Kanye West 'Donda' Event Will Distribute COVID-19 Vaccines

Kanye West is set to host a listening party for his upcoming album, Donda, which is named after his late mother. It won't be the typical listening party, though. TMZ reported that the rapper's event would distribute doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

West will be hosting his listening party at Soldier Field in Chicago. NME reported that this event will take place on Thursday, August 26 and that the album will officially be released to the masses on the following day. Not only will fans get to listen to Donda, but they will also have the ability to get vaccinated if they so choose. There will reportedly be 1,500 doses available, which will be split between the two-shot Pfizer vaccine and the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Officials from the Chicago Department of Health will reportedly be on hand for the event in order to help set up appointments for a second vaccination date if attendees decide to take the Pfizer vaccine.

Even though the rapper's event will feature a vaccine distribution, he is reportedly not the one who is calling for this. TMZ noted that those who run Soldier Field, ASM Global Management, were the ones who worked with the city of Chicago in order to make this distribution possible. This won't be the first time that the rapper's listening party will feature a vaccine distribution. When he held a Donda listening party in Atlanta recently, there were COVID-19 vaccines available. Although, only four out of the 40,000 people who attended the event got the shot. There will be fewer people in attendance overall at his Chicago listening party. Despite the fact that Soldier Field can hold 63,000 people, only 38,000 individuals will be allowed inside the venue.

This latest West news comes shortly after it was reported that he is attempting to make a major change to his identity. West is reportedly seeking to legally change his name from Kanye Omari West to his nickname, "Ye." TMZ reported that the rapper filed paperwork in Los Angeles in an attempt to make the change happen. While it's unclear what the review process will entail, West will only need one judge to sign off on the change for it to go into effect officially. He has spoken about his appreciation for "Ye" and the meaning behind the moniker in the past.

Back in June 2018, West spoke with Big Boy TV and shared some backstory behind his album, which he titled Ye. "I believe 'ye' is the most commonly used word in the Bible, and in the Bible it means 'you,'" West explained about his album's title. "So I'm you, I'm us, it's us. It went from Kanye, which means 'the only one,' to just Ye – just being a reflection of our good, our bad, our confused, everything. The album is more of a reflection of who we are."