4X4
23-10-2007, 08:02 PM
Well. The Bottom Line is this. Kanye Omari West is just another man from Chicago, agreed? NO! He is a powerful, moving, talented and eccentric Artist who was raised by a single mother, not knowing to become the so called "Future of Hip Hop".
Graduation, a very unoriginal name considering the names of his last two albums, was released on a public American day of mourning. This thoroughly insulted me, using September 11th as a promotion. But I thought, "Oh well, might as well buy the album".
So I Take a look at the cover. Yeah, it looks ridiculous. I mean, seriously, a Flying mascot teddy bear? Nevertheless I put the CD into the PC hard-drive, and listened to the entire album. Well this is what I have to say:
This is by far THE album of the year. It has filled people's demands in so many ways. The album seemed like a big science experiment, with all the new production and outstanding sampling put into the music. The Lyrics were cleverly written. Some particular areas in the songs throughout the album literally sounded like poetry. The Special guests that featured on the album sounded incredible under Kanye's wing (Just Listen to Lil' Wayne on "Barry Bonds". he was spitting lines of fire). Also, the variation of the song topics was generally good. On an average modern hip hop album, the subject at hand is most likely: Guns, Sex, Money or Love. Recently a new subject of Jewelry has also been popular. And it is heaven to my ears to hear some new lyrical content for a change.
What else has improved? Kanye Didn't bother with the tedious Skits. No offence to anyone who liked them, but they were annoying. In Late Registration, the Broke Thy Broke thing got on my fucking nerves. Sorry. It got THAT annoying. Here, we can see a complete reduction in the amount of available songs when compared to "College Dropout" and "Late Registration". Why? No skits. It is pointless to fill up album space with random gibberish. Well I must admit, not all skits are bad, but when you have Cheap, embarrassing interludes like the ones on Late registration, then I don't really think it deserves space on the album. This time round, it was all about the music.
Here is a break down of all the tracks:
1. Good Morning: 8/10 To start the album, Kanye didn't hold back one bit. He immediately spits lines of fire, getting back to the "Wake Up Mr. West" thing he did on the Late Registration on a whole new level. The electrifying
verses are a perfect fit for the New School Old School style beat. The Chi Town rapper starts the song with school related lines, and for the next 2 verses, he takes a Preacher approach, which comes out reasonably good. A good way to start the album. I understand the connection between the Morning and the intro, as the beat is slow, when you get up in the morning you take your time and stuff. Very effective. Yet there is room for much improvement. Perhaps a faster and heavier to please EVERYONE.
2. Champion: 8/10 Here, Kanye raps about Self Empowerment and success. Just like the Bridge suggests:
"This is the story of a champion
Rounders in the mob and they pop the guns
Stand up stand up! Here he comes
Tell me what it takes to be number one?
Tell me what it takes to be number one? "
The track was written to describe life with Kanye’s father. The song itself, is a bit harder to understand with out deep analysis of the lyrics, but who would want to do that? That is what's unique about Kanye, you need intelligence to fully understand him. However, this song can annoy the heck out of you if you listen to it too much. Because the BGM is very repetitive. Plus the Chorus sounds a bit corny. But oh well, Great track anyways.
3. Stronger: 10/10 Kanye's best song. Ever. No joke. This is a powerful "Flirt Flirt ;)" song with a completely different direction than that of an average mainstream production. The Back-up singing is provided with the clever sampling of Daft Punk's "Harder Better Faster Stronger". The song itself starts with the Slow Mo version of the lyrics from the Daft Punk Song:
"Work It Harder
Make It Better
Do It Faster
Makes us Stronger
More Than Ever
Hour After
Our Work Is Never Over"
And then before you can Say "Peanut butter jelly time" A steady beat drops and Kanye lets the chorus rip right through your eardrums.
In the first Verse, you can immediately tell from the second line ("You can Be My Black Kate Moss Tonight") that the smash hit is going to be somewhere on the lines of attraction. The Song has 2 Clear verses and a bridge. These are rapped in second person, as if talking to a girl. The lyrics are genius, simple as that. I could write every single line on the song that would make you think: DAMN! But I am sure you would rather discover it yourself.
A-line with the lyrics, this is by far THE most experimental track Kanye and Roc-a-Fella ever produced. New instruments are added and taken away literally every 10 seconds. I believe if you played the song to mozart, you will bring him joy. This is what standard for good Hip Hop Production is.
