Mike Dean Leaves Kanye West's "DONDA" Over Toxic Environment

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Mike Dean
Mike Dean was playing a major role in the album's development.

If you are a big Kanye West fan, then you should know exactly who Mike Dean is. The producer has been a major part of Kanye's success over the years and whenever the artist needs something mixed or spruced up a bit, you can be sure that Dean will be a part of it. Dean has been around hip-hop for decades now and has had the opportunity to work with a plethora of dope artists, including Travis Scott. 

While Dean might be respected around the industry, many fans have noted just how hard he's been working in light of DONDA's delayed-release. Kanye is living in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and for weeks now, there have been memes about how Kanye is keeping Dean locked up in some dungeon where he can't do anything except mix and master songs. Well, it appears as though those memes weren't too far off, as Dean took to Twitter last night to tell fans that he was no longer in Atlanta and that the atmosphere in the stadium is incredibly toxic.

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It all started with a tweet in which Dean said "fuck it," all before noting "good to be at the house." Eventually, there was a Twitter thread in which fans spoke about Dean's contributions and how Kanye needs to be treating him a lot better. This prompted Dean to respond saying "Toxic. That's it." From there, Dean went on to say that he has no clue when DONDA is dropping and that he doesn't know anything about Travis Scott's UTOPIA either. While some of the tweets were deleted, fans ended up screenshotting them as a way to keep the records alive. 

https://twitter.com/_/status/1426689367737737216
https://twitter.com/_/status/1426703305007194115
https://twitter.com/_/status/1426774576277725185

If you remember, during the DONDA Livestream on August 5th, Kanye called Dean in the middle of the "Heaven and Hell" record to yell at him for delivering the improper mix. Little things like that can certainly create the toxic environment Dean describes, so it's not entirely surprising to see this play out.

The album was originally supposed to come out on July 23rd, and then August 6th. Now, there is no release date in sight and with Dean gone, the creation of this album is beginning to fall apart at the seams.


About The Author
Alexander Cole
Alexander Cole is the current editor-in-chief of HotNewHipHop. He started at HotNewHipHop back in 2018 where he began as a Sports and Sneakers writer. It was here where he began to hone his craft, putting his journalism degree from Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, to good use. Since that time, he has documented some of the biggest stories in the hip-hop world. From the Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef to the disturbing allegations against Diddy, Alex has helped HotNewHipHop navigate large-scale stories as they happen. In 2021, he went to the Bahamas for the Big 3's Championship Game. It was here where he got to interview legendary figures like Ice Cube, Clyde Drexler, and Stephen Jackson. He has also interviewed other superstar athletes such as Antonio Brown, Damian Lillard, and Paul Pierce. This is in addition to conversations with social media provocateurs like Jake Paul, and younger respected artists like Kaycyy, Lil Tecca, and Jeleel!
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