Cousins (Kanye West song)

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"Cousins"
KanyeWestCousins.png
"Cousins" adapts the painting Leda and the Swan by Paul Mathias Padua for its cover art.
Single by Ye
from the album In a Perfect World
ReleasedApril 21, 2025 (2025-04-21)
Genre Hip-hop [1]
Length2:31
Label YZY
Songwriter(s) Dave Blunts [2] [3]
Producer(s)
Kanye West singles chronology
"WW3"
(2025)		"Cousins"
(2025)		"Heil Hitler"
(2025)

"Cousins" (stylized in all caps) is a song by the American rapper Kanye West. It was released on April 21, 2025, as the second single from his upcoming thirteenth studio album, In a Perfect World . It was first surprise released on West's Twitter account before being sent to streaming platforms on April 24. [a] A hip-hop song, it samples "Were There Originals" by Double Virgo and interpolates "10 Percs" by Dave Blunts. [4] Blunts also wrote the song's lyrics, which are about an incestuous relationship West had with his male cousin when they were both children. [5] [6]

Contents

Background

West has previously spoken of a cousin who is currently serving a life sentence in jail for a murder he committed at 17 years old. He has mentioned him on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in 2018 and in the 2020 documentary Kim Kardashian West: The Justice Project. [7] [8]

In a Twitter post made alongside the song's release, West gave further details. He said that he and his cousin had engaged in an incestuous relationship as children, starting when his cousin was six and lasting until West was 14. [9] He added that his cousin is now serving a life sentence for killing a pregnant woman "a few years after [West] told him [they] wouldn't 'look at dirty magazines together' anymore". [5] West believed he was "self-centered" for taking the blame for his cousin's murder charge and for "[showing] him those dirty magazines when he was 6". He ended his post with: "My name is Ye and I sucked my cousins[ sic ] dick till I was 14." [10] [11] [12]

"Cousins" was written by Dave Blunts, who also wrote the rest of In a Perfect World. Regarding its creation, Blunts said:

... [West] had told me about the situation with him and his cousin, and I could tell that the song was very freeing for him when I made it. I believe that he chose me to write songs because I have a blunt approach to it, and that's the way that this song needed to be. I mean, it happened exactly like I said in the song, no double entendres. Just, like, "I gave him head." [13]

Composition and lyrics

Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg
"Cousins"
The first chorus of "Cousins", where West details a childhood incestuous relationship with a cousin
Problems playing this file? See media help.

In the song's lyrics, West details an alleged incestuous relationship he had with a younger male cousin that began after the two discovered homoerotic "dirty magazines" in his mother's closet. Unaware of its sexual implications, they started "reenacting everything that [they] had seen", coming to the song's climax where West realizes he "gave [his] cousin head". [14] He tries to hide his relationship with his cousin, instructing him to "tell nobody" [15] and that those around him will judge him for the experience. The few friends aware of the incest tell West to "take it to [his] grave". West fears how people would view his sexuality as a result of his relationship, stating that people don't understand he's "not attracted to a man". [9] A sample of "New Tank" by Playboi Carti transitions into the second half of the song, [16] which uses altered lyrics from Dave Blunts' song "10 Percs" to focus West's attention towards his public addiction to nitrous oxide and relationship with Bianca Censori. [14] [9]

Release and legacy

On April 23, West posted four possible covers for the streaming release of "Cousins", asking fans which cover they "liked the best". [17] The swan cover art, which was featured as the third option counterclockwise, was ultimately chosen. West would post a text message between him and Buster Ross, the director of A&R at distribution label Too Lost, who approved of the cover art. West reaffirmed that this meant the song would be released on digital streaming platforms. [18] It would be made available later that same day. [19]

On the song "Animals (Pt. 1)" by American rapper JID, a guest verse from American rapper Eminem references "Cousins", rapping, "With these magazines, I act out like Ye and his cousin." [20]

Blunts has performed "Cousins" as the opener of his Standing for What I Believe In tour. [21]

Music video

The song's music video was released along with West's Twitter post. In the Twitter upload, the video appears in exceedingly low quality, consisting of visuals which draw from home media, TV commercials, and pornography. [22] The music video contains visuals such as a burning cross and a woman with swastikas covering her nipples, who is also singing along to the song. [5] [14] The Apple Music version of this video is in HD with improved sound quality. [1]

Charts

Chart performance for "Cousins"
Chart (2025)Peak
position
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ) [23] 21

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Despite this, platforms such as Apple Music list the single as being released on April 21.

