Lionel Messi gets special shoutout from Kanye West in 'Donda'; Which song is it?

Lionel Messi recently got a shoutout in Kanye West's Donda album. Kanye's Donda, whose release got delayed since its initial announcement in July 2020, was finally released on August 29 by Universal Music Group. Here's all we know about Kanye's special mention for ex-Barcelona now-PSG forward Lionel Messi. 

More about Kanye West album Donda's Messi shoutout 

Kanye West's recently released Donda features a special mention for legendary Argentinian footballer Lionel Messi. Messi recently left Barcelona amidst a highly-publicized transfer to French club Paris-Saint Germain. The Argentinian spent the better part of two decades at Barcelona FC and shed tears during the announcement of his departure from the club. 

Messi, who is already one of the biggest celebrities in the world, got a shoutout from Kanye West, proving that the footballer has all the star power he needs. Kanye's Donda, finally released on Sunday after West kept pushing the date back ever since its initial 2020 release date. The I Thought About Killing You rapper had previously organized three separate listening events for his album, which is now released after a lot of editing. 

Kanye's mention of Lionel Messi comes in the song, Off the Grid, which features Fivio Foreign and Playboy Carti. This is reportedly the first time that Kanye has ever mentioned Messi in one of his songs, which isn't surprising since Kanye hasn't been known to be a football fan.

Messi isn't the only athlete named in the album though. Kanye also mentioned Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo in a track named Junya, once again featuring Playboi Carti. The lyrics read, "I won with the bucks, boy / Let me Giannis."

Messi's rising influence and the spurt of fame brought about by his publicized transfer from Barcelona to PSG seems to have finally put him on Kanye West's radar. Barcelona recently had to let their legendary star player Lionel Messi go because they "couldn't afford" to pay the Argentinian footballer's salary anymore. According to Sky Sports, Barcelona has a debt of over 1 billion euros, which is why they couldn't keep Messi in the team while abiding by La Liga's financial fair play regulations. 

(IMAGE - AP)