Kanye West’s new album “Waves” will be out next week on Feb. 11, and this writer is hoping to hear the rapper release what could be considered his dad album.

There’s no need for him to act any different in “Waves” if he’s going for a dad album. In fact, it’s been due time.

Even before he became a father few years ago, he has been workshopping his role as dad on record since his debut, “The College Dropout.” Marriage may not have been at the priority for him in those days. However, he already had the corny sensibilities of a dad down to a tee.

Cheesy punchlines has been his thing since he declared himself “the Red-Nosed Reindeer of the Roc” on that first album. Albeit more brash than his early days, he has been consistent with his dumb-fun brand of humor after a decade of rapping.

“Rock Forever 21 but just turned 30,” he rapped in one of the tame lines in “Bound 2” from “Yeezus.”

Kanye, the dad, is still hip to what’s cool in the present as he calls up collaborators such as U.K. emcee Skepta. Yet, he likes to talk up the heroes of the decades past more than the acts of today.

He sometimes sampled their songs, such as Elton John’s “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” and Michael Jackson’s “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing).” He also likes to claim he’s the equal of people such as Steve Jobs and Andy Warhol.

In one interview done months after “Yeezus,” he compared his catalog to Bruce Springsteen’s. He likened his last album “Yeezus” to the rock veteran’s “Nebraska” — a stark departure from his usual sound much like Kanye’s record.

He also said his next album is going to be like “Born in the U.S.A,” a cheerful pop album by Springsteen.

With now two kids, a wife and successful ventures in fashion, the songs recorded by a proudly smiling Kanye should be a giddy pop anthem that gets happy feet moving, kind of like Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark.”

His recent collaborations with Paul McCartney further suggested what kind of music Kanye, the dad, would make. In “Only One,” he sings a dedication to his newborn daughter North as well as his late mother. Meanwhile, the Beatle plays a soft, warm melody on the piano perfect for a lullaby. He played more of a drunk uncle role in “FourFiveSeconds,” which also featured Rihanna.

That said, neither of the two were included when he shared the tentative track listing, handwritten by the rapper himself, on Twitter last week. The singles actually from “Waves,” “Real Friends” and “No More Parties in L.A,” are the complete opposite in vibe and a total bummer.

They’re great songs that brings back the soul-inspired sound found in the rapper’s early days. However, Kanye doesn’t seem like the goofy dad I had hoped he would be — someone like Springsteen or McCartney.

He’s instead a grouchy geezer in “Real Friends” and an anxious parent in “No More Parties in L.A.” He’s too busy with his immediate family to catch up with his cousins. His kids need protection from paparazzi. His jokes lighten the vibe, but both songs essentially say being Kanye sucks despite his family there to make it better.

To be fair, Kanye’s music has always been about how it sucks to be Kanye despite his success and wealth. But can’t a fan hear an album with the rapper singing in joy for once? It has been a while since his record reflected a happy phase in his life, which at least dates back to his third album, “Graduation,” released in 2007. These past few years seemed like a good time to hear from happy Kanye again.

Bare in mind, though, “Waves” is not out yet so anything is still possible. Those songs can be the only low points, or Kanye might show that being a grumpy dad actually inspires incredible music.

Maybe Kanye will prove me wrong. He always has, and he probably will.