References

  1. 1 2 COUSINS by Ye on Apple Music. April 23, 2025. Archived from the original on May 10, 2025. Retrieved May 10, 2025– via Apple Music.
  2. ↑ Rajagopal, Mekala (May 9, 2025). "The First Rule of Touring With Dave Blunts? No Shitting On the Bus". Interview . Archived from the original on May 11, 2025. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  3. 1 2 @chukibeatz; (April 25, 2025). ""COUSINS" by Ye produced by Ye, DN & me written by Dave 🫨" . Retrieved May 11, 2025– via Instagram.
  4. ↑ "Eminem's Verse On JID's EP Sparks Heated Reactions Over Kanye West "Cousins" Line". AllHipHop . July 5, 2025. Retrieved August 7, 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 Mussen, Maddy (April 22, 2025). "Kanye West claims he had an incestuous relationship with his cousin when he was a minor". Evening Standard . Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  6. ↑ Dasgupta, Karishma (April 24, 2025). ""I don't speak for other people": Dave Blunts addresses Kanye West's confession of relationship with cousin". MSN . Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  7. ↑ DH Web Desk (April 23, 2025). "Ye shares disturbing details of incest with cousin in social media post". Deccan Herald . Archived from the original on May 8, 2025. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  8. ↑ Vaidyanathan, Vaishnavi (April 23, 2025). "'My cousin did a bad thing, but I still love him': Kanye West in 2018". Hindustan Times . Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 Dunworth, Liberty (April 22, 2025). "Kanye West claims he took part in incestuous acts with cousin as child". NME . Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  10. ↑ D'Zurilla, Christie (April 22, 2025). "Ye continues to sound off after alleging sex acts with a male cousin. But this time it's about his kids". Los Angeles Times . Archived from the original on April 25, 2025. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  11. ↑ Blake, Cole (April 22, 2025). "Kanye West Reveals Dave Blunts Wrote The Entirety Of His New Album, "Cuck"". HotNewHipHop . Archived from the original on April 24, 2025. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  12. ↑ West, Kanye (May 21, 2025). "ye on X: "This song is called COUSINS about my cousin that's locked in jail for life for killing a pregnant lady a few years after I told him we wouldn't "look at dirty magazines together" anymore Perhaps in my self centered mess I felt it was my fault that I showed him those dirty magazines when he was 6 and then we acted out what we saw My dad had playboy magazines but the magazines I found in the top of my moms closet were different My name is Ye and I sucked my cousins dick till I was 14 Tweet sent"". X (formely Twitter). Archived from the original on May 20, 2025. Retrieved June 20, 2025.
  13. ↑ Rajagopal, Mekala (May 9, 2025). "The First Rule of Touring With Dave Blunts? No Shitting On the Bus". Interview Magazine. Archived from the original on May 11, 2025. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
  14. 1 2 3 Matthews, David (April 21, 2025). "Kanye West reveals past incestuous relationship with male cousin". Chicago Tribune . Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  15. ↑ Cho, Regina (April 21, 2025). "Ye Claims He Had Incestuous Relationship With Male Cousin, Describes Details In New Song". Vibe . Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  16. ↑ Degrazia, Leah (April 23, 2025). "Untangling Kanye West's "Cousins" Lyrics After Incestuous Relationship Revelation". E! Online . Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  17. ↑ West, Kanye (April 23, 2025). "What cover yall like the best for COUSINS". X (formerly Twitter). Archived from the original on April 23, 2025. Retrieved June 22, 2025.
  18. ↑ West, Kanye (April 23, 2025). "COUSINS GOING ON DSPS". Twitter. Archived from the original on April 23, 2025. Retrieved June 22, 2025.
  19. ↑ Ye - COUSINS, April 23, 2025, retrieved June 22, 2025
  20. ↑ Morton, Devin (July 21, 2025). "Eminem Takes A Shot At Kanye West And His Cousin On New JID Song". HotNewHipHop . Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  21. ↑ Hernandez, Diego. "Viral Rapper Dave Blunts Got Stuck in an Elevator and Still Made His First Dallas Show". Dallas Observer . Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  22. ↑ Hook, Ellie (April 24, 2025). "Kanye West opens up about his sexuality after bombshell incest confession". The Mirror US . Archived from the original on May 16, 2025. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  23. ↑ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. May 8, 2025. Archived from the original on May 10, 2025. Retrieved May 11, 2025.
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