Fifteen years after he made Jesus walk on his 2004 College Dropout single, Kanye West spent the first quarter of 2019 taking listeners to church with his weekly live gospel performance series: Sunday Service. The ultra-exclusive gatherings see the rapper performing hits from his catalog, along with covers of R&B and gospel gems, while backed by a gospel choir and musical luminaries.
Depending on how cynical you are, the sessions seem to be earnest musical celebrations inspired by church (with a backyard barbecue vibe) or a stop-gap to divert our attention away from the oft-delayed Yandhi. Either way, Kanyeâs Sunday Services are the culmination of his career-long movement to merge gospel and faith with rap.
And now, after submitting thunderous performances for the past few monthsâthe majority of which have taken place around his local Calabasas areaâKanye is bringing his passion project to Coachella on Easter Sunday, where he will perform atop a private Palm Springs mountain at 9 a.m. PST. Before that goes down, letâs look back on the key moments from Kanye Westâs Sunday Service sessions.
January 6, 2019: Kim Kardashian teases Sunday Service on Instagram
January 13, 2019: Sunday Service kicks off inside Kardashian-West home
February 10, 2019: Kanye celebrates 'College Dropout' 15th anniversary at Sunday Service
February 24, 2019: Red-haired Kanye becomes a meme
March 17, 2019: DMX leads Sunday Service with a prayer
March 24, 2019: Sunday Service reportedly shut down by police after complaints
Shame on whoever called the cops (on a pristine spring afternoon, on a Sunday, during March Madness) in an effort to shut down Week 13 of Sunday Service. Granted, the noise complaints didnât damper Kanyeâs spirits: paparazzi photographed him laughing with the LAPD. While the event didnât debut any new music, it did feature three of its biggest celebrity appearances to date: Tyler, the Creator, Katy Perry, and Orlando Bloom.