Hi. I’m the Rap Critic. Let’s talk about Yeezus… and how stupid of an album title that is
For those that don’t know, Yeezus is the name of Kanye West’s latest album, and in it, he planned on making a darker, more minimalist sound that would complement the aggressive lyrical content he wanted to go for. Yes, on an album where he makes a facepalm-worthy fusion of his name with Jesus Christ, we’re supposed to take this album seriously. But, fine! From everything including his SNL performance where he proudly put “Not For sale” in the background, to releasing his first single, not on radio, but by “taking to the streets” and screening a minimalist video for it on the sides of 66 different buildings around the world, Kanye was letting you know that he wanted to say something with this album, something that he didn’t want to have to censor himself on the radio for, something you shouldn’t take lightly… or should you?
I mean, is Kanye really trying to make a stand against the establishment and corporate America, when at the same time, Kanye’s got a contract with Nike for shoes called “Air Yeezy’s” and actually sold a clothing line which consisted of a plain white shirt that cost $120? Think about that for a second. He released a clothing line with a shirt design that took absolutely no effort whatsoever to make, nullifying any semblance of creative thought, and marketed them for an exorbitant price solely on the basis that the shirt was being sold by the brand name of Kanye West. If that isn’t an example of being a sell out, I don’t know what is. The worst thing is the shirts actually sold out, which means that you can look forward to Kanye having an unfortunately justified song in which he will brag about how he can slap his name on anything and make it sell. And make no mistake: This is Kanye. He’s GOING to do that
But back to the music, because that’s what it’s ultimately about for me. Do the lyrics hold up for the rebellious, aggressive persona that he wants to portray, and what is the message that he wants us to feel and understand? Well, since Kanye released a music video for “Black Skinheads” and changed his whole website to be an interactive video of this song, I can only assume that this means something to him and that he wants this song to be the watershed moment that defines what his new music is going to about, the thesis statement, if you will, that represents the context of what cryptic message Kanye’s trying to send. Well, let’s listen in to “Black Skinheads”, and hear what he has to say
*starts with black KKK masks*
Okay… that’s definitely trying to say something. Maybe he’s saying that his music is supposed to incite a primal fear in white people, reflecting the hatred and anger that’s been accumulated in black culture due to centuries of systematic racism? Okay… I’m kinda concerned about how exactly you’re going to unfold this message, but… keep going
*dogs barking*
Dogs barking and rows of black people… Okay…
Hey, is the music gonna start or anything, ‘cause I don’t…
*intro starts, I start feeling the music*
Oh… oh, this is pretty good
I’m… kinda enjoying this sort of primal, percussive energetic music so far. It’s tight!
“For my theme song, BLACK
“my leather black jeans on BLACK”
For those that don’t know, Yeezus is the name of Kanye West’s latest album, and in it, he planned on making a darker, more minimalist sound that would complement the aggressive lyrical content he wanted to go for. Yes, on an album where he makes a facepalm-worthy fusion of his name with Jesus Christ, we’re supposed to take this album seriously. But, fine! From everything including his SNL performance where he proudly put “Not For sale” in the background, to releasing his first single, not on radio, but by “taking to the streets” and screening a minimalist video for it on the sides of 66 different buildings around the world, Kanye was letting you know that he wanted to say something with this album, something that he didn’t want to have to censor himself on the radio for, something you shouldn’t take lightly… or should you?
I mean, is Kanye really trying to make a stand against the establishment and corporate America, when at the same time, Kanye’s got a contract with Nike for shoes called “Air Yeezy’s” and actually sold a clothing line which consisted of a plain white shirt that cost $120? Think about that for a second. He released a clothing line with a shirt design that took absolutely no effort whatsoever to make, nullifying any semblance of creative thought, and marketed them for an exorbitant price solely on the basis that the shirt was being sold by the brand name of Kanye West. If that isn’t an example of being a sell out, I don’t know what is. The worst thing is the shirts actually sold out, which means that you can look forward to Kanye having an unfortunately justified song in which he will brag about how he can slap his name on anything and make it sell. And make no mistake: This is Kanye. He’s GOING to do that
But back to the music, because that’s what it’s ultimately about for me. Do the lyrics hold up for the rebellious, aggressive persona that he wants to portray, and what is the message that he wants us to feel and understand? Well, since Kanye released a music video for “Black Skinheads” and changed his whole website to be an interactive video of this song, I can only assume that this means something to him and that he wants this song to be the watershed moment that defines what his new music is going to about, the thesis statement, if you will, that represents the context of what cryptic message Kanye’s trying to send. Well, let’s listen in to “Black Skinheads”, and hear what he has to say
*starts with black KKK masks*
Okay… that’s definitely trying to say something. Maybe he’s saying that his music is supposed to incite a primal fear in white people, reflecting the hatred and anger that’s been accumulated in black culture due to centuries of systematic racism? Okay… I’m kinda concerned about how exactly you’re going to unfold this message, but… keep going
*dogs barking*
Dogs barking and rows of black people… Okay…
Hey, is the music gonna start or anything, ‘cause I don’t…
*intro starts, I start feeling the music*
Oh… oh, this is pretty good
I’m… kinda enjoying this sort of primal, percussive energetic music so far. It’s tight!
“For my theme song, BLACK
“my leather black jeans on BLACK”
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