No one got any shit on this track. Take ANY club song and it will be found no match for Stronger. What more can I say? Oh yes, the Music Video for the track is set in a very weird and wonderful environment. Basically, Kanye is in a Japanese manga. Can't really be bothered to explain...
4. I Wonder: 9/10 It is Miri Ben Ari without Miri Ben Ari with the incredible Violin string sampling. Anyways, Here Kanye talks about the True meaning of... Well, Love, Money, Happiness, Music, Whatever. The first 6 lines are rapped in a 1 word at a time style, something I have not heard yet, so Top Marks for that. And then, from that point, that Kanye goes right back to spitting powerful off the hook verses, showing Just how high his potential is.
AND not to mention the perfect placement of other great samples (like the beginning with the piano intro).
5. Good Life (Featuring T-Pain): 10/10 The first guest on the Album is at his Prime on this Heavy track. You can basically guess what the song is about from its title. Which it is. A salute to the better side of life. What amazes me that Kanye uses a very basic vocabulary on his flows, and STILL makes the words sound great. The resourcefulness of this song is its main feature. Then it hits you: It is Possible to convert Mainstream to good music, which what Mr. West does here. T-Pain's little bits in the song did a lot. His 30 or so words he spoke say more than his entire debut, Rappa Tent Sanga, Which the only topic you can pick out from the album is Sex Sex Sex. Nice one Kanye. The song was stuck in my head on multiple occasions :)
Can't Tell Me Nothing: 10/10 At first glance at the song title, it sounds just like one of those "I'm better than you" songs. Listen to it at first, and you think to yourself about Kanye West having a Big Ego. Look at the lyrics carefully, and you will realize the message of the song. Sadly, once you find the hidden message, you will realize that Kanye was sort of bragging anyways a bit. This song has many philosophies put into it, making it easy to find the clues to the song's hidden message. Lines in the song like:
"To whom much is given, much is tested"
"This is my life homie, you decide yours"
"Old folks talking 'bout back in my day, But homie, this is my day"
"And you can live through anything if Magic made it"
"Don't ever fix your lips like collagen Then say something where you gon end up apolog'in"
"If he can move through the rumors, he can drive off of fumes"
"How he stay faithful in a room full of hoes?"
"Life is a, UUUUUUH, depending how you dress her"
"When you try hard, that’s when you die hard"
All of these are typical Philosophies in the song which the artist gave us to figure out. But to Cut A long Story Short, the Lyrics base about how people are in relation to money and fame, you know, the celebrity status.
Just like the album intro, the song goes Straight to the point. Kanye Begins to rap, nearly sounding like he is telling a story. The flow is strong and effective and with no flaw what so ever. The Production is basic, but excellent. And here in this song, Kanye sort of returns to His preaching of God with a few lines spread across the song, which is always good. This has much potential when the awards shows come around...
7. Barry Bonds (Featuring Lil' Wayne): 10/10 Ironically, this song is NOTHING to do with Baseball. This sounds rather familiar though. Perhaps a slower version of the song "Heard 'Em Say" from the last album? Why would I say that? Because both songs dropped down a heavy beat with a few trebles along the way. So yep, this is pretty much a slower version of the singe "Heard 'em Say" Featuring Adam Levine of Maroon 5, when talking production wise, relying mostly on the bass line. But you won’t really care. Lil Wayne Sounds good as usual. BUT, he talks about something else except the usual mainstream chit chat. An Incredible song, regardless of its randomness.
8. Drunk and Hot Girls (Featuring Mos Def): 10/10 This song teaches you a life lesson: One night's pleasure can mean a hell lot of unnecessary stress. Mos Def sounds awkward but very intelligent on this track, which is what defies him.
The Fable of the song: Kanye West Goes Club Hopping looking for some action. He finds a "Drunk and Hot Girl" with her friend. Chats her up, but notices she might be trouble. He takes her home (With some difficulties along the way), and ends up being with her for the rest of his life.
Sounds very commercial, yes? Well pretty much. Quite the contrary though, as it is media influenced hip hop flipped on its sides, tickled until tears run down its cheeks, and until it couldn't breathe, forcing improvement. The song is written with desirable structure and with Enchanting production.
Mos Def especially stands out here, with him repeating the title of the song, Drunk and Hot girl, in an electrically modified voice after the 1st,2nd,5th and 6th line of every verse, and his graceful performance of the bridge.
