JakeHeffezBLUNTIQ

“Shut the fuck up and enjoy the greatness.” – Kanye West. The creative genius that is Kanye West has returned with his 7th major label re lease, “The Life of Pablo”. With 21 Grammys and count less cri t icism throughout his career, West, who seems to be the most hated man in Hip-Hop, is shutt ing down those cri t ics once again. From “So Help Me God” to “SWISH” to “Waves” to “The Li fe of Pablo”, the past three years of wait ing have f inal ly paid of f. Tweet after tweet, West has kept us up to date every step of the way. Whether we are being told the track l ist changed again, or that he is the new Walt Disney, there is never a dul l moment. Rol lout drama aside, “The Life of Pablo” is here and we couldn’t be happier. The 38-year-old superstar takes us on a journey through his incredible career with his 7th solo project. Explor ing the sounds of “The Col lege Dropout” to “Yeezus” and everything in between, this project from Mr. West is his most diverse yet.

30 Hours

WhendealingwithaKanyeWestalbum,itisn’tjustabodyofwork,butratheranexperience.TherolloutandanticipationarethingsWestandhisDONDAteampridethemselveson.G.O.O.D.Friday’smadetheirreturnthisrolloutwithsomeearlycutswhicheventuallylandedonthefinalalbum,“Facts”,“RealFriends”,and“NoMorePartiesinL.A.”.FinalizingthisLPhoursbeforeitsreleaseallowedfornoleakingofanykindtohappen-whichisrareforaartistwithWest’slevelofcelebritythesedays.WithanotherclassicSaturdayNightLiveperformanceandimmediatelaunchtoTIDAL,thesuspensesubsidedandourearsopenedtotakeinwhatwehavebeenwaitingforthepast3years,“TheLifeofPablo”.

AsdescribedbyWesthimself,thisisaGospelalbum.Tobespecific,“Thisisagospelalbumwithawholelottacursingonit,butit’sstillagospelalbum..”–KanyeWest.WithfeaturesfromKirkFranklinandKellyPrice,thereisnodenyingtheeuphoricsoundtheybringtothetable.“UltraLightBeam”isthealbumopenerandisarguablythemostepicandgrandtrackontheentirealbum.Rightoffthebat,youcanhearthatWest’sartisticabilityhasgonenowhere.“UltraLightBeam”showcaseshowWestisusinghisstarpowerforgood,allowingthefeaturedartiststoshineonthisbigofaplatform.“TheLifeofPablo”takesthelisteneronajourneythroughthetimelesserasofKanyeWest.Rangingfromthe“Yeezus”sounding“Feedback”tothe“MyBeautifulDarkTwistedFantasy”sounding“Famous”wearegettingalittletasteofitall.

ItwasonlyappropriateforWesttopremierethehighlyanticipatedLPwithalisteningpartyatMadisonSquareGarden,accompaniedbythedebutofYeezySeason3.Thisiconiceventputthisalbuminacategoryofitsown.“TheLifeofPablo”liveattheWorld’sMostFamousArenawastheonlywaytopremierethisnewcreationtotheworld.NewYorkCitywasofficiallyinYeezySeason.Theeuphoricvibeoftrackssuchas“FatherStretchMyHandsPart1&2”featuringKidCudiandDesiigner,“FML”featuringTheWeeknd,“Fade”featuringPostMalone&TyDolla$ignbecameearlyfavoritesofmany.ThisspecialpresentationofYeezySeason3and“TheLifeofPablo”impressedallinattendanceandstreamingintheatresworldwide.“TheLifeofPablo”drawsinfluencefromallofWest’spreviouswork.Soulsampleaftersoulsample,thisalbumistrulyacompilationofallofWest’sbest.HeevensampleshimselfwithsomehelpfromSwizzBeatswitha“WakeUpMr.West!”from“LateRegistration”ontheoutroof“Famous”.Westchannelshis20-year-oldselfasfarasproductiongoesonthisthing.Althoughhehassteppedawayfromtheboardsforquiteawhilelately,hisvintagesoundsof“CollegeDropout”and“LateRegistration”productionarestillinfluencedalloverthisproject.ThejourneythroughWest’scareerisonlycompletewithwherehebegan,behindtheboards.

