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Kanye West: Jerk or Genius? Both.

EpicMK

Shared on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 14:53

I'm amused by the surprise, shock, outrage, etc. at Kanye's behavior last night at the MTV VMAs. Everyone knows by now this guy's flair for the dramatic, especially during award shows, references to which even appear within the lyrics to his own songs. Most chalk it up to Kanye simply being a jerk, and while I think that has something to do with it, it has more to do with being a genius at buzz-generation and self-promotion. The incredible reaction he's getting is exactly what Kanye is looking for by performing such actions. The music industry - especially hip hop/R&B/top 40 is oversaturated with content. Only the artists who stay on the front-burner make it, and for the most part (outside of illegal activities) no publicity is bad publicity for musicians. Other example? The Dixie Chicks. The backlash they faced from country fans for their attitiudes and remarks about President Bush did nothing but crank up their popularity and success in other circles. Kanye's the same here. He's consistenly made sure - either through collaborations with other artists, outrageous award show behavior, or even calling out the President of the United States for hating black people - that he's always on the tips of the tongues of anyone somewhat interested in U.S. pop culture.

Where the genius comes in IMO is that the people who are talking about him at the VMAs last night would NEVER on any other occasion be talking about him. Heck, many today are probably finding out who Kanye West is for the very first time because they see the news reports, hear the buzz, or might happen to be big country/Taylor Swift fans. This is a big accomplishment for someone who depends on hype/publicity to make it. I myself have seen a thread in a progressive rock message board I frequent 12 PAGES LONG talking about Kanye's actions last night. At work, Kanye West discussion is happening among fifty-somethings who couldn't pick him out of a lineup. It's likely that millions around the country and world are doing the same thing. If that translates into just a small fraction of them looking up his music for the first time and deciding to buy a song or album, that's quite a payday at the cost of...nothing. Last night he didn't get fined, he didn't do anything illegal, he didn't even have to pay for a commercial slot...he simply interrupted Swift, gave a shout-out to Beyonce, got booed, then left the concert hall to profit.

Sure, we should hate on him for being a bit of a jerk to Taylor Swift, but we should also recognize the efficiency with which he makes sure the name "Kanye West" is always in the spotlight.  Just how much he damaged his legacy last night remains to be seen...time will tell.

Link: CNN article on the story with actual comments from other stars in the crowd.  Also interesting is the prognostication that MTV might ban alcohol from the event in the future (Kayne was apparently walking around with a bottle of Henessey last night).

Comments

EpicMK's picture
Submitted by EpicMK on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 16:37
Chet - that is brill! Also, I forgot about SP's Fishsticks episode. I need to track that down and get it embedded in this blog entry. That was effin' gold.
omegamaximus75's picture
Submitted by omegamaximus75 on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 18:08
I think beyonce was awsome for letting taylor do her thing, she should be the one getting the press.
MTPathy's picture
Submitted by MTPathy on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 20:34
i enjoy the rhythm and beat of hip-hop and rap, it's the lyrics that flush it down the toilet. give me some trance or rave anyday...
EpicMK's picture
Submitted by EpicMK on Tue, 09/15/2009 - 08:31
MTPathy: that's understandable given the stigma Rap has created for itself, but much of Kanye's lyrics are actually pretty interesting (once you get past the ego-boosting nature of it). If you do like the sound/production but prefer something more intelligent, you should check out Lupe Fiasco, Mos Def, The Roots, Jurassic 5 and Common. Anyone catch Kanye on Leno's first show of his new series? I thought it was interesting how he was apologetic but never mentioned the alcohol thing, which I think was the primary cause of his actions. Dude needs to address strolling down the red carpet chugging from a bottle of cognac.
SamuraiCoder's picture
Submitted by SamuraiCoder on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 15:16
I think you are giving Kanye a little more credit than he likely deserves in this instance. He is very good at self-promotion. I don't think this was a well-planned marketing action on his part. He stole, from a new young artist, what is likely one of the great moments of her life. He treated her with the sort of disrespect he would never stand for. He felt he knew better than the producers and planners of the VMA's. Beyonce created the best video of the year and was being recognized as such in the marquee award of the night. Kanye treated Beyonce with disrespect by assuming she was only worthy of the award for "female" artist. You cannot deny his exceptional gifts as a musician and marketing machine. I would just never want anyone to look to him as a role model. He's selfish, narcissistic and an ass.
sfw555's picture
Submitted by sfw555 on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 15:20
fuck that dude.
TDrag27's picture
Submitted by TDrag27 on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 15:49
The "no publicity is bad publicity" sentiment is unfortunately true. However, it comes with the cost of integrity and respect. If he wants to sell some more albums at the expense of an innocent person's deserved spotlight - may karma bite him in the ass some other time. It doesn't pay in the long run.
ChetChesterson's picture
Submitted by ChetChesterson on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 15:58
not to plug another site, but I beleive you will find this article to be absolutely brilliant. http://www.cracked.com/blog/what-if-kanye-west-is-retarded/
Gatsu's picture
Submitted by Gatsu on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 16:25
Daft Punk is the only thing good about that music video. Kanye is a douche. Just my opinion though. he's making the green so....he's entertaining someone.
ekattan's picture
Submitted by ekattan on Mon, 09/14/2009 - 16:31
First anyone who takes these award shows seriously is a delusional douche, which is technically all of hollywood. Why the fuck would anyone care for a stupid award after selling 2 million records and making over 30 million dollars in a year? It's only for their own glorification and satisfying their over bearing egos. he might be passionate about music and he maybe could have been right that Beyonce had the best video but his attitude and actions were just for attention and had nothing to do with Beyonce. These so called artist give themselves wayyyy too much credit. First they buy the beats for their songs and just add lyrics to them, then a producer takes them, mixes them and polishes their voices and put out a CD. Beyonce has even been known to steal tracks just like Coldplay.

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