As if there was any doubt that he’d kick on from his multi-national simultaneous album listening party in style, Kanye West has appeared once more as the musical guest for this week’s episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by actress Melissa McCarthy.
The father-of-two performed the topical new track High Lights, featured on the brand new The Life Of Pablo (which is now available to stream.) Name checking Ray J, Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna, the performances bears the unmistakable Kanye West gusto, which sees him joined on stage by contemporaries Young Thug, The-Dream, Kelly Price and El DeBarge. He also performed TLOP‘s gorgeous opening track Ultralight Beam (formerly called Ultra Light Beam, the Tidal stream has combined the first two words.)
It wasn’t all work for West, who appeared in a sketch alongside SNL’s Kyle Mooney, in which the pair engage in a brief but brutal freestyle rap battle. Despite the light-heartedness of the sketch, Kanye actually uses the moment to get surprisingly deep, comparing the differences between the “old” and “new” Kanye.
The @kylemooney/@kanyewest rap battle you didn't know you needed. #SNLhttps://t.co/T67KGAmGpu
— Saturday Night Live (@nbcsnl) February 14, 2016
Kanye West last appeared on SNL in early 2015, where he debuted Wolves, which then featured Sia and Vic Mensa. The newly released studio version features none other than Frank Ocean instead – so while the original version was much loved, we’re not exactly complaining. It’s a true pleasure to hear Ocean’s voice once more; let’s hope there’s more where that came from real soon.
Watch the performances below, courtesy of Gossip Cop:
Image: Tidal