It was Bill Hader's last episode and Ben Affleck's fifth time hosting, but Kanye West nearly stole the spotlight from both on the May 18 finale of Saturday Night Live. Taking the stage at Studio 8H in New York City's Rockefeller Center, the rapper, 35, performed two new tracks from his upcoming album, reportedly titled Yeezus -- the racially charged "Black Skinhead" and "New Slaves."
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Dad-to-be West's first song of the evening was the never-before-heard "Black Skinhead," an intense, energetic number that sampled Marilyn Manson's "Beautiful People" over heavy drum beats. As the music began, a projection of barking dogs appeared on a screen behind the star, barely visible on the blackened set. Sporting a studded leather jacket and jumping in and out of the light, the "Gold Digger" rapper shouted lyrics into the mic as images and words flashed behind him.
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Later, West took the stage again to perform "New Slaves," a track he debuted on Friday, May 17, when he projected the video for the song on 66 buildings around the world, in cities including New York, Toronto, Chicago, London, Paris, and Berlin. For his second performance, he stood completely still and let the words take care of the rest.
"My mama was raised in an era when / Clean water was only served to the fairer skin / Doing clothes you would have thought I had help / But they wouldn’t be satisfied unless I picked the cotton myself," he rhymed.
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Shortly before West's stint on SNL, his pregnant girlfriend, Kim Kardashian, took to Twitter with a teaser for her beau's new music: a photo of what appeared to be the album artwork, along with a pair of the rapper's Air Yeezy sneakers for Nike. "Yeezus #RedYeezys #SNL #Tonight #NewSlaves #YeezySeason #Donda #June18," she captioned the image.
Watch West's performance of "Black Skinhead" above, and tell Us what you think of the track!
