| "Cousins" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 "Cousins" adapts the paintingLeda and the Swan byPaul Mathias Padua for its cover art. | ||||
| Single byKanye West | ||||
| from the albumIn a Perfect World | ||||
| Released | April 21, 2025 (2025-04-21) | |||
| Genre | Hip-hop[1] | |||
| Length | 2:31 | |||
| Label | YZY | |||
| Songwriter | Dave Blunts[2] | |||
| Producers |
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| Kanye West singles chronology | ||||
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"Cousins" (stylized inall caps) is a song by the American rapperKanye West. It was released on April 21, 2025, as the second single from his upcoming thirteenth studio album,In a Perfect World. It was firstsurprise released on West'sTwitter account before being sent to streaming platforms on April 24.[a] Ahip-hop song, itsamples "Were There Originals" by Double Virgo andinterpolates "10 Percs" byDave Blunts.[3] Blunts also wrote the song's lyrics, which are about anincestuous relationship West had with his male cousin when they were both children.[4][5]
West has previously spoken of a cousin who is currently serving a life sentence in jail for a murder he committed at 17 years old. He has mentioned him onJimmy Kimmel Live! in 2018 and in the 2020 documentaryKim Kardashian West: The Justice Project.[6][7]
In aTwitter post made alongside the song's release, West gave further details. He said that he and his cousin had engaged in anincestuous relationship as children, starting when his cousin was six and lasting until West was 14.[8] He added that his cousin is now serving a life sentence for killing a pregnant woman "a few years after [West] told him [they] wouldn't 'look atdirty magazines together' anymore".[4] West believed he was "self-centered" for taking the blame for his cousin's murder charge and for "[showing] him those dirty magazines when he was 6". He ended his post with: "My name is Ye and I sucked my cousins [sic] dick till I was 14."[9][10][11]
"Cousins" was written byDave Blunts, who also wrote the rest ofIn a Perfect World. Regarding its creation, Blunts said:
... [West] had told me about the situation with him and his cousin, and I could tell that the song was very freeing for him when I made it. I believe that he chose me to write songs because I have a blunt approach to it, and that's the way that this song needed to be. I mean, it happened exactly like I said in the song, nodouble entendres. Just, like, "I gave himhead."[12]
In the song's lyrics, West details an alleged incestuous relationship he had with a younger male cousin that began after the two discoveredhomoerotic "dirty magazines" inhis mother's closet. Unaware of its sexual implications, they started "reenacting everything that [they] had seen", coming to the song's climax where West realizes he "gave [his] cousin head".[13] He tries to hide his relationship with his cousin, instructing him to "tell nobody"[14] and that those around him will judge him for the experience. The few friends aware of the incest tell West to "take it to [his] grave". West fears how people would view his sexuality as a result of his relationship, stating that people don't understand he's "not attracted to a man".[8] A sample of "New Tank" byPlayboi Carti transitions into the second half of the song,[15] which uses altered lyrics from Blunts's song "10 Percs" to change its theme towards West's public addiction tonitrous oxide and relationship withBianca Censori.[13][8] West's interpolation of the song is done via anartificial intelligence-generated audio deepfake of his voice over Blunts's original recording.[16]
On April 23, West posted four possible covers for the streaming release of "Cousins", asking fans which cover they "liked the best".[17] The swan cover art, which was featured as the third option counterclockwise, was ultimately chosen. West posted a text message between him and Buster Ross, the director of A&R at distribution label Too Lost, who approved of the cover art. West reaffirmed that this meant the song would be released on digital streaming platforms,[18] and it was later made available that same day.[19]
On the song "Animals (Pt. 1)" by American rapperJID, a guest verse from American rapperEminem references "Cousins", featuring the line "With thesemagazines, I act out like Ye and his cousin."[20]
Blunts has performed "Cousins" as the opener of hisStanding for What I Believe In tour.[21]
The cover art for "Cousins" is a cropped version ofPaul Mathias Padua's paintingLeda and the Swan, based on theGreek myth of the same name.[22] Padua exhibited the painting in 1939 at theHaus der Kunst inMunich, which was personally requested byAdolf Hitler after the painting's nudity became controversial among the German public.[23]Martin Bormann, Hitler's private secretary, later bought the painting and gifted it to Hitler, who subsequently hung it in one of his bedrooms at hisObersalzberg retreat.[22][23] Critics have interpreted West's decision to use a painting owned by Hitler as intentional, citing hisprevious praise of Hitler and the original artwork for West andTy Dolla Sign's debut collaborative album,Vultures 1 (2024), which adapted a piece by landscape painterCaspar David Friedrich; Friedrich was one of Hitler's favorite artists, and his art was used to promoteNazi ideology throughout the 1930s.[22][24][25]
The song's music video was released along with West's Twitter post. In the Twitter upload, the video appears in exceedingly low quality, consisting of visuals which draw from home media, TV commercials, and pornography.[26] The music video contains visuals such as aburning cross and a woman withswastikas covering her nipples, who sings along to the song.[4][13] TheApple Music version of this video is in HD with improved sound quality.[1]
| Chart (2025) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[27] | 21 |
