Ambiguous Title As To Not Reveal The Premise Of This Article By: Nick Zablocki
Ambiguous
Title As To Not Reveal The Premise Of This Article.
By
Nick Zablocki
Kanye West is the hip-hop G.O.A.T.
Reread that line if you have to. I’m not saying he’s the
greatest lyricist ever; he’s not in the class of Jay-Z, Royce da 5’9”, Black Thought,
or (Ugh, I guess) Eminem. I don’t think anyone would or could argue that. But,
as far as a figure, an artist in the rap game, I would argue Kanye West has a
claim at being the G.O.A.T. And that’s how I’m going to close out Kanye West
Week her at “The Frequency.” So much for having an ambiguous title. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Kanye West
has not made a bad album. In fact he has a PLETHORA of perfect albums,
something few hip-hop acts can say. It’s
probably important to note that I’m a stubborn “Kanye apologist,” so I may be
extremely biased. What’s most impressive is every album has a distinct feel and
energy to it. Kanye has never stayed stagnant with his sound. This is another
thing few artists in hip-hop can claim. Kanye’s a true artist because his art
bleeds into his everyday life. The fashion he was wearing always corresponded
with the album. Kanye’s never been afraid of change, in fact, he embraces it,
and requires it. Let’s run through the list of Kanye albums, including joint
ventures, and analyze how great they all are.
The College Dropout-(2003)
Personally
my least revisited album, but I still recognize its greatness. This album plays
better as a whole album as opposed to picking out songs from it to listen to.
Still, the running theme of believing in yourself and not letting a college
education be your only form of value in yourself is something I have continued
to fuck with heavy since I’ve gotten older. Kanye’s trademark
arrogance/self-confidence, depending on which side of the fence you’re on, was
already heavily prevalent on this album.
8/10.
Late Registration-(2005)
Kanye
continues the soul samples that were trademark on The College Dropout, but with Late Registration he
plays around with live orchestras more, perfectly blending it on the all time Kanye
song “Gone.” No one would’ve dared to fuse live orchestras with hip-hop, Kanye
executed it to perfection. We also see the political side of Kanye get
developed more on songs like “Crack Music” and “Diamonds from Sierra Leone.”
Graduation-(2007)
This might
be my favorite album ever. In any genre. This album is perfect. There isn’t a bad song on this album. The
sonics of this album absolutely changed the game. Kanye effectively ended the
watered-down 50 Cent gangster rap era and ascended the throne as the King of
Rap. He made it cool to be conscious and self aware. The album features the all
time great song “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” which is the literal embodiment of
Kanye in one song. I could talk about this song till I came in my pants and had
to change into a new pair of boxers, but I won’t do that here. Just know that I
consider this his magnum opus.
10/10.
808s and Heartbreak-(2008)
What’s a genius to do when he’s ascended
the to throne of his game, completely change up the swag. On 808s Kanye
basically creates emotional, mental health rap for the mainstream. More pop
album than rap Kanye effectively uses auto-tune to show the hollowness he felt
in his life after the death of his beloved mother. This album is fairly
divisive amongst Kanye fans. It’s not as easy to listen to as Graduation might
be, but when you’re in the mood for sadder songs, this album hits perfectly.
10/10.
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy-(2010)
Kanye was
practically crucified by the media after the infamous Taylor Swift incident.
She’s a cunt though, so I never cared
about the drama. Kanye wasn’t wrong with what he said. Plus he was out of his
mind self-medicating with Henny by the bottle. After some time in exile (Hawaii
doing mad blow with other geniuses isn’t the worst place to find yourself.)
Kanye returned with a second magnum opus. Another perfect album. The production
level on this album was absolutely off the charts. He created yet ANOTHER sound
in hip-hop, mixing in elements of progressive rock.
10/10.
Watch The Throne-(2011)
A
joint-venture with Jay-Z this album creates another unique sound in the hip-hop
landscape. The legends discuss being of elite status in America as an African
American. Kanye consistently holds his own with one of the greatest lyricists
of all time, albeit Hov was past his prime by this point.
8/10.
YEEZUS-(2013)
Kanye’s arrogant response to all the
critics of his fashion endeavors. People were telling him, we just want the
raps. He responded with the most polarizing product of his career. Love it or
hate it, you couldn’t deny that it was original. He stripped down the enormous
production of MBDTF and Watch The Throne and replaced it with an
aggressive, minimalist approach. The result to me, was another FUCKING CLASSIC.
I love brash and self-confident Kanye.
10/10.
The Life of Pablo-(2016)
This one
took some getting used to. The collage, scattered approach was unique. The
release as a living, organic creation was real as fuck. One this project Kanye
weaves together all his previous styles into something wholly original. The
production level was 100 as always. Many consider this his weakest album. Some
call it outright trash. I have a soft spot for it though. I think I see what
Kanye was executing. The man is a genius and I think he proves it yet again
with this album.
9/10.
Look, much
like The Life of Pablo, my point is a bit scattered in this article. I think
Kanye has made more classic albums than any other hip-hop artist. That has to
count for something. He was always been true to himself. That has to count for
something. Sure, he’s
never been a god tier lyricist. But, it’s not always about what you say, but
how you say it. And Kanye has always given us flavor, that has to count for
something. Kanye completely redefined the live performance in hip-hop, bringing
in production levels of staging that few could dream of. That has to count for
something. Kanye has been a pillar in hip hop for a decade and a half, that has
to count for something. It may be obtuse for some to admit, but Kanye West
might very well be the greatest hip-hop artist of all time. I leave you with
this Youtube video, that I watch weekly and listen to even more frequently. It’s
the most inspirational thing I have ever seen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFll1I8_UBc
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