Kanye West Wants to Fill Steve Jobs’ Shoes With New Creative Agency ‘DONDA’

Aug 19, 2013

Kanye West has (sort of) launched a new creative agency named after his late mother, Donda. Though, in true Kanye West-style, the details of the agency are pretty mysterious. Clover Hope uncovered a little bit of it over at VIBE.

On DONDA’s mission:

In January 2012, West laid out a series of tweets, highlighting his plan to create a firm with more than 22 departments staffed by a bevy of experts in divergent fields. He name-checked everything from architects, video game developers and nutritionists to doctors, lawyers and what he called "app guys," plotting to house them under DONDA.

His master plan reads like a stream-of-consciousness riff that becomes an epically ambitious screed (think Jerry Maguire’s infamous manifesto). There will be summer school programs with filmmaker Spike Jonze! An overhaul of the prison system! Nutritional consultation on achieving energy balance! Amusement parks! West tweeted: "We want to create, advertise and produce products driven equally by emotional want and utilitarian need."

On the DONDA portfolio:

The DONDA-designed cover for I Am Not a Human Being 2 spotlights a lone butterfly on a black background. And instead of a cliché mean-mug close-up, 2 Chainz’s Based on a T.R.U. Story features two chains draped over a black backdrop. Some say the DONDA design style currently on display is a brilliant respite from hip-hop’s often-aggressive literalism. Some say it’s basic. "Because hip-hop has been so literal, esoteric things excite people. But it doesn’t mean that it’s good," says Joseph Buckingham, aka Joe Buck, a graphic designer whose album artwork includes the classic De La Soul Is Dead cover. "That seems to be the trend now, to just be beyond hip-hop. Kanye plays that game well."

On starting DONDA:

In February 2012, four months after the lukewarm reception to his women’s collection, West started work on the first official DONDA endeavor–the Cruel Summer short. He commissioned three design firms and a post-production company and scored funding from the Doha Film Institute in the Gulf state of Qatar, where the film was shot. The team spent four months constructing an unprecedented seven-screen display and a white tented pyramid to contain it.

On filling Steve Jobs’ shoes:

West’s ambition to succeed Apple is clearly a stretch. But he may have the ultimate business consultant in Steve Wozniak, who cofounded the iconic tech brand with Jobs. They met this year and discussed Kanye’s top-secret plans. When contacted for comment on DONDA, Wozniak stated via e-mail: "I have opinions about it, but they would be personal between myself and Mr. West."

Check out more over at VIBE.