Is Kanye West Having the Best Run in Rap History? (Complex Article)

  • Thread starter Thread starter New Editor
  • Start date Start date

Lab Baby

New member
This article is more of a Kanye dick riding festival than anything. When you say run, depends on what we're talking about... popularity? Record sales? Critical acclaim? Cuz he's been trumped in all of these. The most important for me is critical acclaim, cuz that'll push the artform further than the artist itself. Common, Nas and Ghost have been putting out quality material longer than Ye. But Ye's definitely up there.
 
Meh. They make it sound like Kanye is the vanguard of rap.

Maybe i'm wrong. And someone can prove me wrong, but Kanye's earlier production work with the soul stuff, up until Graduation (maybe), was somewhat lazy in his soul-sampling and beat sampling. His production sounds were pretty obvious where the beat was from. In a lot of cases, he doesn't change too much between the original sample (if anything at all) and really just added an appropriate drum or 808, and a bassline with the scratched-in hook.

It sounded dope, but i can't point really point to many beats where you listen to the sound and think "that's incredible how he flipped a small sample beat sample into something totally in left field.

Sometimes i think his music is made out to be more than it really is, just b/c it's Kanye. Especially with the "bringing soul samples back". If you check samples of music, it's always been around, just not as obvious as in Kanye's production.

Just Blaze, IMO, did more for soul-sampling on The Blueprint than Kanye. Kanye just stuck to that sound and sorta made it his trademark.

And RZA was the one to bring the style of sampling Kanye uses. I've seen numerous times on Reddit and a couple other places, where people treat him like some kind of musical god for "inventing chipmunk sampling". When infact, RZA's been doing that sampling style since Shadowboxin'. And perfected the chipmunk sound on 'For Heaven's Sake' in 1997.

Also, Puff's No Way Out had plenty of soul sampling. Mos Def's had that sorta sound.

Not to take a great deal away from Kanye, or to diminish his accomplishments. But I think his influence in terms of changing the sound is overblown a lot. He's a dope producer, and an average rapper. But I wouldn't put him as some kind of vanguard of the genre like too many people do.

(i'm prepared for negative reactions)
 
sully;4909079 said:
Meh. They make it sound like Kanye is the vanguard of rap.

Maybe i'm wrong. And someone can prove me wrong, but Kanye's earlier production work with the soul stuff, up until Graduation (maybe), was somewhat lazy in his soul-sampling and beat sampling. His production sounds were pretty obvious where the beat was from. In a lot of cases, he doesn't change too much between the original sample (if anything at all) and really just added an appropriate drum or 808, and a bassline with the scratched-in hook.

It sounded dope, but i can't point really point to many beats where you listen to the sound and think "that's incredible how he flipped a small sample beat sample into something totally in left field.

Sometimes i think his music is made out to be more than it really is, just b/c it's Kanye. Especially with the "bringing soul samples back". If you check samples of music, it's always been around, just not as obvious as in Kanye's production.

Just Blaze, IMO, did more for soul-sampling on The Blueprint than Kanye. Kanye just stuck to that sound and sorta made it his trademark.

And RZA was the one to bring the style of sampling Kanye uses. I've seen numerous times on Reddit and a couple other places, where people treat him like some kind of musical god for "inventing chipmunk sampling". When infact, RZA's been doing that sampling style since Shadowboxin'. And perfected the chipmunk sound on 'For Heaven's Sake' in 1997.

Also, Puff's No Way Out had plenty of soul sampling. Mos Def's had that sorta sound.

Not to take a great deal away from Kanye, or to diminish his accomplishments. But I think his influence in terms of changing the sound is overblown a lot. He's a dope producer, and an average rapper. But I wouldn't put him as some kind of vanguard of the genre like too many people do.

(i'm prepared for negative reactions)

there's no wrong way to flip a sample
 
all the things said by @sully are true but i don't think you can argue that Kanye is one of the most or the most influential artists to debut in the 00s
 
Who else can say that out of their first 4 albums the worst one is considered good/great? Kanye isn't the greatest mc skill wise but his body of work speaks for itself. I'll put his first four albums up against almost anyone in terms of OVERALL quality. Not saying it's a fact, but it is debatable. This article was a dickriding session though.....
 
