Holding a bottle of Kanye West-flavored “Haterade” in your hands? It might be about time to empty it out. More than a year after the infamous interruption at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, it’s time to give Kanye — one of pop music’s most talented artists — another chance.
West is set to release his next studio album, “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,” on Nov. 22. Since coming out of hiding after last year’s VMA incident, West has shown up on Twitter, released a new song to fans every week as part of his “Good Fridays” campaign and has even directed his own 35-minute short film “Runaway,” inspired by the public’s reactions to the VMA debacle.
Based on the nine tracks featured in the “Runaway” film and the tracks he’s released, West’s upcoming album seems to be shaping up nicely. In fact, what I’ve heard would lead me to believe “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” might be West’s best album, topping his first studio effort, “The College Dropout.”
And have you seen “Runaway?” It’s one of the most ambitious music video attempts pop music has seen, possibly even putting it in the same league as other long-form videos like “Thriller.” it might be a tad pretentious, the ambition with the project is surely to be commended, especially when considering it’s competing against the likes of the “Jersey Shore” version of Enrique Iglesias’ “I Like It” video. After all, you don’t see that kind of creativity and artistry with other pop acts.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying what West did to Taylor Swift was OK and he’s not a jerk. Heck, he’s even admitted to the latter. But now, with West resurfacing after saying public outcry to the VMA incident nearly drove him to suicide, it’s time to give West a fair chance at what he can serve up creatively.
Just look at “Runaway.” The film is essentially a 35-minute, beautifully shot metaphor of the tale of the Phoenix, which in this case is West rising from the ashes to resurrect both his career and personal life. West has even gone so far as to say on Twitter that he’s trying to be nice, though the jury is still out on that one.
This is a new Kanye West.
And that’s exciting! Though a helping of arrogance remains, this change-up with West discovering a tinge of modesty is welcome after last year’s VMA meltdown. But more important for consumers, it offers a fresh spin on his music. And as consumers, we owe it to ourselves to give Kanye’s new output a fair chance.
