University of Waterloo

The Significance of Kanye West in Music and Art

Bill Zheng
English 109
Professor Forrester
2 December 2016

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The Significance of Kanye West in Music and Art
Music has been an integral part in the history of humankind, from the simpler and more
visceral work of cavemen, to the complex and exquisite pieces conducted by Mozart. One of the
most prolific and relevant genres of music throughout the 21st century is Hip Hop, which has
changed how music is interpreted, arranged and even created. Despite its unique sound, Hip hop
is like most genres by having large and important figures who have contributed significantly to
the genre. This essay will explore one of such figures, namely Kanye West, and his impacts on
not only Hip hop, but music and art in general.
Kanye West is one of the most prominent figures in modern Hip Hop, as he has
revolutionized the genre forever and made significant impacts on music as a whole through his
game changing albums, collaborations and projects. Due to Wests success and ability to
experiment, some of his works almost create genres as well as inspire artists who would not exist
otherwise to produce music and become successful themselves. One great example is Wests
2008 project, 808s and Heartbreak. This album differed from Wests usual style, featuring a
heavy emphasis on emotion, sadness and heartbreak. Despite having lukewarm reviews initially,
its influences are vast within Hip Hop, with critics claiming The clapping drums, length strings,
transcended the album above rap and that it was one of the most important albums in Hip Hop
at the times simply due to how different it was (Bernard). Additionally, Jayson Greene, a music
historian argues that 808s was an extremely different and experimental album at the time and
that it became an inspiration and a pivotal work to explore for artists who wanted to imitate the
style (Greene). An example of such an artist is the Weeknd, a popular Canadian artist and
Grammy winner for best R&B performance (The Weeknd), who cites the album as one of his
largest influences. In an interview with Pitchfork, the Weeknd claims that the song Cant Feel

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My Face used 808s and Heartbreak as a spiritual guide (Tesfaye), and believes that the
album was one of the most important bodies of work my generation.(Tesfaye). Not only was
the songs ethereal tone inspired by the album, but its topic of numbness, drug abuse and losing
control of emotions followed the style and content of 808s and Heartbreak. The album not only
inspired and guided artists but also created new ones, who are now at the forefront of modern
music. Drake, a Canadian Hip Hop and R&B performer shares many similarities between his
style and Wests on 808s. Drakes music typically explores loneliness, clashing emotions and
misery, all of which are heavily stressed throughout 808s and Heartbreak (Greene).
Additionally, Drakes heavily borrows from Wests singing style, showcased by the song Say
Something which displayed Drakes emotional transparency, as well as his slow, methodical
singing style. In several interviews, Drake has claimed that Id even go as far to say hes the
most influential person as far as a musician that Id ever had in my life (Graham). Several music
critics have also commented the similarities between Drakes music and 808s and Heartbreak,
and a particular one named Mark Schiff even goes as far to say Drake wouldnt exist without
Kanye Wests 808s & Heartbreak (Schiff). Overall, Wests influences run deep within modern
music and has spawned, inspired and even started many careers as well as styles of music.
There is no doubt that West is extremely influential in Hip Hop in terms of how he has
affected certain styles and artists. In addition, he has completely changed the general publics
view of Hip Hop from being gangster music to the legitimate and insanely popular genre today.
Before Wests first album, Hip Hop featured gangster politics, personas and drugs as often
occurring themes (McNutty-Finn). In fact, Hip Hop garnered a reputation for being violent,
misogynistic, and an overall terrible influence, due to many of the successful artists such as 2Pac
and B.I.G being known criminals and drug dealers (McNutty-Finn). Rauly Ramirez, a music

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historian and manager of the Billboard Hip Hop chart states 90s rappers would create this
persona, portraying themselves as thugs and gangsters because that was the character they had to
be to succeed (Ramirez). This shows that in order to succeed, Hip Hop artists needed to
fabricate a gangster identity and thus were restricted telling stories solely about being a criminal,
using drugs and living in the ghetto. Hip Hop simply became the story and tale of gangsters and
could not join the mainstream with other genres such as rock (McNulty-Finn). This suddenly
changed after Wests first album in 2004, The College Dropout. The album focused on Wests
pursuit of music, religion and education instead of the stereotypical topics associated with Hip
Hop at the time (Davis 88). Several music experts believe not only that the album contains
music unafraid of raw emotion and tracks that are both personal and strangely universal
(Mitchum), but that The College Dropout paved the way for modern Hip Hop albums and its
transition from gangster music to a mainstream genre like pop (Ramirez). Even though the
album was experimental and different, it was massively successful, reaching #1 in the Rap
billboards, and selling 3 Million copies, a number matched only by gangster rappers such as
2Pac at the time (Jones Tops Chat With Huge Opening Week). Additionally, the album was
critically acclaimed, having 10 Grammy nominations, and named best album of the year in 2004
by Rolling Stone, a first for a Hip Hop album. Through this album, the public perception of Hip
Hop changed completely. The topics discussed and the stories told in Hip Hop songs are
sometimes the polar opposite of songs before Wests first album. For example, Macklemore, an
extremely popular Hip Hop artist discusses homosexuality and acceptance in Same Love, and
others such as Drake even specialize in ballads and slow songs about romance. Due to Wests
influences, the reality and perception of Hip Hop has changed from gangster music, to a real and
legitimate genre (McNutty-Finn). By this evolution, Hip Hop is now a mainstream genre that

