Kanye West paid $85,000 to use a photograph of Whitney Houston’s bathroom full of drug paraphernalia for Pusha-T’s album.
The 40-year-old rapper produced the ‘Daytona’ LP and changed plans for the artwork at the last minute, as he wanted the cover to be the shocking image – which was secretly taken by Whitney’s sister-in-law Tina Brown in 2006.
Speaking about the artwork on The Angie Martinez Show, Pusha-T said: "He changed my artwork last night at 1am … My phone rings. No caller ID. (He says), Hey, yeah, I think we should change the artwork. And I like this other artwork. And this other artwork is 85 grand.’ I said, ‘Hey, I don’t want to pay for that and I wasn’t even going to ask you to pay for that. We picked what we picked, it’s here, it’s ready’ … ‘No, this is what people need to see to go along with this music. I’m gonna pay for that.’ I say, ‘You my man! You my man!’ "
The original image was published 12 years ago by the National Enquirer – six years before Whitney’s death from accidental drowning aged 48 – but it’s not clear if the star had to pay the publication, or her sister-in-law Tina.
On the ‘Daytona’ album, Kanye has also addressed the backlash over his outspoken and controversial opinions with a pointed verse on ‘What Would Meek Do’.
He raps: "Everything ‘Ye say cause a new debate."
Later referring to claims he’s "out of touch" and comments on his own mental state, he adds: "You better watch who you calling crazy."
‘Daytona’ was officially released on Friday (25.05.18), and Kanye voiced his pride in the work they’ve done on the LP.
He tweeted: "’Daytona’ is the first project out of Wyoming. I’m really proud of what we put together. We’ve spent a year and a half digging for samples and writing. I really appreciate the overwhelmingly positive response that we’ve been receiving."
Kanye West paid $85k for Whitney Houston bathroom photo