Nothing else to say but a job well done.
Oh Yes, and my favorite line from the track: "ARARARARAAAAA that's how the fuck you sound You (Drunk And Hot Girl)" . Just simply because it's so witty and wisely placed and used. Laugh Out Loud!
9. Flashing Lights (Featuring Dwele): 9/10 Well This song is more on the Gold Digger topic than the rest of the Album. Here, Kanye's lyrical flow sounds more easy and relaxed, in comparison with the banging beat in the background. The Editing is slightly repetitive, but great and original nevertheless, and it is the same repetitiveness that makes the beat even sharper. Not much to comment on this great track, which is exactly why it ISN'T getting a perfect 10, because so much more work could have been put into this beat. at least 8 minutes of good music. We don't have to talk Pink Floyd song lengths here, but, next time, when you invent something, put it up to its full potential, and Dwele sounds great, but more commitment is needed than 2 lines that are repeated 3 times across the song.
10.Everything I Am:7/10 An average attempt to slow down the tempo of the album. The song kind of speaks for itself through its lyrics, yet it can't really be summarized. Listen to the song and summarize it for yourself. The lyrics are in tip top shape, yet the beat is boring and bland, even for a slow track. Worst song on the album, but It doesn't really make it bad. Yet without the Lyrics, the song is nothing. The Mixing during the song is not bad, but the actual tempo of the track is too slow to keep people lively for too long. Nice try though...
11.The Glory: 10/10 Aaaaah, that's Much Better. Happy-go-Lucky rhythm mixed with very positive lyrics. The wordsmith starts off slow, as if singing blues in a Major scale, and the electronic voice that accompanies him speeds up, and eventually the beat drops. The song identifies Kanye's happiness in his current position, and how Kanye always did the rapping for "The Glory". What is this Glory? Well, it can mean many things. For my main man Kanye, It meant happiness, good criticism and high expectations from his critics, and so forth.
Kanye Drops T bomb, Polishing off old bragging rights, and generally dissing other artists in the next verse, and how they try to claim the so called Glory. It is in the same verse where Kanye reveals his honesty. Well, halfway through the verse, the song goes:
"But with my ego, i can stand there with a Speedo
And still be looked at like a fuckin hero”
Kanye West has had confrontations with his Ego when he went berserk at the award shows where he was nominated and never got anything, and when he obliviously said: "George Bush Does Not Care About Black People" in relation to Hurricane Katrina on live TV. Not many artists can admit their weaknesses. That's what's good with Kanye. He tells it like it is.
12.Homecoming (Featuring Chris Martin of ColdPlay): 10/10 Wait... This does not sound like hip hop at all. Maybe Rock? Good pop Culture? Jazz? Swing? Whatever, this Track is Dope...
This is what you will probably think after hearing the first 30 seconds of the track.
NO ONE would have really expected collaboration with Coldplay headman Chris Martin. Here, the lead singer plays the piano and sings the chorus, while West lays down the law. This track is basically about Love vs. Career. This can be clearly seen after you listen to the whole song. In the first verse, Kanye raps about meeting a new girl who he fell in love with. His raps are soothing and calming up until the second verse, where he changes his tone, and drops the bomb:
"But if you really cared for her,
You would have never hit the airport,
to follow your dream".
So it is basically a short simple song, with a general topic of discussion given some expensive plastic surgery and stuck onto the album. On iTunes, the original album did NOT contain Homecoming, which put MANY people off buying the album. People were reviewing the album saying stuff like "Homecoming is the best Track on the CD how can you forget it?” Well in my opinion it might not be the best, but it is top notch material
I actually hate coldplay as a band, but at least they did SOMETHING right here...
13.Big Brother: 10/10 This is an incredible song. That's all I need to say. But I will say more. Kanye here is rapping about how he came up to eventually being a rap star in the shadow of a Big Brother, which is supposedly Jay Z. Well, in the track, the Lyrics are once again in the form of a story, perhaps in comparison with Slick Rick's Story telling abilities.
The Rock 'n' Roll production on this piece is outstanding. I reckon this could have easily been David Bowie or the Chilli's brand new single if they worked on this in their albums. Which is nice to see Kanye experimenting with all genres, Not just Hip Hop, Not just Techno, Not just one...
This is what defined the album as a masterpiece...
