We asked a load of guys called Pablo what their lives are really like

One of them hadn’t even heard of Kanye West


It’s been a rollercoaster couple of weeks for Kanye fans. He’s been unleashing his stream of consciousness onto Twitter, he’s been accused of being into some weird stuff in the bedroom and he implied that he thought Bill Cosby could be innocent. Oh and he’s releasing a new album too.

First he said it was going to be called Swish. Then he said the name was going to be WAVES. After putting us through a guessing game of what TLOP stands for, he’s revealed the final name is going to be The Life of Pablo.

Who’s Pablo? Could be Picasso. He compared himself to the artist in a speech at the Oxford Union last year. There’s also the line “I feel like Pablo when I’m workin’ on my shoes” (Yeezys?) on the track No More Parties in LA / True Friends. Or it could be Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar. His life would certainly be worth a couple of bars.

Intrigued by who it was, we tracked down some guys called Pablo to see what they thought about it and what an album of their life would really be like.

Pablo Hutchinson-Núñez

22. From Madrid. Lives in London.

Hi Pablo. What do you think of the name? Is it better than Swish and WAVES?

Kanye has finally come to his senses and chosen a great name.

How do you feel that it’s named after you?

I’m ecstatic. It adds to the collection of albums names after me. Let’s hope this one beats The World According to Pablo by Billie the Vision and the Dancers

What is your life really like though?

The life of a Masters student is as boring as it gets. Most my days are spent in the library. Although there should definitely be an album telling the tales of my undergraduate years when I had more fun.

In an album of your life, what would the song titles be?

Tough question. One thing I can tell you is that they would definitely be in Spanish. I think I would have to go for Paseos Por Madrid (Walks Through Madrid). I used to live there when I was younger, so most of the songs would be about my memories of it.

How hyped are you for The Life of Pablo? 

I must admit that I’m not Kanye’s biggest fan, but with an album name like that I think I’ll have to.

Pablo Kalvo

22 from Seville.

Hi Pablo, what do you think about Kanye West’s new album title?

Sorry, I don’t know who Kanye West is. I’m Spanish. I can answer questions about my life though?

Have you heard Gold Digger? All of the Lights? Bound 2? The New Workout Plan? 

Young Jeezy and Kanye West – Amazing. It encourages me when I play basketball. I don’t know any more songs though.

If you don’t know much Kanye, what do you listen to?

Rumba – artists like El Vega and Estopa. Chambao are good – they’re a mix of flamenco and electronic music.

I’ll check them out. So what is your life like?

It’s wonderful. I’m trying to set up my own translation business. I also study Business Administration in Seville.

What would the first track on an album about your life be called?

The Life of a Future Employer

Pablo Campoy

23 from El Rompido. Lives in Seville.

What do you think of the album name The Life of Pablo?

I think it’s a great name, it kind of gives you an idea what it will be about [does it?]. Also I’m sure a lot of people named Pablo will listen to it just out of curiosity. It’s better than Swish and WAVES just because it’s got my name on it.

Think he named it after you?

Well, I don’t picture Kanye West thinking about me while writing it so I guess it will be about some friend or some famous Pablo. In Spain it is a quite common name. Now that I think about it I’m curious who the real Pablo is.

It could be Pablo Escobar. I watched Narcos on Netflix recently and it’s been a common topic lately so it makes sense he is the Pablo in the album.

What is your life like? Do you think it’s worthy of an album?

Being humble I would say no but leaving humility on the side I think that only my year abroad in Italy is worthy of a film, crazy year…

What do you think some of the song titles would be if it was about your life specifically?

I had never thought about it so I’ll just write the first things to pop into my head: Ocean, Asphalt, Try again, Architorture, Lenguas (this means Languages), Peronis, Hangover.

Are you going to be listening to Kanye’s album when it comes out?
Definitely, I’m sure it will be the first Kanye West album I listen to completely, who knows, maybe he’ll say something about me.

Pablo Hele

22 from Madrid. Lives in London.

What’s your verdict on The Life of Pablo? Better than Swish and WAVES?

It’s definitely better than those album titles, it adds some Hispanic charm. 7/10 would buy. It was an obvious decision really. About time, Kanye.

What is your life truly like? Do you think it’s worthy of an album?

My life is pretty Spanish. I eat jamón, drink rum and work at Wasabi, so I think i’ts definitely good enough.

What would the tracklist to your life be according to Kanye?

Pablos in Paris, All Of The Sweet Chilli Chicken and Keeping up with Pablo

Are you going to be listening to Kanye’s album when it comes out?

Of course, it’s about me, coño! (This translates to something like “Fuck yeah!”)

Pablo Doyle

20 from Nottingham. Lives in Birmingham.

How do you feel about the name?

It’s definitely very unexpected for a Kanye album, especially in comparison to other more punchy titles like Yeezus or College Dropout. I’ve never seen an album name raise so much hype and controversy before, that’s for sure. I actually quite like the sound of WAVES but Life of Pablo sounds like it has more of a story which would make you want to listen to the album.

So why Pablo?

Me and Kanye go way back so I guess I’m just honoured to have inspired him. It brought back memories of that time back in 1993 when Thom Yorke approached me to tell me about Radiohead’s debut album title Pablo Honey – look how well that worked out for them.

How would your life play out as an album?

I think you could get a few decent songs out of it. It has become quite monotonous recently and I also tend to stray away from any sort of conflict, so I feel like Kanye’s constantly conflicting nature wouldn’t suit it. But if you like songs about university life, terrible diets and cats then watch out for my mix-tape.

Sounds hectic. What would the track list be?

Snooze (part 1), Shall I go to the 9am?, Snooze (part 2), Who drank my milk?, FML (Kanye West cover), Endless outro

Are you looking forward to the album dropping?

Definitely. Yeezus is my favorite Kanye album so I’m quite excited to see what he’s going to do next. I really don’t rate him as a person but he’s an important artist for sure.