “If that is indeed what you want to do, I would love to be involved.”
“If, instead, you might find yourselves in the position of being temporarily indulged by the record company, only to have them yank the chain at some point (hassling you to rework songs/sequences/production, calling-in hired guns to ‘sweeten’ your record, turning the whole thing over to some remix jockey, whatever…) then you’re in for a bummer and I want no part of it.”
He continued: “I’m only interested in working on records that legitimately reflect the band’s own perception of their music and existence. If you will commit yourselves to that as a tenet of the recording methodology, then I will bust my ass for you. I’ll work circles around you.”
Albini wrote of his recording methodology: “I consider the band the most important thing, as the creative entity that spawned both the band’s personality and style and as the social entity that exists 24 hours out of each day. I do not consider it my place to tell you what to do or how to play. I’m quite willing to let my opinions be heard (if I think the band is making beautiful progress or a heaving mistake, I consider it part of my job to tell them) but if the band decides to pursue something, I’ll see that it gets done.”
He then noted that he likes to “leave room for accidents and chaos”. “If every element of the music and dynamics of a band is controlled by click tracks, computers, automated mixes, gates, samplers and sequencers, then the record may not be incompetent, but it certainly won’t be exceptional.”
Albini also declined royalties for producing and mixing the album in his proposal, writing: “I do not want and will not take a royalty on any record I record. No points. Period. I think paying a royalty to a producer or engineer is ethically indefensible. The band write the songs. The band play the music. It’s the band’s fans who buy the records. The band is responsible for whether it’s a great record or a horrible record. Royalties belong to the band.”
“I would like to be paid like a plumber: I do the job and you pay me what it’s worth. The record company will expect me to ask for a point or a point and a half. If we assume three million sales, that works out to 400,00 dollars or so. There’s no fucking way I would ever take that much money. I wouldn’t be able to sleep.”
Albini fronted the likes of underground bands such as Shellac, Big Black, Rapeman and Flour. Besides ‘In Utero’, he was most well known for being the producer of major albums such as Pixies’ ‘Surfer Rosa’, PJ Harvey’s ‘Rid of Me’, Manic Street Preachers‘ ‘Journal For Plague Lovers’ and more.
Shellac recently announced ‘To All Trains’, their first album in 10 years which is set for release next week (May 17) and were preparing to embark on a tour.
Speaking to NME last year, Albini shared that being forever associated with Nirvana due to his work on their 1993 final album ‘In Utero‘ was no albatross. “It’s totally normal, it’s perfectly reasonable,” the producer and audio engineer told NME. “If you had never heard of me before and someone is trying to introduce me to you, they are going to name the famous records that I worked on – and ‘In Utero’ is the most famous.”
Last year, Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic spoke to NME and recalled working with the producer and how the band landed on the post-‘Nevermind’ sound of the record. “Kurt was a fan of Albini,” he said. “I remember being in a tour van in 1989 and Kurt was listening to Pixies. He raised his finger and said, ‘This shall be our snare sound!’ He wanted to do it with Steve for a long time.”
Kurt Cobain had been a known admirer of Albini’s music before he worked with Nirvana, having been in attendance when his band Big Black played their last ever show in 1987. During the first session, he brought with him a piece of the guitar Albini had smashed during the gig.
Following the news of Steve Albini’s death, several musicians have paid tribute to the late musician, producer and engineer. You can read tributes from Jarvis Cocker, Pixies and more here.
