Kanye West Dark Fantasy

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Kanye West has produced works that many interpret as exhibiting the struggle of black identity in the post-modern era. In, Twisted Fantasy he could be interpreted as exploring what is known to the Self in juxtaposition to what is unknown, if the ideas he were presenting were to transcend the disconnected chaos of society. Kanye West is world renowned for his somewhat dark lyrics and the prolific imagery of his music videos. He has always gone for the shock value, in music and the real world.
While West presents images that are startling, he is reflecting society with a noticeable lack of original thought while at the same time not addressing root causes for the desolation he portrays. West is the guy on the street who saw the graffiti on the wall, recognized a lot of what people were talking about and summarized it as a reflection offering no solutions or understanding of the problems inherent in the black or of the feminine experience. He gives the worlds youth music to get lost into. Many conservatives believe that he is a bad role model, but they do not understand his lyrics because he is not speaking to them, he is speaking to the youth. It is this type of lyrical composition that has made Kanye West a household name. In the article, Celebrity, Victoria Price explains, “The origin of the unique phenomenon of twentieth-century celebrity may be found in the words of one of America’s Founding Fathers, John Adams, who wrote, ‘‘The rewards . . . in this life are steem and admiration of others—the punishments are neglect and contempt. The desire of the esteem of others is as real a want of nature as hunger—and the neglect and contempt of the world as severe as a pain.” (Price, 463). The author suggests that fame is not at all w...

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...dustry and is delivering a strong message to the public, and to young people. It is interesting because West is a controversial figure. West has already crossed the international line. His music is known the world around, and he often travels to other countries in Europe and Asia to play shows. He earned his international reputation by playing off of the insecurity of society. He uses themes that captivate his audiences. These themes usually include, race, love, hate, dysfunction and drugs. All of which he uses to communicate to the worlds youth.

Works Cited
Price, Victoria. “Celebrity” St James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture. 16 April, 2014
Schmid, Randolph E. "What Makes a Hit? it's all in the Fans." The Globe and Mail Feb 11 2006:
0. ProQuest. 16 Apr. 2014 .
West, Kanye. “Dark Fantasy”. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Roc-A-Fella, 2010

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