KanyeWest’s“TheLifeofPablo”doesn’tonlyshowcasehisowntalent,butletsotherstakethelimelightaswell.SomeofWest’scollaboratorsonthisLPareTheWeeknd,FrankOcean,YoungThug,Andre3000,Rihanna,andmanymore.ArtistslikeChrisBrownandChanceTheRapperplaylargerolesintheirfeatures,essentiallymakingthesongstheirown.Collaboratorsfromalldifferentgenresarejustoneofmanyreasonswhythisissuchaninterestingcollectionofsongs.ThisLPisascrazyanddiverseofaprojectyouwillfindfromWest,thatbeingsaid,thatdiversityisagreatthing.

Digestingmyfirstlistenofthemostanticipatedalbumoftheyearwasnoteasybut,somethingshitmerightaway.SoulSamples,CockyBars,AdlibsOutros-itwasobviousthemanhasdoneitagain!TrackaftertrackIfoundmyjawhangingbelowmymouthinawe.Fromthefamiliartrackslike“Wolves”and“Fade”tonewsoundsof“Highlights”and“30Hours”Icouldnothavebeenmorepleased.Itisrareyoudeemanalbumgreatafterjustonelisten,butthatisjustwhatfeltnatural.AsHovsaidon“Lucifer”“Kanyeezyyoudiditagain,youagenius!”thatquotecouldnothaveportrayedmyopinionanybetter.Plainandsimple,KanyeWestdelivered,again.“TheLifeofPablo”isWest’smostchaoticanddiversecreationyet.Whetherornotitismeanttobeamessycollectionofrandomtrackscrashingintoeachother,orplannedtobeacombinationofallofhisstylesintoonetracklistofsongs,itprovidestheclassicKanyeWestfeelwearealwayslongingfor.TheatmosphericexcitementIfeelfromplaying“TheLifeofPablo”isalmostasrareasfindingamusicianlikeKanyeWest.

FollowingupanLPwiththepowerandculturalimpactof“Yeezus”isnoeasytask,butherewearediscussingthegloryof“TheLifeofPablo”.Althoughitisnearlyimpossibletodecidethelegacyofthisprojectonly3daysafteritsrelease,itseemstonoone’ssurprisethatwehaveanotherclassicfromMr.West.WithanearlyreviewfromPitchforkratingthealbuma9.0and“BestNewMusic”thisputsWestona3album9.0orhigherstreak. “TheLifeofPablo”artworkbyPeterdePotter,althoughveryfittingforWest,isextremelyrepresentativeoftheworkitembodies.Chaotic,messy,confusing,andinterestingwerethewordsthatcametomindwhenIfirstsawit,butafterhearingtheworkassociatedwithit,Icouldn’tbehappierwithKanye’schoice.Thismessymakeshiftprojectisessentiallyrepresentinghispast3years.LeavingNike,ShowswithAdidas,2Kids,AlbumTitleChanges,thelistcouldgoonforever.KanyeWestisaoneofakindinnovatorwhowilldoanythingtobetterhiscraftandtheworldwelivein.“IJUSTWANNAMAKEDOPESHIT!”isaquotethatcomestomind.“TheLifeofPablo”representsthejourneythatwehavetakenwithWestthispastdecade,reflecting,reminiscing,andgivingback.

“TheLifeofPablo”symbolizesKanyeWestcomingfullcircle.Yearafteryearofhislegendarycareer,Westhasinnovatedmusicineverywhichway.Kanyeshowinghestillhasthejuicetodowhathedoesatage38with2kidsandafullfashioncareeronhisbacksolidifieshislegacythatmuchmore.IfthisendsupbeingtheendofWest’smusicalcareer,heisgoingoutontop.“TheLifeofPablo”isthealbumofthelife.Westlooksbackonallhehasdoneandreminisceswhilegivingthosehehasinfluencedthechancetojoinhim.ThecombinationoftheseelementsfurtherestablishesWestasoneof,ifnotthegreatestartistofourgeneration.Thebatshitcrazylegendof“TheLifeofPablo”issettocarrythesamelegacyastherestofhisdiscography:timeless.“AndIloveyoulikeKanyelovesKanye.”

30HoursJakeHeffezBLUNTIQ