As you might know, Kanye West's new album The Life Of Pablo finally dropped on Feb. 13, and it'll probably be the only thing I'll be listening to until, well, Beyonce releases a new track. The album's release isn't the only surprise, though — Yeezy has a huge amount of namechecks on the tracks, and I can't say they're all flattering. Don't worry if you feel like you missed one, because there are so many Kanye West disses on The Life of Pablo. Really, no one is safe, as Yeezy dishes it to Taylor Swift, Ray J, Blac Chyna, and even Bill Cosby this time around.
When West surprised fans with the release of his long-awaited new album exclusively on Tidal after he appeared as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live, many expected that there'd be some big shocks contained in the tracklist, and they weren't wrong. The album welcomes guest stars like Andre 3000, Frank Ocean, Kendrick Lamar, Kid Cudi, Rihanna, Swizz Beatz, and Post Malone. But even more impressive is the list of people West takes aim at in his lyrics in The Life of Pablo. It's not completely unexpected — namechecks and disses are very much a part of rap — but naturally, Kanye sometimes even out-Kanyes himself.
Check out Yeezy's The Life of Pablo disses below.
1. Unnamed Model / Amber Rose?
I was high when I met her
We was down in Tribeca
She get under your skin if you let her
She get under your skin if you-uh
I don't even want to talk about it
I don't even want to talk about it
I don't even want to say nothing
Everybody gon' say something
— "Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1"
On this track with Kid Cudi, West's lyrics reference a model with a bleached anus that he met "in Tribeca," but there's no name here, so let's read between the lines. Recently, Rose tweeted her own diss to West over Twitter (above) about him being into anal play during sex, and Rose and West were also dating around the same time that he attended the Tribeca Film Festival in 2009. The rest of the lyrics could be referencing their recent beef over Twitter. Or I could be wrong and it's actually about another model.
2. Ray J
I bet me and Ray J would be friends
If we ain't love the same b*tch
Yeah, he might have hit it first
Only problem is I'm rich
— "High Lights"
Found on "High Lights," this one is Yeezy standing up for his wife Kim Kardashian, who was once famous for a sex tape she made with ex-boyfriend Ray J in 2003 that surfaced in 2007.
3. Taylor Swift
I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex
Why? I made that b*tch famous (G***amn)
I made that b*tch famous
— "Famous"
This one was leaked before The Life of Pablo dropped and Kanye has since said this isn't a diss, but wow, here we go again, with him referencing the infamous MTV VMAs incident of 2009.
4. Rob Kardashian
Blac Chyna f*ckin' Rob, help him with the weight
I wish my trainer would, tell me what I overate
— "High Lights"
West disses brother-in-law Rob's weight on "High Lights," saying that Rob having sex with girlfriend Blac Chyna will help him lose weight. OK now.
5. Bloggers & Journalists
I wake up, assessin' the damages
Checkin' MediaTakeOut
Pictures of me drunk walkin' out with a b*tch
But it's blurry enough to get the fake out
— "30 Hours"
I've been outta my mind a long time
I've been outta my mind a long time
I know, I know, I shouldn’t even bother
With all these gossiping, no-p*ssy-getting bloggers
Fashion show in Gotham, I need another costume
— "Feedback"
In these lyrics, Yeezy takes aim at his haters, along with the "news" and bloggers who criticize him for his actions and report on rumors about him. Should I feel honored, ashamed or both? While I sort out my feelings, I'll give the song another listen.
6. Anyone Who Dares To Diss Saint West
I'ma bust a coach's head open on some Diddy shit
If he ever talk to my son like an idiot
— "High Lights"
Also on "High Lights," these words reference an incident where Diddy allegedly attacked one of his son Justin's UCLA football coaches. So Saint's future coaches better watch out.
7. Fake Friends
Money turn your kin into an enemy
N*ggas ain't real as they pretend to be
— "Real Friends"
On "Real Friends," Yeezy questions the friendships you make when you're a worldwide superstar like himself and calls out his own fake friends here.
8. @KanyesLaptop
I had a cousin that stole my laptop that I was f*ckin' bitches on
Paid that n*gga 250 thousand just to get it from him
Real friends
Huh?
— "Real Friends"
And as far as real friends, tell my cousins I love ‘em
Even the one that stole the laptop, you dirty motherf*cker
— "No More Parties in LA"
These lyrics reference an incident last year in which West's laptop was stolen in Paris and the culprit surfaced on Twitter as @KanyesLaptop, which threatened to release its contents.
9. Drake?
Who your real friends? We all came from the bottom
I'm always blamin' you, but what's sad, you not the problem
— "Real Friends"
In the aptly titled track "Real Friends," Kanye references a famous Drizzy song "Started From The Bottom" in this lyric. Or is it just coincidence?
10. Unnamed Ex-Girfriend
My ex says she gave me the best years of her life
I saw a recent picture of her, I guess she was right
— "30 Hours"
Yikes. Many sources are speculating that this lyric from "30 Hours" is not about Amber Rose, but Yeezy ex-girlfriend Sumeke Rainey, whom he dated for seven years before he broke out, and who provided vocals on the College Dropout track "Get 'Em High." The song references the days before Kanye became famous, so it very well could be her.
11. Los Angeles
You know it, L.A., it's so jammin'
I be thinkin' every day
Mulholland Drive, need to put up some g*ddamn barricades
I be paranoid every time
The pressure, the problem ain't I be drivin'
The problem is I be textin'...
Textin' and drivin' down Mulholland Drive
That's why I'd rather take the 405
— "No More Parties in L.A."
As we already knew, Lamar and West lament about the City of Angeles in "No More Parties in L.A." — they target the fake celebrity culture of Hollywood, texting and driving, and the famous winding Mulholland Drive.
12. Nike
If Nike ain't have Drizzy, man they wouldn't have nothin', woo!
If Nike ain't have Don C, man they wouldn't have nothin', ooh!
But I'm all for the family, tell 'em, "Get your money"
Yeezy, Yeezy, Yeezy, they line up for days
Nike out here bad, they can't give sh*t away
— "FACTS"
From rapper feuds to sneaker beef, Kanye covers it all in The Life of Pablo. Here, West takes aim at the sneaker company and boasts about the superiority of his sneakers.
13. Bill Cosby
Do anybody feel bad for Bill Cosby?
Did he forget the names just like Steve Harvey? (Yo!)
— "FACTS"
Wait, didn't Yeezy tweet that Bill Cosby was innocent just a few days ago? But it seems like West is changing his tune — or clarifying while dragging now-infamous Steve Harvey and his Miss Universe mistake from last year. Either way, it's just yet another West-written diss to a celeb that's now a permanent part of his discography.
Images: Giphy (2)
