The Undeniable Influence of Kanye West Kanye Omari West, an icon of hip-hop, pop culture, fashion and music in general. Kanye Omari West, a person belittled against and a person subjected to a life of racism and hate. Born on June 8th, 1977, Donda West, West’s mother, always knew he was destined for greatness, but did she know her son would turn out to be the Kanye West, a man lacking the respect he deserves for transforming a big part of the music we listen to on this very day? West came onto the scene in the late nineties but didn’t release The College Dropout until 2004, an album that took everybody by surprise. Kanye West changed the gangster filled rap genre by releasing his positive, soulful debut album, changing the way rappers dress, and paving the way for a whole new style of introspective lyrics and soul-inspired rap production in the mainstream. When West first showed up (late 90s and early 2000s), the world was a different place. Fans of the genre were most likely listening to gangster-rap, artists like: Jay Z, Notorious B.I.G, 50 Cent, Tupac, Ice Cube, Eazy E, N.W.A, Wu-Tang, Nate Dogg, Dr. Dre, and Snoop Dogg (Best Gangsta Rappers), the kind of music that dominated mainstream rap at the time. Rappers and fans of rap were mostly in a gangster-influenced mind state. West was foreign to the idea of being a “thug” or a “gangster”. West grew up in an average house while his mom made good money working as a professor in the English department at Chicago State University. He was well educated and attracted to more preppy fashions- sport coats, polo shirts, and sunglasses, quite the contrary to what other rappers were wearing in those times. Like many rappers, West wrote about his daily experiences, experiences majorly ... ... middle of paper ... ...ted "Best Gangsta Rappers." Ranker. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2014. Lynne, Douglas. Kanye West: Grammy-winning Hip-hop Artist & Producer. Minneapolis, MN: ABDO, 2013. Print. "The 10 Best Songs Produced By Kanye West." Rap Dose RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2014. "Kanye West." PEOPLE.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. "Polo Ralph Lauren." Complex.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. "Kanye West: The Evolution of an Icon's Clothes." Esquirecom Article. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. C.M., Emmanuel. "Kanye West Says He Is The Most Influential Person In Fashion Of The Last 10 Years." XXL. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Kanye West (American Producer and Rapper)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. Agard, Chancellor. The Daily Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast, n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2014.
He describes the sensation of “measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity” (2). West tackles double- consciousness in a lot of his songs, but more so I “Gorgeous” and “Power”. He does have slight elements in “Monster”, however. In “Gorgeous”, West is straight-forward in his approach, voicing his frustrations about appearing to fit in with the majority of popular artists (namely the white ones), yet when he does something stereotypically black he gets massive media attention and is berated for his actions. It is even in his clothes: if he is wearing the right clothing he is accepted, but is automatically perceived as ghetto when he is wearing sneakers and a white t-shirt. “As long as I’m in Polo’s smiling they think they got me/But they would try to crack me if they ever see a black me” (Lyrics On Demand). In “Power”, he discusses issues with fame and general concept of power, as well as being a minority with limited options. He talks about how education is limited and that minority children are eventually doomed to prison. “The system broken, the schools closed, the prison’s open” (Lyrics On Demand). His lyrics speak of how the world around him in controlled by the majority, and how minorities are forced to conform to the standards of the rest of the world. In “Monster”, the biggest hint at double- consciousness is the inclusion of Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, a white indie folk musician. Vernon’s appearance on such a quintessential rap track is impressive and jaw-dropping considering these types of songs (posse cuts”) are notorious for featuring all- black artists. His presence plays to the double-consciousness West expresses, by mixing black and white artists together for
"West, Kanye." UXL Newsmakers, vol. 5-6. Ed. Rebecca Valentine, Kelle S. Sisung, and Carol Brennan. Vol. 6. Detroit: UXL, 2006. 459-467. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.
"Kanye West (the Library of Hip-Hop Biographies) (Large Print 16pt)." Google Books. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014.
Raised as an only child, Dwayne Micheal Carter Jr or more commonly referred to as Lil Wayne, was born September 27th, 1982, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Carter’s mother was only 19 years old when he was first born. He was being raised by both his mother and father until his father abandoned them while Dwayne Jr. was only two years old. After being abandoned by his biological father, his mother was forced to take care of him on her own and survive in the crime infested community of Holly grove, New Orleans. Even though he divorced his mother and remarried, his father forced the two live with his own mother and came by to abuse Lil Wayne’s mother on a consistent basis.This situation went on for three years until Lil Wayne’s mother eventually remarried and relocated to a different part of town. Growing up he did very well in school. He was actually enrolled in his school’s gifted program at a point and received top grades. He got into music at a very young age and wrote his first rap song at the age of eight. Lil Wayne had the drive to be the best and successful at his craft since he first began. At the age of nine he was challenging others twice his age and older at rapping. He would consistently go to neighborhood parties or events to rap and most of the time he was better then whatever adult he was going against. As a testament to this, at the age of nine he start receiving attention from one of the two co-founders of his future label, Slim Williams. From Slim, he then received other co-founder, Bryan Williams, phone number and what he did with it after that was truly caught the Bryan’s attention. He continuously called the number over and over leaving rap songs on the voicemail of Williams until he agreed to meet him in person...
