During a conversation with Bootleg Kev, Consequence was asked about a rumor involving Ye and Kendrick Lamar having “an album’s worth of unreleased songs together” and if he’s heard them.
Not only did the Queens rapper confirm that said songs exist and that he’s heard them, he also said that the tracks were produced by legendary producer Madlib. “I just think it just needed to be structured,” he said. “But the ideas are… Yeah, I heard the whole thing. It’s there.”
Ye and Kendrick famously linked up for The Life of Pablo‘s “No More Parties in LA.” Ye released the song as a lead-up single in January 2016, and the next month, he tweeted that he has 40 songs with Kendrick and 40 songs with Young Thug. “Me and Kendrick got 40 songs and me and Young Thug got 40 songs,” Ye said at the time. “40/40 club!!!”
In an interview with Complex in 2020, Madlib also confirmed the existence of these songs. “Oh, they did like 30 minutes of stuff, just going back and forth, going crazy,” he told the outlet. “They were going off, too, man. Because I do my beat tapes like one-minute beats, and they were just, one minute on that one, that one, that one. It was crazy.”
A couple tracks did end up finding their way online, though. There’s a different version of “Father Stretch My Hands” featuring Kid Cudi. Then there’s a song titled “Don’t Jump” and a rough version named “Madlib Freestyle 6.” So far, those three songs and “No More Parties in LA” are the only proof of this mythical album.
You can watch the full interview below. Billboard reached out to both Ye and Kendrick’s teams for comment.