Kanye West debuted his new single, “Wash Us in the Blood,” on Tuesday. The song’s debut comes just one day after West announced on Twitter that he was working on a new album titled God’s Country.
“Wash Us in the Blood,” which features Travis Scott, laments injustice against black Americans and begs the Holy Spirit to come down and intervene. The lyrics suggest a fusion between West’s early socially conscious subject material and his recent rebranding as a Christian rapper, first displayed on last’s fall Jesus Is King. The music video (Editor’s note: Watch with discretion; footage contains violence and other scenes that may be considered offensive) intercuts West’s rapping with video clips of pop culture, protests and even Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery.
The intro quotes 1 Peter 5:8, framing the need for salvation from “a roaring lion, walketh about, seekin’ whom he may devour.” The chorus continues: “It was the blood that cleansed me/ Shower down on us/ … Wash us in the blood/ As we live in this evil and crooked and Jezebelic world.”
The video concludes with a gospel choir singing, “There is nothing too hard for God” and West saying, “Wash us in the blood of Jesus. Holy Spirit, come down. We need you now.”
Within 24 hours of its posting, the music video for “Wash Us in the Blood” became the No. 1 trending video on YouTube.
Rolling Stone reports that West has also announced other projects related to Jesus Is King, including a James Turrell-directed film on Apple TV and a version of the album produced by hip-hop star Dr. Dre. Neither of those projects—nor God’s Country—has a release date at this time.
