My music taste has always been very broad, and I was first introduced to Kanye in 2005 when his single "Gold Digger" hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100. I expressed my liking for the song and proceded to receive his then-new album Late Registration for Christmas. I listened to it extensively, enjoying its thick layers of orchestration and its passionate and personal lyrics about things like family, addiction, fame, ambition, racism, and struggle. I was a fan. Fortunately for Kanye, he retained that fan when his musical direction coincided with the direction of my own musical taste. He proceded to explore synthesizers, indie culture, diverse music samples, and even deeper lyrical subject matters, and I thoroughly enjoyed every record he touched.
Fast forward to 2010 when Kanye finally emerged from his self-imposed hiatus. Following a few rocky years for the rapper, he launched G.O.O.D. Fridays and began to pump out song after song, each one increasingly edgy, more honest than ever, and noticeably explicit. In contrast, his 2008 release 808s & Heartbreak completely avoided a Parental Advisory sticker. On the other hand, some critics called his writing on that album lazy and lacking.
Kanye's 2010 releases leading up to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy were all over four minutes long, contained extensive swearing, and, though honest and well thought out, can easily be interpreted as sexist or racist. Kanye is just one of many new hip hop artists that appears more stream of consciousness than status quo. Though some say hip hop is undergoing a revival thanks to the likes of these new hip-hoppers, the biggest complaint in the eyes of critics regarding Kanye's new album was its surprisingly offensive lyrical nature. And though I did enjoy the album and I usually credit Kanye as someone breathing new life into hip hop, I am starting to wonder if the accolades will only encourage him to press further (see "H.A.M," Kanye's latest single with Jay-Z, which is full of lyrical turn-offs) leading to a type of introspection that will actually push listeners further away from hip hop.
Indeed, though I appreciate Kanye's honesty and his struggle, I do miss the positive sincerity of songs like "Hey Mama" and "Family Business" off of his earliest albums - the albums that landed him acclaim to begin with, opening the doors for other introspective rappers like Kid Cudi, Lupe Fiasco, Jay Electronica, and Curren$y to emerge. I don't want to diminish Kanye's right to free speech; he has every right to refer to "thirty white bitches" and "light-skinned girls" in his songs. But if he cares about how his fans see him - especially the ones who stuck by him through his controversies - as well as the direction of hip hop in general, he may want to rethink how he uses his "power."
I thought your post was really interesting. The part about his racist comments made me wonder if say a white, male artist made racist and sexist remarks about women of a different race if he would be widely praised like Kanye, or rather condemned for his offensive lyrics.
ReplyDeleteWell, Eminem could never get away with being racist, but he certainly has been sexist and sexual-orientationist in his lyrics, and gotten a lot of flack for it (although, his first two albums were widely acclaimed and those were his most risque lyrically; they too were praised for their introspection but criticized for seeming demeaning).
ReplyDeleteKanye has always put a bad taste in my mouth. He speaks very passionately about things he doesn't understand-- and people like that always tend to make an ass of themselves sooner or later. He's less of a revolutionary to hip hop (or the music scene in general for that matter), and more of an attention whore; he knows what to say in order to cause a stir and then alas, it becomes a huge deal and everybody is talking about him again.
ReplyDeletePlus, his music often lacks some serious depth-- mostly singing about girls, money, high heels, and glamor. I mean, he's basically the male version of other passionless pop stars such as Katy Perry. But now I'm probably offending somebody so I'll stop there.