[B] 14.Good Night (Bonus Track)(Featuring Al Be Back and Mos Def): 9/10 HA! Caught in the act! I bought the album without this splendid bonus track unfortunately, which had to resort to illegal downloading, so don’t you DARE tell anyone ;).
Well I am not really sure of the general message of this song, except for the fact that Mos def does not want to say goodbye. Perhaps if you will notice in the first few words of the verse where Kanye talks about the past, and how he wants to stop it, that the message of the song is: Live every day like it is your last. But I am not 100% on anything here.
This is supposed to be the JAPANESE bonus track. Yeah, mistakes were made, but apparently, it is available in some American copies. The beat is well produced, but the quality is pathetic compared to the rest of the album. You don't absolutely have to obtain this song, but you will be missing out. Most definitely...
As you May have heard, 50 Cent and Kanye were doing a massive battle to see who will sell more records. Both Graduation and 50 Cent's album, Curtis (Mostly mainstream) were set to release on the 9.11.07 and the challenge was to see who would sell more records in the first week. 50 Cent was way too overconfident, and promised to give up being an MC if Kanye sold more than him. Well, there was a song on 50's last album, The Massacre, called "God Gave me Style". Well 50, he must have gave you style until you squandered it. Kanye thrashed 50 in the battle to sell more albums by 100,000 records. Kanye Also made a reference to the contest in the song “Good Life” (check at the top of the interview).
This just is to show how much people had enough of material rap, and wanted something new. Kanye came up with the new school; While 50 stayed the course of rapping about his thug life. The reason 50 Cent gambled his career over a stupid competition was because of the fact that his last 2 albums sold more than kanye's last two. (Example, The Massacre sold 11 million, Late Registration sold 2.8 Million). 50 Underestimated Kanye, and Overconfidence IS the greatest enemy.
What more? 50 Cent's promotional songs were as Guns/Money/Sex as you can get off his album. He also featured many artists (Mostly R'n'B) on his album to excuse some lame songs for hooks. Nice try, but bad cover up.
Anyways, what are you doing still reading this review? Run down the store and buy this album. You WILL be satisfied from your tippy toes right back up to your hairs. Oh, and one more things, If you really adore The Mainstream rap Scene, you might not enjoy the album to its full potential. This is because it is Hip Hop on a whole new higher level, so you can either get used to it or ignore it.
Happy listening :)
Graduation, a very unoriginal name considering the names of his last two albums, was released on a public American day of mourning. This thoroughly insulted me, using September 11th as a promotion. But I thought, "Oh well, might as well buy the album".
So I Take a look at the cover. Yeah, it looks ridiculous. I mean, seriously, a Flying mascot teddy bear? Nevertheless I put the CD into the PC hard-drive, and listened to the entire album. Well this is what I have to say:
This is by far THE album of the year. It has filled people's demands in so many ways. The album seemed like a big science experiment, with all the new production and outstanding sampling put into the music. The Lyrics were cleverly written. Some particular areas in the songs throughout the album literally sounded like poetry. The Special guests that featured on the album sounded incredible under Kanye's wing (Just Listen to Lil' Wayne on "Barry Bonds". he was spitting lines of fire). Also, the variation of the song topics was generally good. On an average modern hip hop album, the subject at hand is most likely: Guns, Sex, Money or Love. Recently a new subject of Jewelry has also been popular. And it is heaven to my ears to hear some new lyrical content for a change.
What else has improved? Kanye Didn't bother with the tedious Skits. No offence to anyone who liked them, but they were annoying. In Late Registration, the Broke Thy Broke thing got on my fucking nerves. Sorry. It got THAT annoying. Here, we can see a complete reduction in the amount of available songs when compared to "College Dropout" and "Late Registration". Why? No skits. It is pointless to fill up album space with random gibberish. Well I must admit, not all skits are bad, but when you have Cheap, embarrassing interludes like the ones on Late registration, then I don't really think it deserves space on the album. This time round, it was all about the music.
Here is a break down of all the tracks:
1. Good Morning: 8/10 To start the album, Kanye didn't hold back one bit. He immediately spits lines of fire, getting back to the "Wake Up Mr. West" thing he did on the Late Registration on a whole new level. The electrifying
verses are a perfect fit for the New School Old School style beat. The Chi Town rapper starts the song with school related lines, and for the next 2 verses, he takes a Preacher approach, which comes out reasonably good. A good way to start the album. I understand the connection between the Morning and the intro, as the beat is slow, when you get up in the morning you take your time and stuff. Very effective. Yet there is room for much improvement. Perhaps a faster and heavier to please EVERYONE.
