12
Man of the Moment
A profile of Kanye West by Jon Hill
T
hat a near-fatal car crash should be the
catalyst that thrust Kanye West from
backroom hit-maker to bona-fide star is
probably an irony that the 26 year-old was
only able to appreciate in hindsight. Within
weeks of having his jaw wired shut, he cut his breakthrough hit Through the Wire, an account of his
triumph in the face of adversity that sets the standard
for The College Dropout, an album shot through with
incisive social commentary, mordant wit, and killer
beats.
The term ‘producer-turned-rapper’ usually rivals only
‘bodybuilder-turned-proctologist’ in its ability to induce
an involuntary shudder of dread (especially with
P. Diddy still inflicting his painfully inept rhyming on
the listening public), but West demonstrates on Get
‘Em High that he has a flow which, while no rival to
his mentor Jay-Z, is plenty slick enough to put him up
with the big boys.
West cut his teeth on Jay’s classic The Blueprint
album, and went on to produce tracks for artists from
Ludacris and Lil’ Kim to Talib Kwelli and Alicia Keys.
The diversity of his former clients, and of those who
supply guest spots on The College Dropout, illustrates
the unique position West occupies in the hip-hop
universe. Styling himself as ‘the first nigga with a Benz
and a backpack’, he fuses hot, infinitely commercial
beats with droll, socially conscious lyrics, avoiding
both the tedious gangsta-isms of mainstream rap, as
well as the often-unpalatable crunchiness of traditional
backpacker fare.
Possessed of a self-awareness and humanity that is
exceedingly rare in hip-hop, West treads where other
rappers either can’t or won’t. The soulful All Falls
Down beautifully encapsulates the Catch-22 of young
African-America, hoodwinked into trying to buy into
an American Dream that has no place for them. Both
incisive (“we tryin’ to buy back our 40 acres”) and
emotionally bold (“things we buy to cover up what’s
inside”), it is the heart of this wonderful album.
Kanye West has produced a provocative, moving,
danceable masterpiece. And by including a number of
skits that are actually funny and intelligent (rather than
tedious), he has achieved the hip-hop equivalent of
alchemy. The College Dropout has raised the bar for
the rest of the field. Any takers?