Kanye West is one of the best musicians of all time. He released his first album in 2004 and hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. In August 2021, West released the album Donda and we bring you some of the best songs on Donda.
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Although Kanye West comes with a fair share of drama surrounding his name and brand, his albums repeatedly excel past all expectations.
His late mother is the title of this particular album. Kanye highly respected and regarded his mother as an influential figure in his life story. Much of the album centers around her and reflects on associated topics.
Our top picks for the best songs on Donda take into consideration the tracks on Donda Deluxe, an album released later and has additional or longer songs. Keep reading to learn our favorite songs from this epic Kanye album.
“Come to Life”
“Come to Life” is the 22nd track on Donda. In our opinion, “Come to Life” is the best track on Donda, and many fans would agree. On this track, Kanye laments his desire to shift his current life into a better place. It is a song that reflects on regrets for not making better decisions. A positive undertone is found in the later half of the track when West mentions his children as the silver lining of his life and reason for living. Is Come to Life the best song on Donda? We think so!
“Off The Grid”
“Off the Grid” is the 4th track on Donda. This track is faster and more upbeat than our number one pick. “Off the Grid” features famous rappers Playboi Carti and Fivio Foreign for extra depth and character. The lyrics carry religious undertones and confident boastings about the artists and their wealth and accomplishments.
“Moon”
The 13th track on Donda is “Moon.” A calm melody starts the track off as it delves into a conversation on a wish for escapism. The moon in this song refers to a place where you can lose your worries and find genuine peace. This tantalization about escaping to a better reality is a common theme on the album and appears in several tracks on this list.
“Heaven and Hell”
“Heaven and Hell” is the 14th track on Donda. This track depicts life’s dichotomy: a juggling between the good and the bad moments. This song provides explicit commentary from West on his reality as a celebrity and how he handles them. While many people covet fame, West reflects on the positives and negatives of such a rare life experience as his.
“Jail”
“Jail” is the 2nd track on Donda and provides the first song. Jail acts as the foundation for the rest of the album. The rest of Donda builds out from “Jail.” The lyrics tell us where West is at this time in his life: a place of struggle and conflict. The song resembles Kanye’s occasional dip into beats that resemble pop more than his typical heavy-rap sound.
“Hurricane”
The 5th track on Donda is “Hurricane.” This track features a plethora of religious references, specifically the act of walking on water like the Christian religious figure Jesus. Also, the song is a discourse on finding salvation in oneself. The song features The Weeknd and Lil Baby throughout the track.
“24”
“24” is the 11th track on Donda. Many fans interpret this track as West commemorating the death of beloved celebrity basketball player Kobe Bryant. Kanye uses this tragedy to speak on death in a broad sense throughout the track and display how West struggles with it personally. This discussion of death is also relevant to the whole album, which revolves around the passing of Kanye West’s mother, Donda.
“Jesus Lord”
“Jesus Lord” is the 17th track on Donda. Some people interpret this song almost as a prayer for prosperity and glory in all that West is pursuing. The first part of the song is dedicated to a call for the lost or struggling to find Jesus themselves for relief.
This song contains a lot of religious language choices. It is a crystal-clear display of Kanye West’s devotion to his religious beliefs and associations with modern Christianity.
“No Child Left Behind”
“No Child Left Behind” is the 23rd track on Donda. Much like “Jesus Lord,” “No Child Left Behind” is also highly religious and speaks of the devotion that Kanye’s God has to his followers. He also speaks about what God has done for him personally.
This track’s title refers to the No Child Left Behind Act enacted in 1965. This political commentary seems to be critical of the government’s lack of caring for children, while West has a God that will look out for all that call on him.
“Believe What I Say”
The 10th track on Donda is “Believe What I Say.” While this song is the last one on our list, it is far from the worst Donda song. This track depicts the struggles in relationships.
Specifically, many have assumed that this song refers to Kanye’s relationship with his ex-wife Kim Kardashian. Kanye states that he has given his partner everything, but it is never enough for them. This situation leaves West feeling hopeless and frustrated regarding his relationship.
Final Thoughts
Donda is an album that fans will remember for years to come. Despite the minimal promotion that Kanye’s publicity team did for the album, it received very impressive praise and is still on people’s playlists.
Donda contains some of the best Kanye songs of all time, and it’ll be hard to top it with his next release. Does your top 10 Donda tracklist look similar to ours? Listen to Donda on Spotify or Apple Music and let us know.
Craving more music-based content from Repeat Replay? Check out some of our other articles, including the 20 best Kanye West songs, 10 best rap songs about money, 10 best songs about lying friends, 10 best songs about men, and the 10 best songs about danger.