Spring Break
Kanye West Nothing But A 'Gold Digger'
Dafna Laskin
Issue date: 11/2/07 Section: Commentary
Kanye West doesn't care about music.
Maybe that's too harsh. Perhaps what should be said is that Kanye West doesn't care about anything but himself, his paycheck and his awards. Be it his political opinions, his crowd-pleasing songs, or his ugly white-striped glasses, Kanye West has been the man of the hour for several years now, ever since his work on Jay-Z's "The Blueprint" - proving West's abilities as a producer - placed him on the map.
What West hasn't proved is his abilities as a lyrical artist. "Stronger," the first single off his recently released "Graduation," would be a flat, lifeless song worthy of a P. Diddy album at best, if not for his injection of Daft Punk's infectious "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger."
Such is the case with most of West's ballads, whether it's Shirley Bassey on "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" or Curtis Mayfield's signature horns on "Touch the Sky." His best-received songs all sample older, well-established artists, like Chaka Khan in "Through the Wire," a Jamie Foxx rendition of a Ray Charles song on last fall's overplayed "Gold Digger," and Steely Dan on "Champion." In short, West relies on a predictable hit-making tactic - take any song that was already good, remix it with some heavy bass and just wait for it to take over the airwaves.
Besides his winning sampling formula, the Chicago rapper's success can be attributed solely to two qualities that make him unique in the hip-hop scene. The first, unlike Jackie Chan in the movie "Rush Hour," you can understand the words coming out of his mouth. Secondly, unlike most of his contemporaries, he raps about what he knows - or thinks he knows. Instead of referencing loose women, Bentleys, and Belvedere, he repetitiously goes on about dropping out of school, not being respected and having an unrivaled sense of style, as evidenced by his repeated namedropping of Yves Saint Laurent, Versace and diamond-dealer to the rap world, Jacob the Jeweler.
Unfortunately, that is where the storytelling ends for West. He is clearly incapable of bypassing his bloated ego long enough to make music that justifies his popularity as a thoughtful artist. Sure, sometimes he'll throw in a loaded comment or two about white people or government conspiracies, but rarely does he stray past his obsession with being denied numerous music awards.
Maybe that's too harsh. Perhaps what should be said is that Kanye West doesn't care about anything but himself, his paycheck and his awards. Be it his political opinions, his crowd-pleasing songs, or his ugly white-striped glasses, Kanye West has been the man of the hour for several years now, ever since his work on Jay-Z's "The Blueprint" - proving West's abilities as a producer - placed him on the map.
What West hasn't proved is his abilities as a lyrical artist. "Stronger," the first single off his recently released "Graduation," would be a flat, lifeless song worthy of a P. Diddy album at best, if not for his injection of Daft Punk's infectious "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger."
Such is the case with most of West's ballads, whether it's Shirley Bassey on "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" or Curtis Mayfield's signature horns on "Touch the Sky." His best-received songs all sample older, well-established artists, like Chaka Khan in "Through the Wire," a Jamie Foxx rendition of a Ray Charles song on last fall's overplayed "Gold Digger," and Steely Dan on "Champion." In short, West relies on a predictable hit-making tactic - take any song that was already good, remix it with some heavy bass and just wait for it to take over the airwaves.
Besides his winning sampling formula, the Chicago rapper's success can be attributed solely to two qualities that make him unique in the hip-hop scene. The first, unlike Jackie Chan in the movie "Rush Hour," you can understand the words coming out of his mouth. Secondly, unlike most of his contemporaries, he raps about what he knows - or thinks he knows. Instead of referencing loose women, Bentleys, and Belvedere, he repetitiously goes on about dropping out of school, not being respected and having an unrivaled sense of style, as evidenced by his repeated namedropping of Yves Saint Laurent, Versace and diamond-dealer to the rap world, Jacob the Jeweler.
Unfortunately, that is where the storytelling ends for West. He is clearly incapable of bypassing his bloated ego long enough to make music that justifies his popularity as a thoughtful artist. Sure, sometimes he'll throw in a loaded comment or two about white people or government conspiracies, but rarely does he stray past his obsession with being denied numerous music awards.
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