Kanye West apparently spent $85,000 on an image of Whitney Houston's bathroom, reportedly taken after the late star had been on a drug-fueled binge, to grace the cover of Pusha-T's new album, Daytona.
"He changed my artwork last night at one a.m.… cause he wasn't feeling it," Terrence LeVarr Thornton, who goes by the name Pusha T, said on The Angie Martinez Show on Wednesday.
"The artwork, it was pictures that we all agreed on, so he picked this photographer who took these pictures … he had a little edit," Pusha T said. "One a.m. my phone rings, no caller ID, 'Yo,' 'Hey, yeah, I think we should change the artwork and I like this other artwork.' Now, this other artwork is $85,000."
The rapper went on to say that after telling West he did not want to pay that amount, Kanye responded that he would pay. "I love it, I actually do love it," Pusha said of the final cover.
West tweeted a picture of the album cover on Thursday. According to TMZ, the photo of the scattered drug paraphernalia was taken in 2006.
Whitney Houston was found dead in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton hotel. The L.A. County Coroner later said she had died from accidental drowning partly related to cocaine use.
"Daytona is the first project out of Wyoming," West said on Twitter. "I'm really proud of what we put together. We've spent a year and a half digging for samples and writing. I really appreciate the overwhelmingly positive response that we've been receiving."
Pusha T talked about the album's name-change during his interview with Martinez. It was supposed to be called King Push, but "Daytona speaks to having the luxury of time; my favorite watch is a Rolex Daytona… This album is also seven songs, so it's like respecting your time, getting straight to the point," he explained.