2. Champion: 8/10 Here, Kanye raps about Self Empowerment and success. Just like the Bridge suggests:
"This is the story of a champion
Rounders in the mob and they pop the guns
Stand up stand up! Here he comes
Tell me what it takes to be number one?
Tell me what it takes to be number one? "
The track was written to describe life with Kanye’s father. The song itself, is a bit harder to understand with out deep analysis of the lyrics, but who would want to do that? That is what's unique about Kanye, you need intelligence to fully understand him. However, this song can annoy the heck out of you if you listen to it too much. Because the BGM is very repetitive. Plus the Chorus sounds a bit corny. But oh well, Great track anyways.
3. Stronger: 10/10 Kanye's best song. Ever. No joke. This is a powerful "Flirt Flirt ;)" song with a completely different direction than that of an average mainstream production. The Back-up singing is provided with the clever sampling of Daft Punk's "Harder Better Faster Stronger". The song itself starts with the Slow Mo version of the lyrics from the Daft Punk Song:
"Work It Harder
Make It Better
Do It Faster
Makes us Stronger
More Than Ever
Hour After
Our Work Is Never Over"
And then before you can Say "Peanut butter jelly time" A steady beat drops and Kanye lets the chorus rip right through your eardrums.
In the first Verse, you can immediately tell from the second line ("You can Be My Black Kate Moss Tonight") that the smash hit is going to be somewhere on the lines of attraction. The Song has 2 Clear verses and a bridge. These are rapped in second person, as if talking to a girl. The lyrics are genius, simple as that. I could write every single line on the song that would make you think: DAMN! But I am sure you would rather discover it yourself.
A-line with the lyrics, this is by far THE most experimental track Kanye and Roc-a-Fella ever produced. New instruments are added and taken away literally every 10 seconds. I believe if you played the song to mozart, you will bring him joy. This is what standard for good Hip Hop Production is.
No one got any shit on this track. Take ANY club song and it will be found no match for Stronger. What more can I say? Oh yes, the Music Video for the track is set in a very weird and wonderful environment. Basically, Kanye is in a Japanese manga. Can't really be bothered to explain...
4. I Wonder: 9/10 It is Miri Ben Ari without Miri Ben Ari with the incredible Violin string sampling. Anyways, Here Kanye talks about the True meaning of... Well, Love, Money, Happiness, Music, Whatever. The first 6 lines are rapped in a 1 word at a time style, something I have not heard yet, so Top Marks for that. And then, from that point, that Kanye goes right back to spitting powerful off the hook verses, showing Just how high his potential is.
AND not to mention the perfect placement of other great samples (like the beginning with the piano intro).
5. Good Life (Featuring T-Pain): 10/10 The first guest on the Album is at his Prime on this Heavy track. You can basically guess what the song is about from its title. Which it is. A salute to the better side of life. What amazes me that Kanye uses a very basic vocabulary on his flows, and STILL makes the words sound great. The resourcefulness of this song is its main feature. Then it hits you: It is Possible to convert Mainstream to good music, which what Mr. West does here. T-Pain's little bits in the song did a lot. His 30 or so words he spoke say more than his entire debut, Rappa Tent Sanga, Which the only topic you can pick out from the album is Sex Sex Sex. Nice one Kanye. The song was stuck in my head on multiple occasions :)
Can't Tell Me Nothing: 10/10 At first glance at the song title, it sounds just like one of those "I'm better than you" songs. Listen to it at first, and you think to yourself about Kanye West having a Big Ego. Look at the lyrics carefully, and you will realize the message of the song. Sadly, once you find the hidden message, you will realize that Kanye was sort of bragging anyways a bit. This song has many philosophies put into it, making it easy to find the clues to the song's hidden message. Lines in the song like:
"To whom much is given, much is tested"
"This is my life homie, you decide yours"
"Old folks talking 'bout back in my day, But homie, this is my day"
"And you can live through anything if Magic made it"
"Don't ever fix your lips like collagen Then say something where you gon end up apolog'in"
"If he can move through the rumors, he can drive off of fumes"
"How he stay faithful in a room full of hoes?"