"Top 10 Outrageous Kanye West Moments." Time. Time Inc., 14 Sept. 2009. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. .
George covers much familiar ground: how B-beats became hip hop; how technology changed popular music, which helped to create new technologies; how professional basketball was influenced by hip hop styles; how gangsta rap emerged out of the crack epidemic of the 1980s; how many elements of hip hop culture managed to celebrate, and/or condemn black-on-black violence; how that black-on-black violence was somewhat encouraged by white people scheming on black males to show their foolishness, which often created a huge mess; and finally, how hip hop used and continues to use its art to express black frustration and ambition to blacks while, at the same time, refering that frustration and ambition to millions of whites.
He may just seem like another rapper to you but if you actually listen to his lyrics you can see he’s not like any rapper out there. His name is Kanye West and he was born in Chicago Illinois. He grew up in the “ghetto” and learned to appreciate life. He didn’t learn to really, truly appreciate life until October of 2002. Driving back to his hotel late one night after a recording session, the new-coming rap/hip-hop artist was involved in a devastating, near fatal car accident. The crash left him with a broken jaw in three places and an appreciation for life. Just weeks after being released from the hospital he recorded his first major hit, “Through the Wire,” with his mouth still wired shut. He records every song like its going to be his last song and that makes every song better than the last. He’s not only a rap artist but also a producer. He has been responsible for being behind songs like Jay-Z’s Izzo, Girls, Girls, Girls, The Takeover, and 03 Bonnie and Clyde.
Trickey, Erick. "Kanye West." Newsmakers. Detroit: Gale, 2006. Student Resources in Context. Web. 25 Nov. 2013.
He said “the CEO’s tell him that they can 't invest in his ideas, because he 's not a true fashion designer, that he 's a rapper” like he didn’t have any experience in the fashion world. Then he tries to explain that he 's not a true musician either, he doesn 't know how to play the piano. Kanye is an artists, he went back to school and graduate from an art college. I can relate to that in a way, because the past few years I been playing football, and actually came here to play. The summer before arriving to Guilford I had stopped playing football because I felt like there 's more to life than just football. I soon began to take in interest in cars along with fashion. My family tried to marginalize me by telling me that I don 't need to worry about anything else just to play football, like I didn 't know anything about cars or fashion. Little did they know, I took an Auto Tech class in high school, so I know the basics of auto
There are a lot of worldly things people desire to achieve. A great example of this is “Bound 2” by Kanye West. Kanye’s music represents the rap genre, rap has a lot of songs about love and how people act when in love. Love can make you a different person. As showed in his music, Kanye is a hard nosed person. He shows a soft side when it comes to love.
Tupac Amaru Shakur one of the most influential, controversial rappers to have ever existed. He grew up fatherless and at times motherless because of drugs, violence, and twisted ideas. Through struggle and hardships he found his flow. He showed the world that something can come from nothing. From joining up with the Digital Underground to his single debut he worked up he grew his fan base. As he grew in fame so did the East and West rivalry.
Throughout the world of men’s fashion in the 50’s, a few men rose above social normalities and created a style everyone man wanted to follow. One of these men was Elvis Presley who was highly regarded in the music industry for his unique style. This originality carried through to his fashion choices with an obvious distaste of adhering to social standards. Elvis wore whatever pleased him; this included bright colours, patterns, large belts and even wearing his favourite colour of pink. Another key icon in men’s fashion was James dean. His simplistic yet edgy style became the ‘cool’ thing. His bad boy persona made the girls heart melt, making men all across the world try to achieve his look.
“New Slaves” a rap, hip hop, song written, produced, and composed by Grammy award winning, hip hop mogul, Kanye West. Recording artist Kanye West, could possible be considered the most controversial rapper of all time. Kanye speaks on topics relating to him and his culture in his music. West grew up with a mother who was raised during the segregation era, meaning that he has many extreme views on fairness, and equality in America. In Kanye’s career, along with his amazing music and creative image, he is well known for his public outbursts, and his hatred for the media and the paparazzi. West stands up for what he believes in, and is sometimes selfish of his feelings. This track was included on his sixth studio album entitled “Yeezus” in 2013.
It is my honor to present the winner of this year’s award for Highest Self-Esteem. I BELIEVE, that this years winner is someone with undeniable and unwavering self esteem. Ladies and gentlemen, I am here to award Mr. Kanye West, a self proclaimed God and genius, with the 2014 award for Highest Self-Esteem.
Music is one of the most powerful and influential language which to many people in