Ye
As this is my first album review, I would like to alert those who do not feel like reading to skip down to the bottom for the rating, and songs to listen to :)
Kanye West has always been one of my favorite music artists. His ability to create rhymes that are catchy, yet meaningful has always been extremely impressive to me. He is one of the few rappers I feel everyone can recite his lyrics and relate to on some type of personal level. On top of that, I believe he is a top producer, demonstrating a wide range. He continues to push the envelope with his sound, while always catching the public's ear. Lucky for me, Yeezy season arrived at the same time I started my blog.
For those that have been living under a rock, Kanye has been all over the media for the past 6 months, mostly for ill-mannered comments on social media and news outlets. West has always been outspoken. He once said "President Bush doesn't care about black people" during a Katrina fundraiser. His epic rant about fashion during a Zane Lowe interview that became a battle with Jimmy Kimmel. And who can forget his "I'm gonna let you finish Taylor but...." to interrupt Taylor Swift while she accepted her VMA. Nothing has ever bothered me, because it was always just Kanye being Kanye. But the comments he made recently on TMZ were unforgivable to me, stating "slavery was a choice" for African Americans. It was ignorant, disrespectful, and disgusting.
After making his insensitive comments, the rumor was that he completely scrapped his initial album, and re-wrote a new one which would come to be known as Ye. I was hoping his new album would provide some type of clarity or insight into why he would say something like this. Was it a marketing ploy? Was he trying to grab attention of a bigger issue? Was this for his presidential run? I listened closely.
The album is great. Short, but sweet. It may be his most artistic music (not best) to date, and something I would call a "self piece". It is a deep look into Kanye the person. He shares his deepest demons, his faults, and his imperfections. The first 2 songs are a little dark for me, discussing his depression and history battling bipolar disorder. As the album progresses he shows a more vulnerable side, while also embracing his imperfections claiming his bipolar disorder as his "superpower" and he is a "superhero". Ye even dedicates a song to his wife, and one to his daughter which I felt were both very touching. As usual the production quality is perfect, using unique samples and minimalistic melodies. Features include Jeremiah, Ty Dolla $ign, Kid Cudi, PARTYNEXTDOOR, and John Legend (see credits for more details). This will not be an album that you dance to, play at a party, or even listen to put yourself in a good mood. It is simply an enjoyable journey into the mind of Kanye West, that seems to get better each listen.
Although I throughly enjoyed Kanye's new album, I must say it was bittersweet. I do not feel the end justified the means. I needed some type of resolution for his recent antics, and I did not discover it. Instead he appears to have blamed his comments (and any comments in the future) on his diagnosed bipolar disorder. This can be seen by his lyric on Wouldn't Leave: "I said slavery was a choice, they said how ye? Just imagine if they caught me on a wild day". I do understand how a mental condition like bipolar can lead someone to say things they may not mean (or believe), but I don't think it should be a crutch and I feel some type of an apology was in order. I will continue to be a fan of Kanye and listen to his music, but his credibility has taken a massive hit in my eyes.
Songs to Move, Sweat, and Groove to: All Mine and Ghost Town
Favorite song: Violent Crimes. This is the song he dedicates to his daughter. The beauty of the track is what places it atop. Relevant for the times of the #MeToo movement as well. I can't speak more highly of it.
Rating: 4/5
Kanye West has always been one of my favorite music artists. His ability to create rhymes that are catchy, yet meaningful has always been extremely impressive to me. He is one of the few rappers I feel everyone can recite his lyrics and relate to on some type of personal level. On top of that, I believe he is a top producer, demonstrating a wide range. He continues to push the envelope with his sound, while always catching the public's ear. Lucky for me, Yeezy season arrived at the same time I started my blog.
For those that have been living under a rock, Kanye has been all over the media for the past 6 months, mostly for ill-mannered comments on social media and news outlets. West has always been outspoken. He once said "President Bush doesn't care about black people" during a Katrina fundraiser. His epic rant about fashion during a Zane Lowe interview that became a battle with Jimmy Kimmel. And who can forget his "I'm gonna let you finish Taylor but...." to interrupt Taylor Swift while she accepted her VMA. Nothing has ever bothered me, because it was always just Kanye being Kanye. But the comments he made recently on TMZ were unforgivable to me, stating "slavery was a choice" for African Americans. It was ignorant, disrespectful, and disgusting.
After making his insensitive comments, the rumor was that he completely scrapped his initial album, and re-wrote a new one which would come to be known as Ye. I was hoping his new album would provide some type of clarity or insight into why he would say something like this. Was it a marketing ploy? Was he trying to grab attention of a bigger issue? Was this for his presidential run? I listened closely.
The album is great. Short, but sweet. It may be his most artistic music (not best) to date, and something I would call a "self piece". It is a deep look into Kanye the person. He shares his deepest demons, his faults, and his imperfections. The first 2 songs are a little dark for me, discussing his depression and history battling bipolar disorder. As the album progresses he shows a more vulnerable side, while also embracing his imperfections claiming his bipolar disorder as his "superpower" and he is a "superhero". Ye even dedicates a song to his wife, and one to his daughter which I felt were both very touching. As usual the production quality is perfect, using unique samples and minimalistic melodies. Features include Jeremiah, Ty Dolla $ign, Kid Cudi, PARTYNEXTDOOR, and John Legend (see credits for more details). This will not be an album that you dance to, play at a party, or even listen to put yourself in a good mood. It is simply an enjoyable journey into the mind of Kanye West, that seems to get better each listen.
Although I throughly enjoyed Kanye's new album, I must say it was bittersweet. I do not feel the end justified the means. I needed some type of resolution for his recent antics, and I did not discover it. Instead he appears to have blamed his comments (and any comments in the future) on his diagnosed bipolar disorder. This can be seen by his lyric on Wouldn't Leave: "I said slavery was a choice, they said how ye? Just imagine if they caught me on a wild day". I do understand how a mental condition like bipolar can lead someone to say things they may not mean (or believe), but I don't think it should be a crutch and I feel some type of an apology was in order. I will continue to be a fan of Kanye and listen to his music, but his credibility has taken a massive hit in my eyes.
Songs to Move, Sweat, and Groove to: All Mine and Ghost Town
Favorite song: Violent Crimes. This is the song he dedicates to his daughter. The beauty of the track is what places it atop. Relevant for the times of the #MeToo movement as well. I can't speak more highly of it.
Rating: 4/5
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