Los Angeles, Oct 14 (IANS): Rapper Kanye West has confirmed that he has converted to Christianity.

The 42-year-old rapper shared the news on Saturday night when he made a surprise appearance at Howard University in Washington D.C. and held a listening party of his new album, "Jesus Is King", reports "dailymail.co.uk".

During the listening party, in a video obtained by "TMZ", West confirmed that he is officially a Christian now.

The video begins with West discussing a line in a Jay-Z song, where he said, "forced into sports or entertainment".

"Excuse me if I mispronounce anything. I am a recent convert. It means I recently got saved within this year," he added.

West has been holding his Sunday Service worship services since the beginning of this year, though he didn't confirm his conversion until now.

The video from the listening party also featured a section with a saxophone solo. He has been rumoured to be featured on the album.

The video also includes a clip from one of his new songs "Closed on Sunday", which includes the lyric, "Closed on Sunday, just like Chick-Fil-A", referring to the fast food chicken restaurant being closed for religious reasons. The moment led to huge cheer from the crowd.

As for the new album, "Jesus Is King", West still hasn't confirmed when it will be released. It was supposed to be released on September 27, but no official date has been announced. However, he has been holding listening parties frequently, hinting that the release date may be sooner. West released his last album "Ye" in 2018.

West and his wife Kim Kardashian also recently had their children, North, Saint and Chicago baptised in Armenia.