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Earlier tonight, we got wind of a new Kanye West track possibly dropping tonight. We realized the other day that the follow-up to Yeezus that we were anticipating for the end of 2014 hadn’t been delivered, but truth be told, ANY new Kanye is music to our ears… right? Well, we’re glad that something dropped tonight, even if it’s an uber-personal cut that apparently features Paul McCartney entitled “Only One.” Judging by the lyrics to this drum-less, Auto-Tuned track and the above picture that’s been circulating, this is dedicated to yung North West. Not the New Year’s celebratory cut you’d expect from ‘Ye, but he’s forever been personal with his. Catch the stream of this one ASAP, but make sure you have some tissue near.
UPDATE “Only One” is available on iTunes. Word is that the song was produced by Kanye West and Mike Dean, and credits Paul McCartney and Kirby Lauryen as writers alongside Kanye.
Kanye dropped a picture of the lyrics on his website. One Rap Genius contributor says the song is being told “from his late mother Donda West’s perspective as she looks upon her son from Heaven,” and mentions how the song is reminiscent of Paul McCartney’s “Let It Be”:
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According to Kanye’s rep (via Complex), this collaboration between Paul McCartney and Kanye began with “a simple brainstorming session between the two, with McCartney improvising on the keyboards and Kanye vocally sketching and shaping ideas in a stream-of-consciousness riff.”
As North West sat on his lap, he played back the vocals for “Only One,” but didn’t remember singing the words. Kanye believes that his “mom was singing to [him], through [him] to his daughter.”
“He understood in that moment that his late mother, Dr. Donda West, who was also his mentor, confidant, and best friend, had spoken through him that day,” says Kanye’s rep.
