I first fell in love with Kanye West when I heard “Through the Wire” in 2004 which sampled beats from Chaka Khan’s “Through the Fire”. I feel like he’s always pushing rap forward with his music, fashion, and intense personality. His last album “808s and Heartbreak” veered sharply away from standard rap, featuring stronger tempos and much more singing than his albums in the past.
Recently he’s been changing things up again. His recent performance on SNL featured elaborate modern dance routines with women dressed in white leotards.
Here’s the performance of his song “Runaway” and of his song “Power”
I love the way he uses the dancers as physical representations of both the beat and lyrics of his music. The girls also look like ballerinas but clearly are modern dancers. That idea of mixing the classical with the modern is something I think Kanye does consistently with the beats he samples in his music.
I happened to watch SNL this past Saturday night, and I agree with you that it is very interesting how Kanye is able to juxtapose the classical with the modern. I was very intrigued by the performance of the dancers, as well as with the unconventional lighting and set.
That said, I believe that these two performances are yet another example of Kanye West’s extreme narcissism. Look at his outfit, his excessive jewelry, and his crown. He has this erroneous belief that he is the most unique, influential individual to walk the face of the earth. While self-promotion is a common motif in rap, Kanye takes it to an entirely different level. His songs “Power” and “See me now” are perfect examples of his false sense of his importance. In reality, two of his other songs reflect his actual nature: “Paranoid” and “Heartless.”
I honestly don’t get the hype about Kanye West. Maybe it is the words and the message that young people feel is so potent, but I don’t see or hear anything that is particularly original or distinctive. There is certainly a boatload of attitude (the red suit, the major bling, the gold crown the adoring female dancers striking such reverent, submissive and evocative poses (and in such daring states of undress on the “official” video). Somehow the popular music industry has given West the “power” to change people’s lives and he is hyper aware of it. The awareness becomes part of the act. Most movie and pop stars of days gone by did not realize the power they had nor did they typically express it. The worst they might do is trash hotel rooms and then write a song about it (presumably to make more money to pay for trashed hotel rooms, see “Life’s Been Good to Me” by Joe Walsh.)
KANYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!