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Netflix’s new three-part documentary on the life, times, work, ups, downs and controversies of the musician formerly known as Kanye West, Jeen-Yuhs, is set to drop on 16 February.
But even before most of us have seen it, it’s been snarled up in controversy and mildly narky Instagram posts on the part of Ye.
On 22 January, Ye posted a picture on Instagram pulled from the promo for Jeen-Yuhs, and politely but firmly demanded that he have the last word on what the documentary showed and how, and not the documentary makers.
“I’m going to say this kindly for the last time,” he wrote. “I must get final edit and approval on this doc before it releases on Netflix. Open the edit room immediately so I can be in charge of my own image. Thank you in advance.”
There was, it should be noted, a little rosy-cheeked smiley at the end of that post. Directors Coodie and Chike – otherwise known as Clarence Simmons Jr and Chike Ozah – are long time collaborators with Ye, having worked with him on videos going back to ‘Through the Wire’ in 2002. There’s a lot of goodwill there. But, Ye says, come on guys: I need to have control of this thing.
Of course, the auto-documentary is one of Netflix’s booming genres, with Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga putting together their own stories for the streamer. Beyoncé even directed and wrote Homecoming. But Coodie and Chike have been clear that they have final cut on Jeen-Yuhs and won’t be handing over the project now.
“I said, ‘Dude, you have to trust me.’ And he did, 100 percent,” Coodie told Variety. “Mind you, when his team and the business-people have gotten involved, they’re of course going to have their say. But I needed to tell this story.”
The archive of footage which Coodie and Chike have to work with is reportedly absolutely gigantic – Coodie has recalled taking a duffel bag stuffed with tapes to the original pitch meeting with Netflix and pouring them all over the table – and touches on pretty much every part of the last two decades of his life and career.
“Watching the movie Hoop Dreams is really what gave me the idea for this film,” Coodie said. “I wanted to do a Hoop Dreams on Kanye and see how far he’d go.
Much of it is incredibly intimate, and includes moments of Ye with his late mother Donda as well as touching on his endorsement of Donald Trump, barney with Taylor Swift, and aborted attempt to run for president in 2020 elections.
“It’s not about making Kanye likeable or not,” Coodie has said. “The footage doesn’t lie. What makes the film special is that it’s not something definitive; it’s his journey through my vision.”
The three parts of Jeen-Yuhs will all run to feature length. Fingers crossed there’ll be at least some insight into that video game he promised back in 2016 called Only One, in which iOS users would pilot his mum on her way up to heaven. We need answers.
