Kanye Announces G.O.O.D. Music Album Title, New Movie
Tuck your whole summer in, hip hop. After months of speculation and rumors, details on the über-hyped G.O.O.D. Music compilation are finally coming into view.
In a press release, label guru Kanye West announced that the album would be titled Cruel Summer. But like all things Yeezy, he didn't stop there: The album will be accompanied by a film of the same name. The movie, which is reportedly "inspired by" the album, is written, produced and directed by Kanye West and stars Kid Cudi, who's billed under the name Scott Mescudi, actor-comedian Aziz Ansari and Palestinian actor Ali Suliman. The film is billed as a "seven-screen experience" that will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in France on May 23 and then screen for two additional days, with tickets available for free on a first-come, first-serve basis at kanyewest.com/cruelsummer.
It's the biggest news yet in what's shaping up to be a big year for Kanye and G.O.O.D. Music. They've already leaked three songs that dominated the blogosphere, "Mercy," "Way Too Cold" (formerly known as "Theraflu") and the remix to Chief Keef's "I Don't Like." And earlier this week, the upstart imprint signed Harlem singer-rapper Teyana Taylor, who in 2010 appeared on the Kanye song "Dark Fantasy."
"I have been actually working with the G.O.O.D. Music family for quite a while since we did the [My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy] thing," Taylor told MTV recently. "I was still in my contract with Star Trak/Insterscope, and I had asked for my release because I wanted to just find myself as an artist. I had other options to go to different labels, but I felt like G.O.O.D. Music was somewhere that I wanted to be that I fit in. Being signed to G.O.O.D. Music/Def Jam has opened more doors now that I finally have a team behind me that can push me to work harder."
There's no release date for Taylor's major-label debut yet, or for the label compilation Cruel Summer, but one thing's clear: Kanye and Co. are making it hot this year.
BET.com is your #1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music.
Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.
(Photo: John Ricard/BET)