Artist: Kanye West
Album: “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy”
Band web site: http://www.kanyewest.com
Rating: 3.75 stars out of 4

Over the last year or so, Kanye West has been under a pretty harsh spotlight. 

After upstaging Taylor Swift by interrupting her acceptance speech at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2009, he was severely criticized. For a while, Kanye West the musician was forgotten. 

Well, if you enjoyed the brief time that Kanye was effectively dead in the music scene, your worst zombie nightmare has arrived.

West’s new album, “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,” hit stores and iTunes in late November, marking his fourth-straight No. 1 album on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. It’s not hard to see why.

From the first few tracks on the album, you can sense that West has upped his game.

Tracks such as “Monster” and “Gorgeous” are brilliant examples of West’s ability to collaborate with the best artists of the day. In almost every song, there are a few ingenious rhymes that will undoubtedly be the subjects of Tweets and Facebook statuses for quite some time. 

There is also a good amount of diversity in the tracks, with some having a more familiar West sound while others branch out. These shake things up a little and keep the album from becoming boring.

The best tracks are “Gorgeous,” “Monster,” and “All of the Lights.”

The production on this album is noticeable and stylish. But in a pleasantly surprising turn of events, most of the tracks are not over-edited as is the norm these days. Some of these songs seem to have that inexplicable capacity for getting stuck in your head, and all of them are worth listening to at least a few times.

This is West’s best album to date.

 Priten Vora is a senior at Springfield High School.

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Amber Rose isn’t Kanye West’s arm piece anymore, but the bald-headed beauty is still making her rounds. Rose is the leading lady in Fabolous’ latest viral clip, “You Be Killin Em.” Watch below:

http://www.worldstarhiphop.com/videos/e/16711680/wshh86SM4lT2Cl03YlSGVideo: Fabolous, “You Be Killin Em”

In the video (helmed by Aristotle), the former stripper plays the role of a hired killer who has more smarts than even law enforcement. In the end, even Fab is left wondering how the sexy vixen outwits a handful of cops who come knocking at his door in search for her.

What are your thoughts? Does Rose have a future in this line of work? Leave your comments below.

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Last week, MTV News revealed its list of the Top 25 Songs of 2010. The list featured a veritable murderer’s row of top singles from the year, including smash hits by Rihanna, Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Eminem and Kanye West (among many others). When the dust settled and the votes from the over two dozen ballots created here at MTV News, Usher’s “OMG” ended up being the top vote-getter and the clear choice for the number one song of the year.

But once we told you our choices, we gave you the option to declare your own number one song. That’s why we took the top 15 songs from the MTV News list and let the readers vote for the song they thought was the most superior. After more than 20,000 votes, Kanye West’s “Runaway” — which finished in the number two spot on the MTV News countdown — was declared the top song of 2010. “Runaway” managed to accumulate a full 52 percent of the vote, despite the fact that West had two other songs on the list competing for his votes.

This particular poll was essentially a two-horse race, as Eminem was the only other artist to really put up a fight. “Love the Way You Lie” — which took the number nine spot on the MTV News list — came in second place, racking up 38 percent of the vote. After that, there was a pretty massive chasm between second and third, with only West’s other two songs (“Power” and “Monster”) grabbing more than one percent. Usher’s “OMG” (which the MTV News staff declared tops) only napped three-quarters of a percent. Who brought up the rear? Poor Robyn, whose “Dancing On My Own” only snagged 15 total votes.

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By Don Chareunsy

Actor and comedian Aziz Ansari started and punctuated his Saturday performance at The Pearl in the Palms with Kanye West. Sporting a gray tuxedo jacket with black lapels, the 27-year-old marched onstage to West’s new hit song “Power.”

But he also poked fun at his rap buddy when he told the audience that West is trying to start a new trend by requiring his entourage to wear suits. Ansari pointed out that West is behind the times because Corporate America has been doing that for decades.

A South Carolina native who resides in L.A., Ansari talked little about his background — aside from mentioning that he deals with Southern racism only because he loves comfort food like fried chicken. However, he did provide a list of his favorite racial slurs.

He performed to a packed house. The Las Vegas show was part of Ansari’s Dangerously Delicious Tour. Next month, he’s scheduled to perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City and The Wilbur Theater in Boston.

Ansari is best known for playing Tom Haverford on NBC’s Parks and Recreation and has acted in several films, including I Love You, Man and Observe and Report. He hosted the 2010 MTV Movie Awards in June.

The young comedian electrified the crowd with jokes about dating in the digital age, the dangers of text messaging and his “chubby” teenage cousin Harris, who posts dark, deep and disturbing quotations on Facebook. He told the audience that he’s worried about socially and emotionally immature men who are getting married and having children — like a young father in his 20s who has sex with macaroni for fun.