"Life is a, UUUUUUH, depending how you dress her"
"When you try hard, that’s when you die hard"
All of these are typical Philosophies in the song which the artist gave us to figure out. But to Cut A long Story Short, the Lyrics base about how people are in relation to money and fame, you know, the celebrity status.
Just like the album intro, the song goes Straight to the point. Kanye Begins to rap, nearly sounding like he is telling a story. The flow is strong and effective and with no flaw what so ever. The Production is basic, but excellent. And here in this song, Kanye sort of returns to His preaching of God with a few lines spread across the song, which is always good. This has much potential when the awards shows come around...
7. Barry Bonds (Featuring Lil' Wayne): 10/10 Ironically, this song is NOTHING to do with Baseball. This sounds rather familiar though. Perhaps a slower version of the song "Heard 'Em Say" from the last album? Why would I say that? Because both songs dropped down a heavy beat with a few trebles along the way. So yep, this is pretty much a slower version of the singe "Heard 'em Say" Featuring Adam Levine of Maroon 5, when talking production wise, relying mostly on the bass line. But you won’t really care. Lil Wayne Sounds good as usual. BUT, he talks about something else except the usual mainstream chit chat. An Incredible song, regardless of its randomness.
8. Drunk and Hot Girls (Featuring Mos Def): 10/10 This song teaches you a life lesson: One night's pleasure can mean a hell lot of unnecessary stress. Mos Def sounds awkward but very intelligent on this track, which is what defies him.
The Fable of the song: Kanye West Goes Club Hopping looking for some action. He finds a "Drunk and Hot Girl" with her friend. Chats her up, but notices she might be trouble. He takes her home (With some difficulties along the way), and ends up being with her for the rest of his life.
Sounds very commercial, yes? Well pretty much. Quite the contrary though, as it is media influenced hip hop flipped on its sides, tickled until tears run down its cheeks, and until it couldn't breathe, forcing improvement. The song is written with desirable structure and with Enchanting production.
Mos Def especially stands out here, with him repeating the title of the song, Drunk and Hot girl, in an electrically modified voice after the 1st,2nd,5th and 6th line of every verse, and his graceful performance of the bridge.
Nothing else to say but a job well done.
Oh Yes, and my favorite line from the track: "ARARARARAAAAA that's how the fuck you sound You (Drunk And Hot Girl)" . Just simply because it's so witty and wisely placed and used. Laugh Out Loud!
9. Flashing Lights (Featuring Dwele): 9/10 Well This song is more on the Gold Digger topic than the rest of the Album. Here, Kanye's lyrical flow sounds more easy and relaxed, in comparison with the banging beat in the background. The Editing is slightly repetitive, but great and original nevertheless, and it is the same repetitiveness that makes the beat even sharper. Not much to comment on this great track, which is exactly why it ISN'T getting a perfect 10, because so much more work could have been put into this beat. at least 8 minutes of good music. We don't have to talk Pink Floyd song lengths here, but, next time, when you invent something, put it up to its full potential, and Dwele sounds great, but more commitment is needed than 2 lines that are repeated 3 times across the song.
10.Everything I Am:7/10 An average attempt to slow down the tempo of the album. The song kind of speaks for itself through its lyrics, yet it can't really be summarized. Listen to the song and summarize it for yourself. The lyrics are in tip top shape, yet the beat is boring and bland, even for a slow track. Worst song on the album, but It doesn't really make it bad. Yet without the Lyrics, the song is nothing. The Mixing during the song is not bad, but the actual tempo of the track is too slow to keep people lively for too long. Nice try though...
11.The Glory: 10/10 Aaaaah, that's Much Better. Happy-go-Lucky rhythm mixed with very positive lyrics. The wordsmith starts off slow, as if singing blues in a Major scale, and the electronic voice that accompanies him speeds up, and eventually the beat drops. The song identifies Kanye's happiness in his current position, and how Kanye always did the rapping for "The Glory". What is this Glory? Well, it can mean many things. For my main man Kanye, It meant happiness, good criticism and high expectations from his critics, and so forth.
Kanye Drops T bomb, Polishing off old bragging rights, and generally dissing other artists in the next verse, and how they try to claim the so called Glory. It is in the same verse where Kanye reveals his honesty. Well, halfway through the verse, the song goes:
"But with my ego, i can stand there with a Speedo
And still be looked at like a fuckin hero”
Kanye West has had confrontations with his Ego when he went berserk at the award shows where he was nominated and never got anything, and when he obliviously said: "George Bush Does Not Care About Black People" in relation to Hurricane Katrina on live TV. Not many artists can admit their weaknesses. That's what's good with Kanye. He tells it like it is.
