Can you imagine an album where Kanye West doesn’t rap? It’s sort of like album where Michael Jackson doesn’t sing. It’s kind of difficult to listen to.
This weekend I stumbled across the Kanye West video for his new single “Love Lockdown” from his new album titled “808’s & Heartbreak.” I’ve been hearing the song quite a bit over the past four weeks and that’s usually long enough for new music to have grown on me. This one, however, has yet to move me.
I’ve always felt that West was the new sound of Hip Hop music. I go all the way back with him to his first hit “Through the Wire.” Recorded while recovering from a near fatal automobile accident, this single introduced the world to a young unknown rapper who was hungry to be heard by any means necessary. It wasn’t just a song that sounded good; it was a song that sort of served as an anthem for determination and struggle. At least that’s what “I” got from it.
Four albums, ten Grammy Awards and five years later, it seems that Kanye is awash in struggle. The determination, however, seems light years away. I’ve been told that life experience can have a profound effect on one’s music. I believe that T.I. has created the best work of his career following his recent legal issues. His struggle has fueled his determination and as a result, his fans have been rewarded with one of the most upbeat albums ever released.
Kanye is a different story. “808’s and Heartbreak” is depressing. It’s so unlike him. His struggle seems to have gotten the best of him. Even his antics outside the studio are far from the up-and-coming coming rapper we once knew. I keep getting told that he’s still grieving over the death of his mother, who died a year ago due to complications from cosmetic surgery. I could understand his behavior if he was 13 years old, but the guy is 31. Attacking photographers and getting arrested is not a good way to deal with anything. Although I keep trying to understand what this young man is going through, I can’t help but focus on the fact that he is a “grown” man who really needs to grow up.
I cannot help but wonder how Kanye would have handled this situation back in 2003 when he was that young unknown rapper who was hungry to be heard. The Kanye from 2003 would have told us, “Watch me bounce back from this.” The Kanye from 2008 seems to be telling us, “Watch me drown in sadness.”
Instead of an album that uplifts, it seems to only give us a reason to feel sorry for him. He seems to have lost something, and no it’s not the obvious.
Give me the happy Kanye. The one who knows he’s the greatest entertainer alive. Not the one who gets upset because no one else seems to think so. I can’t help but believe that somehow, somewhere he still exists. Which is why I can’t wait until his next album. As for right now, however, I think I’m going to have to sit this one out.
Ask Myron
Q – “When will Dr. Dre finally release the ‘Detox’ album?”
R. Smith, Memphis
A – You would think that we would have gotten it already considering we have been hearing about this album since 2000. Dre has done countless interviews year after year and has promised this album virtually every year since 2004. Dre is such a perfectionist and is taking time to choose the right songs for the album. Rumor has it that he has tons of songs to choose from. Everyone from Snoop Dogg to 50 Cent says they’ve recorded tracks for “Detox.” Fellow rapper DJ Quik reports that Dre has recorded as many as 400 songs for the album.
(Got an entertainment question? Ask Myron at myron@myronmays.com.)
(Myron Mays is a freelance columnist and host of “Myron at Midnite” on WRBO Soul Classics 103.5.)