L.A. comedian Dan Levy opened for Ansari and warmed up a receptive crowd. He joked about why Radio Shack is still in business and how his friend overdosed on pot cookies. Like Ansari, he, too, received overwhelming applause. (The pair hit Lavo in the Palazzo while in town, while Ansari also stopped by Surrender in the Encore.)

Before performing, Ansari told fans that flash photography was prohibited because it distracted him, but he allowed everyone to snap photographs of him jokingly posing onstage before he started his set. The theater lit up with LED screens from cell phones as audience members — young and old — took pictures.

And when the house lights went down and the show started, no one bothered to distract the very funny comedian who spat out jokes for about an hour — probably because they were laughing so hard.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter at Twitter.com/vegasdeluxe.

Follow VDLX Editor Don Chareunsy on Twitter at Twitter.com/VDLXEditorDon.

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“At first I thought it was hackers,” Mr. Hofman said. But within hours a notice went up on the site saying that its domain name had been seized by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement unit of the Department of Homeland Security; it was one of dozens of sites shut down, accused of copyright infringement and selling counterfeit goods.

But Mr. Hofman, a brawny Long Islander in his early 30s who formerly worked for a major record label, does not think of himself as a pirate.

OnSmash.com and the handful of other music blogs shut down by the government post brand-new songs and videos without licenses, but much of that material is often leaked to them by managers, music labels and even the artists themselves.

As a result, these sites have a complex symbiosis with the music business. While the Recording Industry Association of America wants to shut them down, the rank and file of the record labels — particularly in hip-hop circles — uses them as marketing tools and publicity outlets.

“To Joe Q. Public, ‘leak’ sounds like a bad word,” Mr. Hofman said in an interview at a pizzeria on the Lower East Side, his lawyer by his side. “But if you’ve ever been in a marketing meeting at a record label, it’s ‘Hey, can you leak this to the blogs?’ Leak is now a marketing verb.”

In addition to OnSmash.com, the music sites shut down included Dajaz1.com, RapGodFathers.com and rmx4u.com; another, torrent-finder.com, is a search engine for users of BitTorrent, a file-sharing system that can be used for any kind of data.

The seizures over Thanksgiving weekend — most of the 82 sites involved were shut down for selling knockoff handbags, sunglasses and other goods — were made without warning. Internet advocacy groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation have expressed alarm at the precedent the action might set.

Victoria A. Espinel, the White House’s intellectual property enforcement coordinator, said on Dec. 6 that more shutdowns could be expected soon as the government pursued “pirates and counterfeiters.”

Some of the people most surprised by the shutdowns are within the music business itself.

“The industry and my artists don’t have any issues with most of these sites,” said Corey Smyth, a manager of rappers and producers like Lil Jon and Talib Kweli. “When you’re trying to get something out, this is where the kids go.”

For artists, blogs that traffic in the latest leaks are not always beneficial, nor is it always clear where a leak is coming from. Fabolous, a Brooklyn rapper on the Def Jam label who has worked with OnSmash.com, said competition among blogs had resulted in a free-for-all in which e-mail accounts for artists and producers had been hacked in search of any snippets of new music that could attract readers.

“It’s a double-edged sword,” Fabolous said. “It’s a great, great promotional tool to get whatever you’re trying to get out to the masses. But on the other side it is a little bit of piracy, because sometimes it’s not always stuff that’s given — there’s certain things that are taken.”

More than a decade since the advent of the file-sharing service Napster, the big labels are still struggling to reconcile the promise and the threat of digital music.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has not explained how it selected sites that deal in downloadable music, but a spokesman for the Recording Industry of Association of America, which represents the major music labels, said it had worked with ICE and other federal agencies in identifying infringing sites.

“The sites and services we identify are flagrantly violating federal copyright laws, illegally offering songs of well-known artists or pre-release content not commercially available online or in any store,” said the trade group spokesman, Jonathan Lamy.

Mr. Hofman, who began his career working in the new media and marketing departments of a major record label (he would not say which one), enjoys easy access to artists and labels. His site regularly hosted showcase concerts in New York clubs, and had been festooned with artist shout-outs. The Miami rapper Rick Ross, in the liner notes to his recent Top 10 album “Teflon Don,” thanked OnSmash.com before mentioning his own record company.

“I get nothing but open-arm receptions,” said Mr. Hofman, who is prominent enough in the music world that Kanye West links to him on Twitter. “I turn down more industry invites than I accept.”

Mr. Hofman said tracks and videos were leaked to his site regularly, adding that if he received a cease-and-desist letter about unauthorized material on his site, he took it down.

Sites like OnSmash.com and Dajaz1.com had advertising, but their operators said the income from it was minimal. The operator of Dajaz1.com, who calls himself Splash (he would not give his real name), described himself in an interview as a married father of two in Queens who once worked in the music industry.

