Kanye West Says the Beef Between Apple and Tidal Is Holding Up 'Watch the Throne 2'

Kanye West says he's not releasing 'Watch the Throne 2' with Jay Z because of the Tidal/Apple beef during Saint Pablo Tour show in Seattle.

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Complex Original

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Kanye West is not going to record Watch the Throne 2 with Jay Z anytime soon. And according to him, it’s because of some behind-the-scenes drama that took place when he tried to get Jay Z to appear on the album version of "Pop Style," a song on Drake’s fourth album, Views.

During a Saint Pablo Tour show at KeyArena in Seattle on Wednesday night, Kanye told those in attendance that the ongoing Tidal/Apple beef was at least partly to blame for Jay Z’s decision not to appear on the album version of "Pop Style." He also said that Jay Z decided not to appear on the song "out of respect for Meek Mill," who is signed to Roc Nation. Kanye explained that he was more than willing to call Drake and Meek Mill for the sake of the song, but he said that he and Jay Z were ultimately left off the track due to "some political shit" involving Tidal and Apple.

You can watch Kanye break down the situation in these videos:

Here’s exactly what he said as he spoke to the crowd:

Let me tell y’all something. There will never be a Watch the Throne 2. You know why? Because that’s the reason why I wasn’t on the song ["Pop Style"]. I wasn’t on the song because of Hov. Because of some Tidal/Apple bullshit. This shit get me tight every time I perform this motherfucker. Y’all didn’t get what y’all was supposed to get with me and Drake on this song because of some Tidal/Apple bullshit. This shit got me tight. Every time I perform this song I think about the shit. I think about the politics and the bullshit. I think about how hard I go for music, for art, for y’all, for the fans—how hard we go.

Later in the show, Kanye also alluded to the fact that Jay Z called him recently following Kim Kardashian’s armed robbery. He said he told him to come and "sit down" to talk with him during that conversation:

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