Editors Note: After Kanye West’s 13 minute on stage rant at last night’s MTV VMAs we figured it was appropriate to post our own rant on Kanye. Watch video of Kanye’s entire speech below. We are voting Yeezy in 2020.
“The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about” – Oscar Wilde
Kanye West. There isn’t a name in all media that can conjure up such passionate feelings of rage, annoyance, or even hatred. People of all walks of life know the name. The Lithuanian cab driver on Ogden and Damen, the middle aged once soccer mom waiting in line at Walmart, the scarf wearing hipster adjusting his Fedora, the nervous kid clutching a ziplock bag of marijuana as the cop drives by for the second time. Everyone knows Kanye West. Even with such popularity, the general consensus remains: Kanye West is a jerk.
What exactly makes Kanye a jerk? Was it the Taylor Swift VMA incident, when he jumped on stage demanding that Beyoncé had the greatest music video of all time, humiliating Swift and making himself look like a stage five douche in one clean motion? How about the time he pretty much did the same thing to Beck at the Grammys, freaking out and saying that there were no real artists there. He considers himself to be a genius, he’s arrogant, self-righteous, and I’m sure I could fill up an entire page documenting his brand of Tom Foolery throughout the duration of career but is this what makes him this jerk?
In short, yes. Yes it kinda does. The long answer begs another question though; isn’t this what Hip Hop artists do? Hype themselves up to the be the greatest to the point where not only the listeners begin to believe it but the artists themselves start buying into it. Really it’s not just exclusive to Hip Hop, there have been plenty of artists throughout music history that have been famously arrogant. Liam Gallagher once claimed that his band Oasis, were bigger than The Beatles. Even one of The Beatles made the observation that they themselves were bigger than Jesus Christ! So certainly Kanye isn’t the first. But in saying that, perhaps it has more to do with how we view celebrity that has changed and devoting the energy of hate to one certain celebrity is all part of the tangled web of fandom? There’s nothing more satisfying than hating on a smug celebrity. Just look at them, with all their fame and fortune. Doing little to no work and raking in all sorts of cash. Look at their gorgeous spouses, or how all these other gorgeous people throw themselves at their feet. We are envious, we are jealous.
Since Hip Hop became popular in the mainstream, it’s become a different beast. Long gone are the days of stories being told of the struggle of living on the streets, urban decay, oppression, and racism. Commentary that made the ‘Gangsta Rap’ movement not only interesting, but important. Replacing that came the uprising of ‘Luxury Rap’ where artists began bragging about all the fine things their struggles lead them to. It started as empowerment, achievement, and even at it’s most aggressive, it was a testimony to what hard work could get you if you refuse not to give up. But once that wore off, the narrative of “What I earned” slowly became “What I got” then to “What you aint got”. This arrogant, self-righteous nature of the scene, encouraged artists to adhere to that mindset. With that said, Kanye West could very well be the product of his environment. Being outspoken is what the Hip Hop game is all about right? It’s what ANY form of art is about. You have something on your mind: you nurture it: you express it: art.
Okay so Kanye is an artist, but that doesn’t give him a free pass on being an egotistical megalomaniac. There is a certain aspect of bravery that I used to applaud him for. During his Katrina Relief rant in which he used the convenience of a live televised event as a platform to rant about President George W. Bush’s lack of urgency for disaster relief, and the media’s knack for double standards on what constitutes as survival or looting. Kanye spoke his mind in that quick moment, reaching out and connecting with many people who were feeling the same way about it as he was. That connection, albeit abrasive, was special. Heroic even, but for everything that was special about that moment was devoid of all meaning when he started using the same strategy for everything else he was passionate about, and even worse when it became more and more about his own benefit.
Personally I can’t help but to think that who Kanye West is in the media, isn’t the same as Kanye West as a person. I once read an interview with George Harrison where he talked about his dislike of being a celebrity. How it was a chore to put on this public image where everyone was constantly watching you, almost waiting for you to fail or say something that would prove you weren’t perfect. Harrison said his public persona was ‘Beatle George’ and he put the character on much like how you would put on a sweater. I think Kanye has that same sweater. He knows that people hold him to a higher standard and not delivering on that standard would show some sort of weakness or irrelevance. I think he is far more self-aware than we give him credit for. If ‘Media Kanye’ was anything like ‘Real Life Kanye’ how could he stay so successful in just about every venture he has taken? True he’s married to another world-hated celebrity, but at it’s core, he is still married and so far, their relationship seems to be genuine.
Maybe that’s all in the grand scheme of things? It sounds extremely superficial to correlate one’s artistry to their public persona, but that’s how we view celebrities in this day in age. Taylor Swift writes songs about ‘haters’ and how the media perceives her relationships. Lady Gaga is known for her outlandish, otherworldly costumes. Jay Z is famous for his class and power. Kanye is known for being a douche. It’s his niche. And while it might be rude, annoying, and demeaning, it’s his thing and we have helped create that thing. We hate on Kanye because we have been conditioned to. We enjoy hating Kanye, and he has made it easy for us to do so. He’s owns it…..All Day.
https://twitter.com/kanyewest