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millions listen to, instead of only thugs and gangsters. In addition to altering the perception of the
genre itself, West has transformed the career and image of rappers. The 2 most popular rappers
in the 90s were 2Pac and Biggie Smalls. (Ramirez) However, they were both affiliated with
crime, gangs and were eventually murdered at a young age. Wests image is far from a
traditional rapper, and instead is much more like a modern celebrity and popstar, even only after
his first album. By being massively successful with his distinctive image, many modern rappers
aspired and achieved Wests status. Wests image coincides with the image that most modern
Hip Hop artists such as Drake have, not gangsters but a simply another popular musician. This
image is most definitely from the success and mainstream appeal of modern Hip Hop compared
to the 90s. In fact, in the 1990s, Hip Hop sales only contributed to 6% (US Music Sales By
Genre) of total music sales, while in 2014, it was 17% (2014 Nielsen Music Report). Clearly
Hip Hop must be mainstream for such a high increase in terms of market share, as well as a pop
star like image for its artists. Thus, through the success and quirkiness of his first album as well
as his unique image, Kanye West has integrated rappers and Hip Hop within mainstream music.
The scope of Wests influence is not limited to just Hip Hop and music, as he is also
relevant in both fashion and film. West began his career in fashion in 2009, by interning and
working with large, multi-billion dollar fashion companies such as Louis Vitton, Nike, Fendi and
more (Kanye West). His most notable achievement were the Air Yeezy 1 and 2 collections
released through Nike in 2009, which fetch for outrageous prices of up 10s of thousands of
dollars (Kanye West). Despite the high price tag, it is believed to be the biggest impact on
sneaker culture in the last decade, according to an article by Business of Fashion (Kanye
West). Wests success in fashion continues to this day, as his $10 million deal with Adidas had
similar results. In 2015 under Adidas, West released the Boost 350, a pair of sport sneakers.

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They were priced at $200, but were incredibly sought after and desired, to the extent where
people across the world waited hours at midnight, only to be disappointed after the shoes sold
out in 12 minutes (Wilbur). In addition, Wests success in fashion is not due to following fashion
norms, but rather experimentation and creativity. In fact, West challenged the idea of masculinity
and gender in fashion many years before working in fashion. During his career as a rapper,
Wests attire consisted of eccentric and gender challenging items such as pink polos, leather
skirts, and female blouses (McGloster), shown in figure 1.

Figure 1. West performing in a skirt, from Huffington Post; 13 Dec. 2012;Web; 2 Dec 2016.
This differed completely from the usual clothing rappers such as Ice Cube or Biggie Smalls wore
such as sport jerseys, oversized pants and shirts, but also contradicted fashion and gender norms
in general (McGloster). By being so different from standards of fashion yet being so successful,
West is definitely relevant in terms of both creativity and financial presence. Wests eccentric
taste is also present some of his film projects such as Runaway, a 40 minute film coupled with

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his album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. The film was mostly conceptual with all of the
sound provided by the album as well as featuring ballet dancers, feathered women and fireworks.
It was definitely a first of its kind, and inspired other artists to do the same by including film like
pieces in their music. A prominent example is Donald Glover, a rising Hip Hop artist known for
his humor and clever lyricism. Glover included a screenplay, mostly detailing his interactions
with online communities in his most recent album, Because of the Internet (Kramer). The
screenplay was inspired by West, as in an interview Glover stated that one of his largest
influences for the album was Kanye West, going as far as I am a son of Kanye (Glover).
Overall, West truly inspired and influences beyond the mic through his eclectic yet relevant
fashion design, as well as his exploration into film to complement music.
Kanye West is truly an exceptional figure in Hip Hop and music, with his talents and
presence extending to both fashion and film. However, he will be mostly remembered by his
game changing albums, responsible for changing the sound, image and success of modern
rappers. With Hip Hop and music being so relevant in modern times, it is important to remember
significant contributors of the genre, and how they managed to use their creativity to advance
music and art in general.

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Works Cited
Mistry, Anupa, and Abel Tesfaye. The Dark Knight Returns: A Conversation With the
Weeknd. Pitchfork, 31 Aug. 2015, pitchfork.com/features/interview/9711-the-dark
knight-returns-a-conversation-with-the-weeknd/.
Rodriguez, Jayson, and Aubrey Graham. Drake Says Kanye West Is 'The Most Influential
Person' On His Sound. MTV, 27 May 2009, www.mtv.com/news/1612262/drake-sayskanye-west-is-the-most-influential-person-on-his-sound/.
Schiff, Mark. Five Artists That Wouldn't Exist without Kanye West's '808s &Amp;
Heartbreak'. AXS, 24 Nov. 2015, www.axs.com/news/five-artists-that-wouldn-t-exist
without-kanye-west-s-808s-heartbreak-70844.
Mitchum, Rob. Kanye West : The College Dropout | 8.2. Kanye West: The College Dropout
Album Review | Pitchfork, Pitchfork, 20 Feb. 2004, pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8767
the-college-dropout/.
Rabin, Nathan. Kanye West: The College Dropout The A.V. Club, 17 Feb. 2004,
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The Evolution of Rap - Harvard Political Review. Harvard Political Review, 5 Nov. 2015,
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2014 Nielsen Music Report. 2014 Nielsen Music Report, 7 Jan. 2015,
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