BY RICHARD TEO
Staff Writer
Who is Kanye West? Many would say he’s a famous rapper/producer/ fashion designer/musician. Others would say Genius. And others might say he’s insane. West was born June 8, 1977, in Atlanta, Georgia, and then moved to Chicago at 3 years old due to his parents divorcing. Upon discovering his passion for music and poetry at the age of 5, West had started rapping from the third grade and would later drop out of college at age 20 to pursue his musical career. Kanye made his debut as a successful beats producer for Roc-a-Fella studios which featured artists such as Ludacris, Alicia Keys, and Janet Jackson. All of which he produced hit songs for. But his true aspiration was to become a rapper, and despite his success, he was denied to be one by his own studio. Lacking the “Gangsta appeal” that most rappers represented at the time, he still kept his ambitions. In 2002, West had gotten in a car accident that shattered and sewed his jaw shut. To cope with the pain, West spent his time producing his album “The College Dropout” to serve as a form of distraction from his injuries. The song “Through the Wire” was meant to reference the aftermath of his accident and how he dealt with it. The album would later debut a year later. Having to be revised, remastered, and remixed, Kanye’s album “College Dropout” was the definition of an unparalleled sound. A musical genius, Kanye was regarded to be ahead of his time when his hit single “Slow Jamz” became an instant hit alongside his numerous albums which have received equal or even better reviews throughout the world. Through experimentation towards different forms of genres such as progressive rock, hip-hop, jazz, opera, and pop, Kanye developed songs that were beautifully eccentric. From 808s and Heartbreaks to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, West is a genius in his craft. But how did this success affect him? In his music video, Flashing Lights, he lyricized how he fears the fame and constant paparazzi would eventually take a toll on his life if it ever came. Ironically, that prediction came true when he married the fashion model Kim Kardashian. Taking extreme pride and arrogance, Kanye has since been a topic of controversy ever since his interruption of Taylor Swift’s recognition for a Grammy Award. What’s even more bizarre is when he ran for President against Trump and Biden in 2020 despite having no formal training or education behind Politics. His media conflicts are constantly blowing up and it even resulted in his divorce with his wife, Kim Kardashian. In a recent tweet, Kanye explicated that Kim will be coming back to him eventually through his faith in God. But the real question is… will Kanye ever recover from his impulsive decisions as he has actively admitted to battling depression and Bipolar Disorder.