Yeat Betrayed Fans

As humans, we are meant to change and grow. Artists are constantly evolving. 

There is nothing wrong with Yeat wanting to change his sound. It becomes a problem when he spits in the faces of the fanbase and former self that made him who he is today.

This is something I never could’ve imagined writing.

I want to preface this by saying that I have been a huge Yeat fan for years, since 2021 to be specific. Not trying to flex that’s just how it is. I even flew with Tino to Atlanta in 2023 to see Yeat in concert during his “Aftërlyfe” tour. That trip gave me some of my best memories and that concert is still one of my favorites to this day.

When “2093” came out, it was my least favorite project of his at that point, but I still looked towards the future with excitement and argued with anyone who merely whispered the words, “falling off.” I was enthusiastic to see Yeat evolve.

In a recent interview with Zane Lowe to promote his new album, “ADL,” Yeat said something that struck a nerve with many fans. 

“Trying to change it up, trying to give the youth some real music, some real art,” he said. “I think I’m done with the slop.”

It is unclear if the artist was calling current music bad or referring to his old music or its lyrics as “slop.” What is clear is that myself and many others feel that “ADL” was not an evolution in lyrical content and was even a downgrade in production, Yeat’s image and overall “funness.”

I have no intention of making this a review of “ADL.” It was not an enjoyable listening experience and made me rather sad as I sat and thought about how authentic and unique Yeat has been up until this point.

If the slop quote was not a betrayal of fans, this stripping of everything that made Yeat unique, in an attempt to make him more marketable or mainstream, certainly is. Trading “turbans” and chains for dress shirts and a mafioso aesthetic is probably a strategy to make the artist appear less weird, but whatever. What sticks out to me is the unnaturalness of it all.

The “ADL” marketing campaign, full of Sopranos and Scarface homage, tries to paint Yeat as an ultra-serious mob boss. The Zane Lowe interview is set at a candle-lit, white dinner table. It feels like we’re being gaslit into believing Yeat is suddenly this Robert DeNiro type character. Just three years ago, this dude was dancing around in the desert with a mask on.

Having the artist sit courtside with a girl in an “ADL” mask and putting him on the Jumbotron is not cool to many existing Yeat fans and most people who watch the NBA don’t know who Yeat is. It does not give him any more mainstream appeal in the greater popular culture.

Yeat has already been mainstream for years. “Aftërlyfe,” released in 2023, had over 18 million Spotify streams on its first day and that album felt like a way more natural evolution in his sound than “ADL.” There are clear moments of vulnerability and seriousness that shine through on that album while done tastefully and in a fun, truly Yeat way.

In hopes to grow as a cultural figure, Yeat was reduced to something mediocre yet more marketable, safe and consumer-friendly. Instead of making audiences adjust to Yeat’s character and his sound, he adjusted to fit the mainstream audience and their taste.

Something that was not broken has been “fixed” and it stunted a natural growth, that we caught a glimpse of on previous albums, in favor of whatever label agenda we heard and saw on “ADL.” Sure, throw Kylie Jenner on a track, why the hell not, right?

I am also over-the-moon that Yeat has cut back on drugs and looks happy and healthy. The currently popular arguments that fans want Yeat to be an addict or that his music sounds different because he is not on drugs are total cop-outs.

Yeat is one of my favorite artists of all time and this is the most crestfallen I have ever felt while writing an opinion piece. Whenever I get a chance, I still tell stories to friends about the days of old: 2021 Yeat. 

But I’m not stuck in 2021, I have always been able to move forward with his music and accept experimentation with an open-mind and ears. That changed with “ADL,” as I now see that Yeat is interested in a type of fanfare that I and many older fans are unable to offer.