Regardless of what you think about Kanye West’s recent “incident” at the VMAs, the general consensus is that he messed up, bad.
It may have been the straw that broke the camel’s back, because his latest faux pas — though it did bring him and the VMAs some much-needed publicity — backfired, and people are infuriated.
Watching him have his little outburst on TV with my roommates, I was reminiscing better times with Yeezy. As a high school freshman, my best friend told me to “check this out” and played “Touch the Sky” over loudspeakers at a debauched pool party. The crowd went wild. I remember, before they were ubiquitous, how sartorially daring Ye was for sporting those ridiculous glow-in-the-dark shutter shades.
Now, as Kanye himself points out on his blog, he’s Gaylord Focker of “Meet the Parents” incarnate, and nobody wants him around anymore. He fails to point out, however, that Focker at least had good intentions.
Are we done with Kanye yet? His antics are Twitter and Facebook fodder, for sure, but I’m curious to know if we can move on.
There are plenty of hip-hop artists out there that deserve our attention instead: Wale and Lupe Fiasco come immediately to mind. And if the old formula for hip hop is too hard to stomach these days, the Mad Decent label (Diplo, Blaqstarr, Rye Rye, Major Lazer) is the perfect remedy, providing fresh basslines and bombastic beats.
But no matter what you’re still thinking about Kanye’s episode, rest assured that, sooner or later, he’ll be back in the spotlight again. I just hope it isn’t too cringe-inducing.
