All Hail Yeezus!

   

Courtesy of The New York Times 

      When someone mentions hip-hop whom do you think of? Jay-Z? 2Pac? The Notorious B.I.G.? Kendrick Lamar? Hip-hop has it’s own most known and influential artists. When I think of hip-hop the artists that I stated do come to mind, but the hip-hop artist I always have come to mind is a man some refer to now as Yeezus aka Kanye West. 

         Kanye West would be considered one of the most influential yet polarizing figures in music. West is known for the great influence he has had on the sound you hear in hip-hop and just music in general. The polarizing aspect of West comes when he speaks his mind. Over the past few years, Ye has been known for not only the great music he has released, but also the famous rants he has spoken. West has had a habit of rubbing people the wrong way and to me that’s one of the things I love about Kanye West; Taylor Swift and the two most recent presidents can attest to that. 

In an interview with Power 105.1 The Breakfast Club, West talked about how the music he has recently released and how speaking his mind keeps relevance in today’s media. In that interview, West spoke on many topics such as his frustrations towards big companies like Nike, his ventures into fashion, his run-ins with paparazzi, and his music. West feels companies like Nike, along with the fashion industry, are trying to marginalize him. 

In this interview, West made it clear that you can’t marginalize him. He WON’T let you marginalize him. Yeezus considers himself a creative genius. West compares himself to great minds such as Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, and Michelangelo. “I’m ten years ahead mentally and I’m trapped in today’s time,” says West, “and every now and then I’ll crack you a smile for 2013, but a frown for 2023.” West’s ideas go beyond music. His ideas for fashion, his design agency DONDA, his Air Yeezy shoes, and music are beyond his years. The ideas West had years ago have been brought into fruition. There were many critics of West’s album 808s & Heartbreaks, but the crazy thing about it is that the sound you hear on that album is what you hear today. That sound you hear on 808s & Heartbreaks is what created and laid the groundwork for artists such as Drake, Kid Cudi, The Weeknd, B.o.B, and Childish Gambino. 

Courtesy of Billborard.com 

Kanye West’s most recent album Yeezus came out over the summer. The critical opinion varied between people liking the album or strongly disliking the album. Personally, I liked Yeezus. The sound was way different from his previous albums. West experimenting with a new sound falls back to the quote stated earlier. Ultimately, West’s thinking and creative process is years in the future. “I am Warhol. I am the number one most impactful artist of our generation,” exclaimed West in an interview on Sway in the Morning. “I am Shakespeare in the flesh!” This is why I would categorize Kanye West with the great minds he believes he’s similar to. Kanye West is not only one of the top artists in music, but also one of the most influential figures in the world right now. 

Twitter: @OddKingz