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| Kanye West was recently featured as one of the top 100 most influential people on TIME magazine. |
Kanye West is a 38 year old rapper, songwriter, record producer, fashion designer and visionary.
He was born on June 8, 1977 in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
From his first album to his most recent album, West's image has changed on several different occasions throughout the years.
Kanye West is currently in the process of completing his seventh studio album 'SWISH."
Biography: Rise To Fame
Kanye's parents got divorced when he was three and he moved to live in Chicago.
His father, Ray West, was a former Black Panther, a black nationalist and revolutionist group. After which he was one of the first black photojournalists at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Later on, he became a Christian counselor, and in 2006, Kanye West paid for his father to open up his own cafe in Lexington Park, Maryland.
His mother, Donda West, with whom Kanye was mostly raised, was a professor of English at Clark Atlanta University. When Kanye was ten, him and his mother moved to China as part of his mother's job.
Kanye began writing poetry when he was just five years old, rapping when he reached the third grade and composing music when he reached the seventh grade.
After graduating from high school, Kanye went to the university his mother taught back in Chicago. However, at the age of twenty. Kanye decided to drop out and follow his musical aspirations.
From 1996-2002, Kanye began his production career.
In 2000, West managed to start producing for artists on Roc-A-Fella Records. Kanye revitalised Jay-Z's dying career with work on Jay Z's 'The Blueprint.'
In 2002, Kanye's breakthrough moment came in the form of a car crash in California which he was part of. The crash was near-fatal and left him with a shattered jaw. His jaw was wired shut through reconstructive surgery. Two weeks later, with his jaw still wired shut, Kanye recorded "Through The Wire", which was the foundation for his debut album The College Dropout.
He was born on June 8, 1977 in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
From his first album to his most recent album, West's image has changed on several different occasions throughout the years.
Kanye West is currently in the process of completing his seventh studio album 'SWISH."
Biography: Rise To Fame
Kanye's parents got divorced when he was three and he moved to live in Chicago.
His father, Ray West, was a former Black Panther, a black nationalist and revolutionist group. After which he was one of the first black photojournalists at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Later on, he became a Christian counselor, and in 2006, Kanye West paid for his father to open up his own cafe in Lexington Park, Maryland.
His mother, Donda West, with whom Kanye was mostly raised, was a professor of English at Clark Atlanta University. When Kanye was ten, him and his mother moved to China as part of his mother's job.
| Kanye before and after his near-fatal car crash which inspired his launch into stardom. |
After graduating from high school, Kanye went to the university his mother taught back in Chicago. However, at the age of twenty. Kanye decided to drop out and follow his musical aspirations.
From 1996-2002, Kanye began his production career.
In 2000, West managed to start producing for artists on Roc-A-Fella Records. Kanye revitalised Jay-Z's dying career with work on Jay Z's 'The Blueprint.'
In 2002, Kanye's breakthrough moment came in the form of a car crash in California which he was part of. The crash was near-fatal and left him with a shattered jaw. His jaw was wired shut through reconstructive surgery. Two weeks later, with his jaw still wired shut, Kanye recorded "Through The Wire", which was the foundation for his debut album The College Dropout.
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| The picture above represents how 'Ye has changed throughout the years, not just stylistically in his music but fashionably too. |
Album Covers
Kanye West hasn't just evolved musically, his album artwork has evolved to suit his image.
Get Well Soon (2003):
At the time of this mixtape, West was only known for being a producer. Kanye's strong ties to his home city of Chicago are clearly present on this mixtape cover - an air-brushed mural of the Chi-town skyline with the Roc-A-Fella logo cover the wall. At the time it was the trend for rappers to wear the clothes of the sports teams they supported, however on the front cover of this mixtape, Kanye does not do this as he can be seen wearing oversized jeans, a black t-shirt and his Roc chain.
No music videos were released for the Get Well Soon mixtape as Kanye West was not very well known as a rapper at this time.
The College Dropout (2004):
College dropout was the Kanye's debut album. For The College Dropout cover, the soon-to-be iconic Dropout Bear mascot sits on a set of bleachers inside a golden frame, which is meant to symbolize art, elegance and style, according to one of Kanye West's art directors. There are also cherubs on the right and left sides of the frame, which closely resembles the cherub in the G.O.O.D. Music logo.
Here is a music video for a song which was featured on The College Dropout:
Stylistically, this music video depicts Kanye West as a holy figure. He can be seen dressed in all-white, with a light above his head in the shape of a halo. His image depicts him to be different from what most people would consider a typical hip-hop star to be like. Notice how in this music video, Kanye West is shown to be powerful, with fire surging behind him and displays determined facial expressions and is presented as confident and strong through his actions. Kanye attempts to give himself an ambassadorial image for the fight for equality.
808's & Heartbreak (2008):
808's & Heartbreak was the first album not to feature Dropout Bear of whom had featured on his previous three albums.The stripe of colors on the left of the album resembles the color palette from Graduation (which is his third studio album), except these are visibly more pastel, which suits Kanye's feelings at the time as his mother had recently passed away and he had split up with his girlfriend at the time. The album documents West's heartbreak and sorrow caused by his losses. The album is considered by some to be Kanye West's most influential album.
Here is a music video for a song which was featured on 808's and Heartbreak:
In this music video, Kanye can be seen to be much less powerful, instead he is stripped back. While still in all-white, he is much more reserved. His actions are slow and he can be seen singing which is considered more timid and less intimidating than rap music. In this music video, Kanye creates himself a pure and refined image, he is uncomplicated and plain. He attempts to give himself an emotional image.
Yeezus (2013):
Ten years on from the "Get Well Soon" mixtape, and 5 years on from the completely different "808's & Heartbreak", Kanye released his 6th studio LP, Yeezus. Yeezus was a minimalist, sonically experimental album and has been described as 'abrasive' by critics. For this album Kanye decided to go for a minimalist sound. The album artwork also suited this image. With no cover, each physical copy of the album only had red tape on the case.
Here is a music video for a song which was featured on Yeezus:
In this music video, Kanye West begins with three hooded figures, similar to KKK members but instead dressed in black. This holds connotations to black power and freedom which is a common theme in Jesus Walks, created 9 years beforehand. This shows that Kanye has stayed true to his common beliefs. In this video, Kanye West is depicted as a computer generated image and often his face is obscured by darkness. This presents his image as dark and mysterious and intimidating; a complete change from the image he creates in the 808's and College Dropout music videos.
In Conclusion:
Kanye West has changed a lot throughout the years he has been within the music industry. He has gone having no image, to having six studio albums with a different image to go with each one; and with a seventh on the way his image is likely to change once more. Kanye has managed to successfully present his emotions through his image, from presenting himself in a way to show what he stands for; to a stripped-down heartbroken character, and most recently to an aggressive angry body of power.
