To keep on the original topic of this thread, I think TLOP is a great album, and I haven't been a huge fan of Kanye's past work. Not every track is good but there are some great ones. I can replay tracks 10-13 over and over (Waves, FML, Real Friends, Wolves).
The best musicians I've ever known are incredibly humble and have been their own biggest critics. They have a more intimate knowledge of their own ability than anyone else. They know exactly what their capabilities are and how well they are able to perform. Unfortunately, it's impossible to be at your best consistently. The audience would never notice, but he performer often falls short of their best (even when they're still incredible) and they are keenly aware of that. And that's what keeps them both humble and motivated to continue developing their craft. The performer who actually believed they nail everything they do is a blind narcissist.
I listed The Beatles, Michael Jackson, and quite a few others in the top 25. And for those I didn't mention, most of them are better than him. Sure, I'd be in the minority- Kanye is better than Nas in album sales. His music isn't better. Rod Stewart has sold more than The Who. He's not better than them. Garth Brooks has sold more than Johnny Cash. Ain't no way on God's green earth is Brooks better than Cash. Rihanna has sold more than Marvin Gaye- I'll put up What's Going On, Let's Get It On, and I Want You over any 3 albums she has. You have to remember that some of these artists sell a lot b/c, well, there just aren't as many great groups around now. Do you really think Adele's record sales reflect on how great an artist she is in the pantheon of artists? No. They reflect that she is great in a time when there's not much else out there competing at her level. Look at the 80s. You had Bruce Springsteen, Prince, Michael Jackson, Madonna, AC-DC, and even Pink Floyd (early 80s) competing against each other. It started tapering off in the 90s and it is what it is today. I like several of his CDs, but he just makes people want to dislike him.
Exactly- if anyone, Bob Dylan has the right to say he's the voice of the generation, the greatest songwriter of all time, etc. His response? "I'm just a folk singer. I have ideas and I express them. If people dig 'em, cool." A paraphrase, but he's been saying that all his life. Same with Michael Jackson. He had the right to brag on and on about himself, yet he was very humble about his achievements- for the most part.
Kanye is an overrated ****bag. Don't get me wrong, he's talented but he's not in that category of musicians you just posted. And to add to what you said, I remember running across an old Hendrix video where he pretty much tries to avoid the question of how good of a guitarist he is--and responds similar to the Dylan quote you posted. This was the guy that had Clapton speechless at one point and had every right to brag. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6gwLQAuHJv8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> If you're at that level, you won't feel the need to state it.
We'll disagree here. Nas is a better MC, I'll give you that. But that's the difference between Kanye and a lot of rap artists...it's not just about the MCing. I think that's part of what makes Kanye unique. He has had huge critical success since Day 1 AND has had huge album sales. Pretty much unheard of in the last twenty years. As popular music tastes have gotten more and more boring, he's been pretty much the one artist who has broken the mold. Manged to break though while making original, un-formulaic music. I dislike him. I dislike his recent work. Doesn't really change how I feel about his music overall though. Especially since most of it I appreciated long before he really went bat-**** crazy. I do think if we're using "humble-ness" as a barometer to assess music, then rap is going to be playing at a disadvantage. Not being humble is almost part of the genre. Of course Kanye takes that to the extreme.
Presuming "Our Time" includes musicians still recording albeit in the twilight of their careers, the idea anyone can claim Kanye West is "greater than" U2 or REM or Bruce Springsteen shows many in a certain ethnic community are ignorant of external standards.
I wouldn't agree that Kanye is better than those you listed by any means...but yeah...I'm assuming he means the current times. The artists you mentioned have hardly really released anything notable in 20+ years.
Why is it that people come in and down play kanye and his legacy thus far. But never backs up their claims as to why his artistry doesn't appeal to them. It either he's an *******, his record sales or even the most ignorant he's just a rapper. C'mon people I first chimed in to have music discussions and gain new points of view on music. But all I see is older posters in disbelief that a rapper that doesn't play a traditional instrument can be regarded as one of the all time greats.
Yeah, there has been an absence of discussion on actual music in this thread. I think the OP would have been better served saying "Music Artist" or "Pop Music Artist" instead of musician (with pop music meaning anything not classical). May have brought the focus to the actual music as a final product as opposed to the means by which it was made.
Also when people mention sales and album sales its important to remember that the digital age has bought a slash to those sales. For many albums all you need is a free spotify account to listen to them. Not really fair to compare to artist that produced music that had to be bought to be listened to.
So is he keeping this album on Tidal? I quit Spotify for Google Play as I was already paying for YouTube Red and Play was free with it. No interest in paying $20/month for Tidal at all.
FWIW, $20 is the price for lossless audio. It's $10/month for standard streaming. But I'm with you. I pay for Apple Music, so there's no way I'm ponying up for Tidal as well. More people are paying for music now. So make your music available to them or continue to complain about piracy.
Over on Kanyetothe people are getting info from Kim Kardashian and some other sources that it should be coming out on Apple soon. Also a good Friday track is rumored to arrive today featuring kendrick and or young thug. Also madlib sent kanye 2 beat cds so there is hope for more kanye and madlib music.
It's definitely better than Yeezus IMO though it still pales in comparison to everything before Yeezus. Definitely not a commercial album but still a good listen.
released a new song not on the album currently https://soundcloud.com/cokeboysmusic/french-montana-figure-it-out-feat-kanye-west-n-nas
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Exclusive! Kim "demanded" that Kanye get therapy after his latest antics. Get the details: <a href="https://t.co/y1jGldZUAz">https://t.co/y1jGldZUAz</a> <a href="https://t.co/pBt4iDter1">pic.twitter.com/pBt4iDter1</a></p>— Us Weekly (@usweekly) <a href="https://twitter.com/usweekly/status/702485653871796224">February 24, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
