2008 Woodie Awards
Kanye West's 'Graduation' conquers charts, competition
Scott Figuerola
Issue date: 9/24/07 Section: Entertainment
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Since his first album dropped, West has been one of the most popular and highest selling artists out. "Graduation" reinforces West's reign as one of the top emcees today.
With songs such as "Stronger" and "Champion," West brings his unique style back to the forefront. Other songs such as "Can't Tell Me Nothing" and "Barry Bonds" show a darker more lyrical style.
West is known for catchy beats with feel-good lyrics. With this album, he has matured. His beats still sample different artists from the past, but most are slower and emphasize the lyrics more than the music, which I enjoyed.
The day the album was released another rapper, 50 Cent, released his album "Curtis." Fifty said in an interview played on KISS FM that if West outsold him he would "quit the game."
Fifty has his work cut out for him. West has a couple of things on his side. His albums have more mass appeal, but still bring in the die-hard hip-hop crowd, while 50's sound keeps him limited to a smaller sampling of fans.
When listening to "Graduation," it's hard to tell if you're listening to a jazz album or a hip-hop album, which is my favorite thing about the CD. His influences aren't just musicians like Tupac Shakur and A Tribe Called Quest; I could tell he's also influenced by Miles Davis and John Coltrane.
The one thing missing from the CD is skits. His two previous CDs, "College Dropout" and "Late Registration," had funny anecdotes in between most of the songs. Some people might feel this takes away from the CD, but I enjoyed it. He displays humor in his songs not in skits.
His song "Stronger" is tearing up the charts right now. On this track he features the band Daft Punk, which shows how versatile and out-of-the-box his style is. Most rappers wouldn't think of using a band from a different genre on one of their songs.
People interested in a good change from today's hip-hop and pop music, can look to West to fulfill their musical needs. He and fellow Chicago rapper Common, have the market cornered when it comes to touching lyrics and good beats.
They aren't just speaking about cars, money and girls, although there are some lyrics that capture that aspect of hip-hop culture.
They mostly talk about growing up in Chicago and struggles they've had along the way to success.
It's refreshing to find an album that I keep in my CD player and listen to over and over again. It is saying something when I play a CD all the way through without skipping certain songs.
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