No one man should have all this POWER: Mr. Kanye West is a truly a musical genius, he has proven so through time. From the “College Series” (College Dropout, Late Registration, & Graduation) where he solidifies his place as a legend in hip hop with 3 classic albums. To 808’s & Heartbreaks which was not a Hip-Hop album but one can clearly see the artistry, creativity, and especially the emotion invested into this album. After these albums the question was what he was going to do next? The Taylor Swift incident and his self “exile” may have been the best thing to happen to him creatively. Upon his hiatus Kanye returned to Hip-Hop with something to prove, as if he was a rookie. Ever since the release of Power this summer, the following months has no doubt been “Kanye’s Months.” What he has done for Hip-Hop since his return is superior to any comeback in the genre’s history. From the unmatched G.O.O.D. Music team he has assembled, to his highly anticipated GOOD Friday releases each week, and most of all his thought provoking short movie: Runaway. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy combined with Runaway: the short movie is an instant Masterpiece. The album title is fitting considering Beautiful, Dark, or Twisted are all words that can be used to describe the album depending on the listener’s interpretation; but the true music fan can clearly see that this album is Beautiful Dark and Twisted.
More After The Jump
The album begins with Nicki Minaj’s speech where she blatantly lets you know that: “You might have thought you peeped the scene but you haven’t”. This is directed at those that feel they know what occurs in the mind of Mr. West; You Don’t! But he is about to let us in as we listen to the album. Immediately succeeding Minaj’s speech are the vocals questioning; “Can We Get Much Higher?” As we progress through the album we will witness that we can indeed get much higher, and we did. Dark Fantasy is an impeccable intro for the story the listener is about to witness unfold. The album’s production is superb and unmatched by any album in a long time. His strive for perfection is so evident, in the fact that he reaches out to the likes of Alicia Keys to merely sing background vocals on the track “All Of The Lights”, which is easily one of the stand out tracks on the album.
We have interpreted the main story of this album to be Kanye letting us into his world as he would like us to witness it. At some points, due to his arrogance you may say he is dark and twisted, specifically “Hell Of A Life” (his ode to porn stars), but we love it. Every aspect of the man makes the man and we would not have Mr. West any other way. There is also an underlying story to this album; which is Kanye’s return to retrieve his premise in Hip Hop. He left for a minute but returned with a classic: and in due time, the debate to distinguish this as his best album will certainly arise.
My Beautiful Twisted Dark Fantasy has segments; the beginning of the album Kanye is spazzing, he is lyrically touching on every topic imaginable; especially on “Gorgeous” and “Power”, directed at the media addressing numerous topics and setting things straight. The story is brash and aggressive as he lets us into his fantasy, for example Monster and So Appalled is clearly a lyrical competition between the features on the track. But as we encounter “Devil In A New Dress”, Mr. West completely switches the vibe of the album, starting what we call the relationship segment of the album. The Tracks Devil In A New Dress, Runaway, and The Blame Game flow so perfectly together that its truly genius. Hell Of A Life is an exceptional track as well but I view it as an intermission between these three tracks. The three tracks display the trials and tribulations in a relationship; obviously they are personal experiences of Kanye. Devil in a New Dress is obviously an ongoing conflict within a relationship. Then we proceed to Runaway with continued conflict where Kanye acknowledges his faults proclaiming yes I am an asshole, so I got a plan “runaway from me baby.” After the Hell Of A Life intermission we come to what may be the best track on the album; Blame Game. This track is the eventual end of the relationship due to the ongoing conflict started in Devil In A New Dress. The track is amazing from John Legend’s singing to Kanye’s spoken word and even Chris Rock’s skit at the end. Mr. West gave us everything on this track: he rapped, he sang, Legend sang, his spoken word, and ended it with Chris Rock’s comedy. There is nothing more that you can ask for in a track, he did it all on the Blame Game and the outcome is nothing short of a Masterpiece in itself, apart from the album.
Lost In This World and Who Will Survive In America is such an epic ending to Kanye’s Fantasy. Who hasn’t felt as though they were lost in this world at some point, his lyrics are very fitting and relatable. Who Will Survive In America America America
Kanye West is continuing to change the game by doing things that have never been done in Hip-Hop. His big brother Jay-Z is always speaking about transcending Hip-Hop and bringing it to the masses, to people that have never thought of listening to the genre. Kanye is a part of the movement to do just that; earning Hip-Hop the respect as a genre of music, even from non-listeners. Mr. West is indeed a major part in Hip-Hop Culture whether one likes it or not. In any game that you are in what makes you stand out is your ability to change the game, and Kanye stands out immensely.
Cop or Not?
Forever Kings says that this is a DEFINITE Cop.
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