Netflix has released the first official trailer for jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy, a three-part documentary about Ye’s rise to fame and acclaim.
The first instalment of the film, described by Netflix as a “once in a lifetime three-week global event,” will premiere on 16th February.
Aside from Kanye’s divisiveness, the documentary is a major accomplishment in and of itself.
Jeen-yuhs was shot over the course of 21 years by frequent Ye collaborators Clarence “Coodie” Simmons and Chike Ozah, AKA Coodie & Chike. The documentary features home video clips and performance footage giving viewers an up-close look at Kanye’s larger-than-life persona.
While the documentary’s first trailer showed a young Ye rapping “Two Words” from The College Dropout alongside Mos Def, the official Netflix trailer preps viewers for a deep dive into the “cult of Kanye,” a phenomenon that’s begun to overshadow his undeniable musical talent.
“It was like God saying, ‘I’m about to hand you the world,'” Ye proclaims in the clip. “‘Just know at any given time, I can take it away from you.'”
One has to wonder if the documentary series’ name, jeen-yuhsm, ironically or earnestly deconstructs the word “genius,” but given the creators’ previous work with Ye, it’s probably pretty honorific.