We can’t honestly talk about the release cycle of Kanye West’s nascent seventh album, because at this point the superstar rapper and producer is treading water. Maybe some day, 12 years from now, we’ll be able to construct SWISH (formerly So Help Me God) from lo-fi transmissions beamed in from bi-yearly fashion shows. For the time being, that’s nearly all we have: Just as the first line of Kanye’s adidas clothes came with the Sia- and Vic Mensa-featuring “Wolves,” his just-released second season of apparel was debuted alongside a song called “Fade,” which reportedly features Ty Dolla $ign and Post Malone. A heavy, rolling bassline and looped vocal sample accompany a sort of proto-808s lead vocal. At press time, there was little available information on the song or any scheduled release date, but it feels and sounds more finished than other demos that have leaked out of West’s camp.

“Wolves,” which West also performed on Saturday Night Live, was preceded by “Only One” and “FourFiveSeconds,” both of which feature and were co-written with Paul McCartney. (The latter song features Rihanna and has been widely speculated to end up on her next solo album.) It was succeeded by the only other single to get a CDQ release, the Allan Kingdom- and Theophilus London-featuring “All Day.” West’s last album was 2013’s abrasive, industrial Yeezus, which spawned minor hits in “New Slaves” and “Bound 2.” Though briefly aligned with the Jay Z-owned streaming service Tidal, rumors suggest SWISH might be released through Apple Music.


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