Earlier this summer, it was reported that Beatles legend Paul McCartney was warned against working with Kanye West, by none other than Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn. At the time, Albarn claimed that "Kanye West trapped Paul McCartney," dubbing the collaboration "abusive," and essentially using McCartney's name for clout. Though he claimed to have texted McCartney, advising against the idea, Sir Paul decided to throw caution to the wind. Now, McCartney has sat down with GQ to open up about Albarn's comments, explaining his perspective on the Yeezy studio sessions.
"I love the respect someone like Damon is attributing to me, but I'm not that fussed," McCartney says. "If I want to go somewhere else from where I normally go or where I'm expected to go, I'll go. And if I enjoy it, that's enough for me. The great thing is, all sorts of hysterical things come out of it. I mean, there's a lot of people think Kanye discovered me. And that's not a joke." When asked whether he actually received a cautionary text from Albarn, Paul essentially shrugs it off. "He might have. I don't remember. But I wouldn't listen to him. I don't listen to people."
He proceeds to explain his rationale for using autotune on a new song, which caused him a fair moment of anxiety. "I know people are going to go, 'Oh no! Paul McCartney's on bloody Auto-Tune! What have things come to?" Still, he managed to provide a welcome explanation, and one that few Beatles fans can deny. "You know what? If we'd had this in the Beatles, we'd have been—John, particularly—would be so all over it. All his freaking records would be…"
For the whole interview, be sure to head over to GQ here.