12.Homecoming (Featuring Chris Martin of ColdPlay): 10/10 Wait... This does not sound like hip hop at all. Maybe Rock? Good pop Culture? Jazz? Swing? Whatever, this Track is Dope...
This is what you will probably think after hearing the first 30 seconds of the track.
NO ONE would have really expected collaboration with Coldplay headman Chris Martin. Here, the lead singer plays the piano and sings the chorus, while West lays down the law. This track is basically about Love vs. Career. This can be clearly seen after you listen to the whole song. In the first verse, Kanye raps about meeting a new girl who he fell in love with. His raps are soothing and calming up until the second verse, where he changes his tone, and drops the bomb:
"But if you really cared for her,
You would have never hit the airport,
to follow your dream".
So it is basically a short simple song, with a general topic of discussion given some expensive plastic surgery and stuck onto the album. On iTunes, the original album did NOT contain Homecoming, which put MANY people off buying the album. People were reviewing the album saying stuff like "Homecoming is the best Track on the CD how can you forget it?” Well in my opinion it might not be the best, but it is top notch material
I actually hate coldplay as a band, but at least they did SOMETHING right here...
13.Big Brother: 10/10 This is an incredible song. That's all I need to say. But I will say more. Kanye here is rapping about how he came up to eventually being a rap star in the shadow of a Big Brother, which is supposedly Jay Z. Well, in the track, the Lyrics are once again in the form of a story, perhaps in comparison with Slick Rick's Story telling abilities.
The Rock 'n' Roll production on this piece is outstanding. I reckon this could have easily been David Bowie or the Chilli's brand new single if they worked on this in their albums. Which is nice to see Kanye experimenting with all genres, Not just Hip Hop, Not just Techno, Not just one...
This is what defined the album as a masterpiece...
[B] 14.Good Night (Bonus Track)(Featuring Al Be Back and Mos Def): 9/10 HA! Caught in the act! I bought the album without this splendid bonus track unfortunately, which had to resort to illegal downloading, so don’t you DARE tell anyone ;).
Well I am not really sure of the general message of this song, except for the fact that Mos def does not want to say goodbye. Perhaps if you will notice in the first few words of the verse where Kanye talks about the past, and how he wants to stop it, that the message of the song is: Live every day like it is your last. But I am not 100% on anything here.
This is supposed to be the JAPANESE bonus track. Yeah, mistakes were made, but apparently, it is available in some American copies. The beat is well produced, but the quality is pathetic compared to the rest of the album. You don't absolutely have to obtain this song, but you will be missing out. Most definitely...
As you May have heard, 50 Cent and Kanye were doing a massive battle to see who will sell more records. Both Graduation and 50 Cent's album, Curtis (Mostly mainstream) were set to release on the 9.11.07 and the challenge was to see who would sell more records in the first week. 50 Cent was way too overconfident, and promised to give up being an MC if Kanye sold more than him. Well, there was a song on 50's last album, The Massacre, called "God Gave me Style". Well 50, he must have gave you style until you squandered it. Kanye thrashed 50 in the battle to sell more albums by 100,000 records. Kanye Also made a reference to the contest in the song “Good Life” (check at the top of the interview).
This just is to show how much people had enough of material rap, and wanted something new. Kanye came up with the new school; While 50 stayed the course of rapping about his thug life. The reason 50 Cent gambled his career over a stupid competition was because of the fact that his last 2 albums sold more than kanye's last two. (Example, The Massacre sold 11 million, Late Registration sold 2.8 Million). 50 Underestimated Kanye, and Overconfidence IS the greatest enemy.
What more? 50 Cent's promotional songs were as Guns/Money/Sex as you can get off his album. He also featured many artists (Mostly R'n'B) on his album to excuse some lame songs for hooks. Nice try, but bad cover up.
Anyways, what are you doing still reading this review? Run down the store and buy this album. You WILL be satisfied from your tippy toes right back up to your hairs. Oh, and one more things, If you really adore The Mainstream rap Scene, you might not enjoy the album to its full potential. This is because it is Hip Hop on a whole new higher level, so you can either get used to it or ignore it.
Happy listening :)