October 9, 2013 - Hip Hop star Kanye West made an unexpected visit to the Jimmy Kimmel Live show, and it appears both men buried their twitter feud differences with one another; Kimmel apologized to Kanye at the beginning of the interview. During the sit-down which centered around a BBC interview Kanye had given previously, Kimmel did in fact admit he didn't listen to West's rhetoric in it's entirety. West sarcastically commented "Yea that's what I thought."
The apology was due to a parody video Kimmel made which portrayed the rapper as a child ranting West's BBC interview lines. The "Blood on the Leaves" rapper didn't appreciate the video and displayed his frustrations in a public twitter rant. Kimmel seemed to further soften his apology by sharing with the audience his personal experience hanging with West at a wedding, and showed a picture of Kanye with his dad. Kimmel painting a humane picture of West, gave the rapper permission to pick up where he left off from the BBC interview while pressing forward with his complaints of major designers within the fashion industry, who refuse to give him a chance to produce great products due to industry "status" he describes as classism.
After listening to West's BBC interview and watching him on Jimmy Kimmel, it's easy to understand how some people feel Kanye is on a rant rave. He hasn't mastered the art of controlling his passionate outbursts yet, or maybe he just doesn't care to. His aim is definitely to make you "feel" his words.
What do I think about Kanye's "rants"?
Honestly, his "rants" seem to be about discrimination and he appears hurt over the lack of diversity in industry areas of his interest. In his BBC interview West stated "I look around me, and there's no one around here in this space -- that looks like me. And if they are, they're quiet as f**k!"
It would seem that West isn't a stranger to the hard knock life of discrimination, and chooses to use his powerful platform of artistry to make his frustrations known. His life experiences literally dictate the outcome of his artwork and he has cleverly found a way to mesh both worlds together; upsetting it, not upsetting it. There's a saying that "all publicity is good publicity" and Kanye, seems to take full advantage of this hypothetical.
In the BBC interview West stated, "I'm here to crack the pavement and make new grounds sonicly" and "I'm going to try to make something that jumps up and affects you." Like a slavery movie Kanye doesn't want to make you comfortable he wants to excite the nerves.
Does Kanye West consider himself to be a new genre?
In the philosophy that is Kanye West; is molding the world with his imagination the ultimate goal in life therefore unequivocally establishing himself as an "original" and not a carbon copy? It's obvious he's an original when it comes to music but what about other areas -- such as fashion? Will he prove himself to be a master of fashion, or allow himself to be held back by the resistance of others? I'm sure everyone knows the answer to the latter!
Side note: At the end of Jimmy Kimmel Live, did you hear the talk show host call Kim Kardashian Kanye's wife? Was it a stab or simply respect?
2013 LA
You wrote a very interesting article. Here are my responses to the two questions that you posed:
ReplyDeleteWhat do I think about Kanye’s rants?
Yes, it does seem that Kanye West is used to a life of discrimination. I do agree that there is a lack of diversity in industries that he is interested in. He does have the right to be upset about this. He does use his status as a celebrity to voice his concerns about this, and I think that it is good that he is, at the very least, attempting to change these white-dominated industries. However, he needs to know that he is also in the minority – the minority of rich Americans. Sure, he may have had a difficult childhood, but right now he is living a life that billions around the world would dream to have. He should be using his money and celebrity status to change the world around him in a positive manner, instead of giving interviews where he sounds like a spoiled child. I also agree with you that Kanye does live by the old saying, “any publicity is good publicity.” Unfortunately, the public seems to have a negative perspective of him since he lives the life of unnecessary luxury. He needs to learn to be a better role model.
Of course, Kanye does not want to be the “ideal” role model. He wants us to be upset with him. He wants to be the conversation at the water cooler every morning. Despite the whole world thinking that he is an awful person for that whole Taylor Swift incident a few years back, Kanye is not sorry because he believes what he did was right. So does this mean that ANYONE can do anything unethical as long as they believe it is right? Or does this only apply to the rich and famous?
Does Kanye consider himself to be a new genre?
Yes, he does. He believes he will start a revolution. I do believe that he is a talented musician (I have doubts about his fashion career), but I don’t think he will be a household name in 50 years. Also, are other people really holding him back from becoming a great fashion icon? I personally dislike whatever he thinks is fashion, and I believe that his general lack of talent for this particular industry is what is holding him back. Kanye doesn’t seem like someone who will admit that he fails at something, so I guess we’ll all just have to sit back and see where his fashion career leads him.
Thanks for stopping by to offer your feedback Michael, your points are very interesting.
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