Not even close. I could care less what Kanye has done since 00. His production isn't better then Dilla, RZA, DRE, Premo, No ID, and whole list of others. And I don't think there is any reason to even speak on him as an MC. He's not top 150.
 
Black Jerry Maguire;4909174 said:
buttuh_b;4909163 said:
Kanye's first 4 albums still aren't fucking with Ghostface, Outkast, Ice Cube, Nas (yes including Nastradamus)..

can't cosign Nas's first four.

How not?

Illmatic >>>>>>>>> CD by leaps and bounds.

IWW >>>> LR (Ye's best)

I Am... >>>>>> Graduation

Nastradamus = 808's

However you wanna cut it.
 
buttuh_b;4909240 said:
Black Jerry Maguire;4909174 said:
buttuh_b;4909163 said:
Kanye's first 4 albums still aren't fucking with Ghostface, Outkast, Ice Cube, Nas (yes including Nastradamus)..

can't cosign Nas's first four.

How not?

Illmatic >>>>>>>>> CD by leaps and bounds.

IWW >>>> LR (Ye's best)

I Am... >>>>>> Graduation

Nastradamus = 808's

However you wanna cut it.

Nastradamus is just too weak for me
 
Are y'all really saying 808s is better than Nastradamus? Or even equal? The auto tune wanna be Cudi album?
 
Black Jerry Maguire;4909174 said:
buttuh_b;4909163 said:
Kanye's first 4 albums still aren't fucking with Ghostface, Outkast, Ice Cube, Nas (yes including Nastradamus)..

can't cosign Nas's first four.

t_m_a_c_f_a_n73088;4909243 said:
Black Jerry Maguire;4909174 said:
buttuh_b;4909163 said:
Kanye's first 4 albums still aren't fucking with Ghostface, Outkast, Ice Cube, Nas (yes including Nastradamus)..

can't cosign Nas's first four.

co-sign, and nas the g.o.a.t imo....

 
Black Jerry Maguire;4909265 said:
buttuh_b;4909240 said:
Black Jerry Maguire;4909174 said:
buttuh_b;4909163 said:
Kanye's first 4 albums still aren't fucking with Ghostface, Outkast, Ice Cube, Nas (yes including Nastradamus)..

can't cosign Nas's first four.

How not?

Illmatic >>>>>>>>> CD by leaps and bounds.

IWW >>>> LR (Ye's best)

I Am... >>>>>> Graduation

Nastradamus = 808's

However you wanna cut it.

Nastradamus is just too weak for me

Even if Nastradamus is the weakest of all 8 albums, Nas first 2 albums are better than anything Kanye put out and personally I feel I Am... is much better than 808's and Graduation (which I have the unpopular opinion is not all that).
 
buttuh_b;4909295 said:
Black Jerry Maguire;4909265 said:
buttuh_b;4909240 said:
Black Jerry Maguire;4909174 said:
buttuh_b;4909163 said:
Kanye's first 4 albums still aren't fucking with Ghostface, Outkast, Ice Cube, Nas (yes including Nastradamus)..

can't cosign Nas's first four.

How not?

Illmatic >>>>>>>>> CD by leaps and bounds.

IWW >>>> LR (Ye's best)

I Am... >>>>>> Graduation

Nastradamus = 808's

However you wanna cut it.

Nastradamus is just too weak for me

Even if Nastradamus is the weakest of all 8 albums, Nas first 2 albums are better than anything Kanye put out and personally I feel I Am... is much better than 808's and Graduation (which I have the unpopular opinion is not all that).

so who has made an album better than nas' first two? Don't worry.... i'll wait...... Thats like holding every ball player up to the standards of jordan.
 
Last edited:
Either way I will say Kanye probably has a top 10 catalog in hip hop already... But I'm not gonna act like it's the best.
 

Members online

Trending content

Thread statistics

Created
-,
Last reply from
-,
Replies
57
Views
0
Back
Top
Menu
Your profile
Post thread…