(That apology tour worked: Dark Fantasy made him a demigod to many critics.) This is not that. He has referred more than once to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, his overstuffed opus from 2010, as a mea culpa for the interruption of Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech at the VMAs the year before. In the past, West has copped to making records as apologies. It is not lost on him that his public behavior - his meetings with Donald Trump, his comments in tabloid and radio interviews, his divorce - has alienated large swaths of his audience at the same time that it has kept him relevant. West remains one of the world’s most famous musicians, though his music, per se, has not really driven this fame for at least five years. It also baits the listener to step outside of the text itself. Taken together, this first three-and-a-half minute stretch of Donda is the kind of tonally complex, musically adventurous suite that made West one of the most adored artists of this century. Kanye West’s new album opens with an extended chant of his dead mother’s name, which gives way to an exuberant, drumless track with lyrics about being arrested and taken to jail. "DONDA By Kanye West" Listening Event At Mercedes Benz Stadium In Atlanta, GA - Credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |