"Your thoughts Please?"

My homie Elvis (real name) texted me the other day and posed the title question about Kanye West's new album, Yeezus....at the time I told him that I had only listened to the album all the way thru once. Bye rule, I listen to albums three times before I commit to a critique.

So I took my time and listened to the cd a few more times, the old fashioned way....in the car, to and from work. After the first 2 listens, I didn't know what to think about the new electro beats and the screaming and dark nature of the project. But I always know that with real artists, you have to delve deeper to understand the true meaning of their overall theme....and they always have one. They take this shit very seriously. The craft....so I started to break down the songs' lyrics and the beats. I am notorious for taking time to warm up to albums and then loving them after listening and listening to them. I came to realize after 5 complete listens that I love the album and Kanye's progression.

The album is a classic to me for various reasons. First off, you can always tell when an artist is submerged in his/her craft. Kanye's vision for this album is clear......It's "FUCK YOU". Obviously, that was the mood of the artist at the time of the rendering of the project. Not only was it F u, but it was as one track puts it "I am a God"......"so hurry up wit my damn massage!". Kanye wants the listeners to know that no matter what you think about his personal life or his antics or even his lyric choice, you know that he is still a G.O.D. of rap that is and he was really key in its resurgence.

My boi Elvis, told me that what Kanye does on this album isn't hip-hop, and I told him that I respectfully disagree with him. With new production (daft punk), he has evolved....that's what artists do. Elvis is a devotee to hip hop's golden age, as am I. He is also from Brooklyn, so he really only recognizes East Coast music as "real" hip hop. What Kanye has done on Yeezus is transcend the notion of what hip hop really is. On "I  Am a God", the Hindi sample that he incorporates magnifies how hard the electronic beat hits. On "Im in It", Kanye spits about all kinds of sexual encounters, while still reminding the audience that he is on top. The bass timings of this song are eerie and sound like new visions to me. It's like him and Rick Rubin painted a new picture with colors never seen before.....The Nina Simone sample from "Blood on the leaves" is a haunting reminder of where we are still at as a society, it's one of the reasons that some white people think this album goes too far.

Kanye ends the album with "Bound 2". It's a cut that at first I thought was just a leftover from one of his previous albums. As I listened to the lyrics, I could tell that I was wrong in my assessment. He is rapping about being bound to one man or woman and love......how we all want love and need love. The way he paints this particular picture is in a humorous and realistic way..... "Close your eyes and let the words paint 1000 pictures/ One good girl is worth 1000 bitches". Charlie Wilson sings the hook, as well....enough said!

Yeezus is my album of the year so far and I'm sticking to that. I like when an artist has the guts to step out on a limb and reach for greatness. Knowing that he might fall on his face. Kanye doesn't mind falling and he doesn't really care if some of the masses are too closed minded to understand or even try to understand. He does him. He's in his moment....the album is 2x dope. Get into it.

-tshurn