Beats, Lyrics, Ego, Kanye

Warning: This album had been listened to before this project, and may create some unintended bias, though I doubt that will happen.

Graduation was the third studio album to be released by Kanye West, and I believe it was one of his best. It's the third in his 'schooling' chronicles, the first being The College Dropout, and the second Late Registration. Before I talk about the album though, I'm going to pull a Whitni, and talk about Kanye himself.

I actually like Kanye West (for the most part). I'm personally not a big fan of ego, but that's not why I listen to his music. I listen to Kanye West because he is an original. He has been since he started back in 1996, and hasn't stopped for anybody. Since the latter part of the 2000s, rap music started sounding a lot different. You would a hear a great beat one month, and three months later, hear that exact same beat being spun by a different artist. Or, rappers started taking old songs and "re-vamping" them. This is great sometimes, but shouldn't be overdone, like it is now. West has his own distinct sound, he creates his own beats. He brings in sounds from other genres like techno, r&b, pop, and even rock. He experiments, he goes outside his comfort zone. Another thing about Kanye. He is a great rapper and an excellent musician. And he knows this. So many Kanye songs have been attributed to the fact that he talks about how great he is, how all the girls want him, how the haters hate him (and why they shouldn't). And even though you initially roll your eyes and say 'Yeah right', after a few listens you realize one of these two things:

1) He's telling the truth. I mean, honestly, how many other rappers out there are really like Kanye? I would put him right up there with Jay-Z; this guy has talent for spinning records, and he knows it. So shouldn't you know it too? Or...

2) He's knows it, but he's messing around. Remember that previous post by Whit talking about rap music (if you don't, check it out. It's very good). Remember the part where she talked about Luda, and how he used to poke fun at himself and his music? I think that Kanye does this too. Example? I was listening to track eight, 'Drunk and Hot Girls'. The whole song is silly, not worth a listen. So, I skipped it. Maybe Kanye is saying, 'Yeah, this shit is pretty stupid, but the real question is, are you gonna dance your ass off to it anyways?' Maybe I'm wrong, but I like to say that he is a mix between Luda and Common. Why? Because he possess the silliness of Luda, but, also, the seriousness of Common. A lot of his songs talk about real problems, concerns, or just thank somebody (track 13, 'Big Brother'). Those songs make more sense than some of his others, and show a side of Kanye many people don't ever see. Now, back to the music!!

No two songs sound alike, and if you listen to Graduation you'll hear that. The first song, the intro, is aptly named 'Good Morning'. The next five songs of the album really illuminate Kanye's talent, with songs like 'Stronger', 'Can't Tell Me Nothing', 'Good Life', and, my personally favorite, 'I Wonder'. Whitni's favorite song was 'Homecoming', which was a kind of duet with Chris Martin of Coldplay. That's another aspect of young Kanye, he makes songs with all kinds of musicians, from Lil Wayne, to John Mayer, to Dwele. He uses inspiration from musicians like U2, Elton John, Michael Jackson, and Public Enemy, and has said his favorite musical groups include The Killers and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. This guy has been around the block a few times.

Anyway, back to Graduation. It's a great album, placed well on the Rolling Stone's chart (40 something?). I didn't like tracks seven (Barry Bonds), eight, and eleven (The Glory). Tracks you might overlook include 'Everything I Am' and 'Champion', but overall, this album in definitely one of a kind. Like...a bright light in a dark hole of crap. Eww.

-Rai

P.S- No, I will not talk about any of Kanye's controversial outbursts or recent actions involving two young, talented women, a music video, and an badly abused microphone.