Kanye West is one of the greatest producer-rappers. Legendary discography, fell off, burnt it all to the ground, and somehow is still dropping some quality music. “Graduation” and the college trilogy were a generational run and have brought me so much happiness. Finding Kanye is something I will permanently remember.
Kanye is a musical genius and generational artist, but his mental health deterioration has been very upsetting to watch. He has disgraced his legacy; no apology can fix his actions completely. This whole situation has been caused by the combination of money, fame and avoiding mental health treatment. I hope he got the treatment he needs and deserves. This album and world tour hopefully signify a departure from psychotic episodes that make us all shake our heads in disappointment, into good health and a positive turnaround for West’s well-being.
“BULLY” is 18 tracks and 42 minutes long, but does not feel that long or like there are that many tracks. “KING” is an interesting way to start the album. West is talking about his mental health in an interesting way, calling himself a hero turned into a villain, saying that hating has brought him more love. I think the song is a good track. The sample is interesting, and the production is kind of haunting yet catchy.
“This A MUST” is solid but not the kind of rap music that I really enjoy. The beat is catchy, the lyrics are solid, but the chorus is not great. I like the money Mr. Krabs ad-lib; if you know, you know.
“FATHER” with Travis Scott has a great opening sample, which Kanye does his thing with, somehow combining it into a rhythmic, upbeat rap song. The lyrics are kind of mediocre, though; he repeats the same words over and over. I do not like Travis Scott, but his features on the track are solid. I also love the James Brown sample embedded in the song.
“ALL THE LOVE” is electronically oriented, which I think is pretty cool. I don’t like the repeating symphonic “We left all the pain behind.” An attempt to be an epic song, but it falls flat mostly due to the repetition throughout the song. The booming drums, which I really like combined with the repeated lyrics. The symph is cool, but this track just isn’t memorable. The repetition just isn’t catchy enough to make this song great. It’s alright, but not super memorable.
“PUNCH DRUNK LOVE” is great. I really enjoy this song. It is catchy, has substance, with a good beat and rhythm. The lyrics are good, and it is so upbeat; this really feels like a Kanye West song. It feels like Kanye saying, “I am back.” I really like the gospel-esque sample of the girl singing throughout the song, paired with the upbeat lyrics is just great to listen to.
“WHATEVER WORKS” is an enjoyable track, but not really all that memorable. It is yet another song with a repeated sample, which is definitely a central theme throughout this album. I like his flow combined with the references sprinkled throughout the song. The sample feels overwhelming and kind of pointless. I would have far preferred a better beat rather than the repeating sample just thrown in the middle of the whole song. It just holds this song back in my opinion.
“MAMA’S FAVORITE” is a good song with substance, and the sample at the end of his mom hyping him up is great. The lyrics are about struggle and hard work, which I really like. He is explaining his situation, and the beat switch is enjoyable. In my opinion, though, the sample that is repeated throughout the album is just not good enough to be through the whole song.
“SISTERS AND BROTHERS” is not really what I like in a song; it is weird how he goes from “MAMA’s FAVORITE” to this. The symph is just obnoxious. This song is fine, just definitely lacking substance. The lyrics just sound like he’s being oppressed or something. He’s trying to make it overly epic. I just don’t like the flow or the symph and the drums, lyrics and sample just aren’t good enough to save this song.
“BULLY” is alright, but I do not really know what to think about this track. It is just fine; CeeLo Green’s part is bad, and the chorus feels out of place. I just don’t really get this song to be honest.
“I CAN’T WAIT” is enjoyable; the sample is well incorporated. It is also just a catchy good song. It starts slow but picks up perfectly with the sample switching up. This song is a great incorporation of a good sample which adds to the song and helps with the meaning and message of the song.
“WHITE LINES” is one of my favorite songs on the album. The Stevie Wonder sample is great and well incorporated. It is definitely memorable and unique. This one is on my playlist, I just love how smooth it is and Kanye really gets his point across. The whole “I tell the truth about everything” part is absolutely absurd for him to say but it’s a small part of the song.
“CIRCLES” is another memorable track, with a well-incorporated catchy sample. The beat is so catchy and rhythmic. I love how this song sounds, but the high pitched lyrics in the song hold it back.
“PREACHER MAN” is great and memorable, but the samples are kind of overbearing at times in this album in my opinion though the sample is a big part of this song but ballenced. That switch-up with the piano is so good. “I hate that god didn’t make a couple more of me” is such a Kanye lyric. The lyrics are good I like his voice in this song also. This song is a great lead into the next song.
“BEAUTY AND THE BEAST” is excellent, maybe the best song on the album. I really like this track, and the production is amazing and carries this song. The sample is the perfect backdrop for this song. This was one of the unreleased songs on this album that was on SoundCloud, which made me think this album would be peak. Listening to this before this album dropped made me think this album would be much better than it is.
“DAMN” is alright, but it just does not do it for me personally. There are small glimpses of a great song sprinkled throughout. At the same time, I just do not know how to feel about it because it just does not blow me away as his other songs have. It adds to the idea of the whole album, which is a reflection on West’s own ego. The lyrics are good, but it is not like most of Kanye’s heart-to-heart, clarity song moments that make you stop and think.
West’s transition from that song to “LAST BREATH” is just not for me. Not saying it is an awful song or something. It’s really catchy, to be honest. The repeated Spanish lyrics ruin the song for me. To be completely honest, it just isn’t catchy, and I don’t know what he’s saying. I also just dislike peso plumas voice in the chorus. The lyrics and production are good, just something about the song doesn’t do it for me.
“THIS ONE HERE” is the perfect way to end this album. Kanye delivers personal lyrics that perfectly embody the spirit of this album. The sample, though, is weird and makes me not enjoy this song anywhere as much as I could. He is not necessarily trying to sweep his mistakes under the rug, but is instead trying to tell us he is working towards redemption. This album does seem like a positive step forward, which makes me hopeful. I wish I could go to this world tour.
The setlists seem insane. It seems like Kanye enjoyed making this album; it has me feeling optimistic. I just wish he would give us peak at least one more time. “BULLY” is good, but not great. That being said, I love Kanye’s music, so this is Aiden approved.
