By Jack Allen and
Jack Howorth
Editor-in-Chief
Arts Editor
While admittedly Kanye West started off with the potential to be one of the most important artists of his time, his music has gotten progressively worse, and he has completely devolved as an artist and pop icon.
West’s legacy will not only be determined by his musical skill, critics will examine how he carries himself on and off the stage. In that regard, West undoubtedly strikes out.
He is arrogant, especially seen when he refers to himself as a god, a blatantly ridiculous claim. This abnormally large ego hinders his growth as an artist and becomes distracting for fans.
Don’t worry; that’s not all folks. Kanye West is also extremely adept at interrupting award shows. Beginning when he stole the stage from a 19-year-old Taylor Swift, West’s most recent stunt involves interrupting Beck as he accepted his Grammy award for Album of the Year.
This boundless arrogance turns Kanye West’s image into one of a nuisance rather than one of a music icon.
After three solid albums, West’s fourth album, “8o8s and Heartbreak,” was highly anticipated. However, this album marked the beginning of the end for Kanye West, as it was a complete failure. With his background in producing, West often experiments with instrumentals. In this case, overpowering synths and autotunes unbalance the whole album.
The track “Street Lights” is a prime example of a song dominated by overzealous synths. This experimentation in the electronic genre proves a massive failure and is the start of a downward trend for West.
Kanye West’s music continues to worsen as he continues to experiment. His seventh album, “Yeezus,” once again focuses too much on electronic beats and is reminiscent of acid house music.
It is far too cluttered, with its hodgepodge of sounds resulting in an album that is too gritty and grimy. Additionally the track “Bound 2,” although socially aware, is musically ridiculous, with borderline annoying background vocals.
The fact of the matter is that Kanye West’s name has become associated with uncomfortable weirdness, not only in the actual music quality but also stylistically in his music videos and fashion.
Based off of his current progression, Kanye will only get worse in the foreseeable future, whether its through another experimental album or another surprise guest appearance during someone else’s award ceremony.
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