If this album did not hit you in some way, you have a heart of stone. West’s life was definitely filled with heartbreak: the loss of his manager mother and a broken engagement all within a nine-month span. He told MTV the album was“ a little bit of autotune and a whole lot of f*cked up life.”
One song in particular hits me: “Paranoid.” It is perhaps the happiest tune on the album and a favorite among my friends. The song is about a paranoid girlfriend who worries her boyfriend is cheating and annoys her man with her behavior. The words describe every single thing my ex-boyfriend told me about his relations with girls and my paranoia. Specifically these lyrics:
All of the time you wanna complain about the nights alone
So now you’re here with me show some gratitude leave the attitude way back at home
describe perfectly what my ex and I would go through. There were past rumors about his supposed infidelity and he was dishonest when it came to his whereabouts involving girls (probably a defense mechanism to combat my suffocating paranoia). Just like Kanye’s girl in the song, I checked through Mr. Ex’s phone and whatnot to find evidence of his dishonesty. Recently we had a big fight due to my paranoia of him cheating on me.
Obviously, the song is pretty personal. I am the girl Kanye is describing.
Another example is “RoboCop.”
Checking everything like I'm on parole
Up late night like she on patrol
I told her there’s some things she don't need to know
She never let it go (ooo ohh)
The lyric, “There’s some things she don’t need to know” is exactly a line my ex told me. It wasn’t very comforting at all.
The CD is technically pretty good although it received mixed reviews (Rolling Stone only gave it 3.5 stars; Huffington Post called it depressing). It is just way too heavy for me. I’m into conscious hip-hop as much as the next red, black and green flag wearer but listening to this album makes me want to cuddle with good ole Mr. Daniels.
Beyond my feelings, I think West is going to make emo hip-hop cool. This is great—we need more records that let the world know brown skin men have actual feelings.
On to Kanye
ReplyDeleteKanye west has the potential to be arguably the most prominent musician of our time. He has a ridiculous amount of mass appeal and a remarkably diverse fan base. The guy has a wide array of fans attracting hip hop purists and rockers. If his new album is not a testament to his wide range of musical taste and his musical genius then I do not know what is? Many people might persecute me for saying this but I consider Kanye avant garde. He is starting new trends that were not there before he entered the game.
No black person in our generation has made more of an international impact in the music world (with the exception of Jay Z) than ‘Ye has. But even Jay has yet to capture that audience that wont give the time of day to any rap song. In a recent interview (I am paraphrasing) Kanye said he wants to make music that will remain timeless and that people at sold out stadiums can sing to and remember all the words to. He said that when he would go on tour people would like his songs but not know the words. He is a fan of the killers, the doors, U2 and Coldplay. The likes of who he wants to be compared to when his career comes to an end.
His ultimate goal not just for this album but for his career as an artist is just to make good music no matter what the genre. His new album is visionary. At first I was reluctant to accept this new sound and bashed the album. I was mad at him for “selling out” and not making that real hip hop that I and many of his other fans crave. Then I came to my senses, listened to some interviews and figured out what he was trying to do. I went back to the beginning of his mainstream career. Before Kanye received all of his accolades and got to where he is I noticed that he was different from any rapper that I have ever heard. He made beats that were characterized by good melodies and catchy tunes; his lyrics were simple yet meaningful. His music was orchestrated so that his beats catered to the rhymes and not the other way around! I have observed over time that he will make a beat and then rhyme accordingly . From a musical standpoint that is ingenious. He arranged his music so that his lyrics were exactly in tune with his melody due to devising of the beat and melody prior to the formulation of his rhymes. He has always been more about lyrics that people can actually reiterate and relate to and melodies that people can hum to rather than creating complex wordplay and producing hits for the club! I must say that now he is taking a new musical direction and most people are giving him harsh criticism because this is not a typical Kanye album and far from what most fans expected.
He calls this new genre “POP ART”. So he is definitely headed towards more of a pop influenced genre although he does not like to categorize his music. He just wants people to respect him for making good music. Kanye said in the interview that he just needed to make this album for him and he didn’t want to fulfill anybody’s desires but his. He says he has nothing to lose because he has lost what he treasured the most ( his mom). Thus he had nothing to lose by creating this type of album.
The sound of this album is definitely more mellow and ominous than any other of his other albums, but it is personified by the tragedies that have plagued him throughout the past year just like Bernette P talked about. I think the album was a bit homogenous in terms of the beats and concepts but a classic album nonetheless. If Kanye remains poised, grounded, and focused on his new musical agenda he should be on his way to be mentioned with the greats. He needs to keep putting his heart and soul into his music, pushing cultural boundaries, bringing his innovation to new heights, exploiting his creativity, broadening his fan base, and making good music despite what some critics and fans may say, he will do just fine. A legacy awaits him.
I think Kanye is great minus his "I'm the greatest -ish out there, damn near better than Jesus" attitude. I just think it's sad that the public needs Kanye to make "emo hip-hop" acceptable instead of broadening their horizons and getting it from where it started.
ReplyDeleteOh and Bernette's the greatest! whoo!
ReplyDeleteI love his new songs. I've always loved his music but his attitude needs a makeover.
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