With Donda being Kanye's 10th album, fans may have expected things to go a little smoother. The release date was pushed back more than once, and now, there's no album art. The rapper hasn't publicly explained why a black square was chosen for the release, but that may not have originally been what was planned. He initially got rumors started about what it would be when he posted some expensive artwork online.

Earlier in 2021, Kanye posted a photo of Damien Hirst's sculpture called The Incomplete Truth that was created in the earlier 2000s. The work features a white dove in a formaldehyde solution.

When Kanye posted this, fans speculated about how the artwork would help convey the meaning of the album. Although Kanye never stated that The Incomplete Truth was meant to be album art, people online talked about themes like "destroying something that you're trying to preserve" (a quote from Hirst regarding his "Natural History" art series).

That theme could be very telling considering that Kanye's marriage to Kim Kardashian has been rocky in recent years, to say the least. But now, reports are coming out that the two are working on their relationship. One song from a listening party that's not on the released version of Donda is called "Love Unconditionally." It's reportedly about the rapper losing his family.

It doesn't help that Kanye actually bought the Hirst sculpture in August 2021 for £1 million ($1,375,640), according to The Sun.