“I have a regular, Joe Schmo job,” he said. But running an influential rap blog does have its privileges. “I’m on the phone with Busta Rhymes once every three to four days,” Splash said.

For now the seized domains are in legal limbo. David Snead, a lawyer specializing in Internet cases who is representing the owner of torrent-finder.com, speculated that it might be 30 to 60 days before he would be able to see a seizure order. “The government is providing zero information to help us determine what he is being charged with,” he said. “It’s a black hole.”

Some of the sites have resumed their postings by simply relocating to other domains: RapGodFathers.com is now operating on RapGodFathers.info, and torrent-finder.com is now torrent-finder.info.

Mr. Hofman said he was “extremely nervous” about his legal situation, but also puzzled.

“I see myself as a legitimate source of content online, and I have no reason to believe that I was ever perceived as otherwise. If what I’m doing is so wrong and is harming the artist, then why is he retweeting stuff to two million-plus people?” Mr. Hofman said, referring to Kanye West. “It just doesn’t make sense to me.”

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In an interview on Thisis50.com, the 20-year-old Rhode Island beatmaker called out Kanye for performing with his Akai MPC sampler during the VMAs. According to Araab, “everybody knows” that playing the MPC live is his invention. “That n—- went and jacked my whole s—,” Araab explained. “He started doing the s— I do … I’m disgusted. That n—- went on the VMAs doin’ that. There was no need for him to do that … he seen what I did, and felt like, you know …”

The self-proclaimed “MVP of the MPC” claims Kanye discovered his style of tapping the MPC pads to trigger sampled notes and drums live after sharing a studio with Araab recently. While Araab appeared quite upset about the situation, he admitted in the interview that when he saw the popular rapper/producer after the fact, he didn’t say anything. “I seen ‘em. I didn’t say nuthin’ because we were in the same building performing,” he said.

Perhaps unbeknownst to the young producer, countless singers, producers and DJ’s have utilized samplers in their live shows over the years, from Erykah Badu to Zion I’s Amp Live and indie producer Jel. We’re guessing Kanye probably won’t respond.

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“My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy”

Kanye West

It doesn’t matter what Kanye does – all that really matters is no one else is doing it. This album serves more as an artwork, each piece representing pop culture and a different genre of music.

“Brothers”

The Black Keys

Combining blues and psychedelic rock genres, this duo is able to make something messy and dirty seem like just enough instead of too much, with a sexy, grimy sound led by lead singer Dan Auerbach’s lovelorn voice.

“Grace Potter…”

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals

This album is for those who appreciate and miss music with legitimate soul and rock ‘n’ roll. The amazingly powerful vocals of Potter seem effortless, combining old school soul, jazz, rock, folk and even gospel influences to create a timeless sound.

“Thank Me Later”

Drake

This album showcases the versatility of Drake as one of the few in the industry who can pull off being a heartthrob singer and a well respected rapper at the same time.

The witty lyrical content is unmatched.

“Sigh No More”

Mumford & Sons

This English folk band is a breath of fresh air on the underground scene and brings the vibes from your favorite local music venue through the speakers with perfect mellow tones and the spontaneity of its energetic instrumentals.

“Recovery”

Eminem

One word: comeback. This unique rapper beat the odds once again, proving that the sharp-witted, quick free-style type raps he stole the country’s attention with a decade prior have only gotten better with age.

“Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager”

Kid Cudi

When you can’t decide which genre an artist belongs in, they’re going places.

This album encompasses Cudi’s ability to tap into his rhythmic talents and pave the way for a brand new style of psychedelic hip-hop.

“Come Around Sundown”

Kings of Leon

When it comes to KoL, you either love it or hate it. Regardless, it means they’re unique enough to grab your attention.

To have such an one-of-a-kind sound, it’s hard to continue pushing out successful albums. They did it again.

“Odd Blood”

Yeasayer

The futuristic, wacky sounds of this band are comparable to bands like MGMT and combine global rhythms to create something totally out of the ordinary that works.

“The Suburbs”

Arcade Fire

This group re-defines what our generation has labeled as “emo music.”

It takes modern problems and merges them with vintage influences.

It’s the perfect album to always have in your car incase of a long drive.

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Kanye West is definitely in Australia and has managed to keep his shit surprisingly under the radar despite the fact he’s the biggest celebrity on earth right now. Except maybe for Oprah who is also here. There have been a number of sightings and tip offs as follows:

This morning it was reported that ‘Ye was denied entry from Sydney’s club-on-steroids, Ivy. Eventually he was let in to the strictly “invitation only? penthouse section of the club. Seriously who would even consider saying no to Kanye West? His furs is Mongolian, his ice brought the goalies in, idiots!?!

Despite this stumble Kanye received his customary celebrity treatment on Saturday night after making the alleged request for the head chef of renowned Thai restaurant Longrain to cook chicken wings at a private Point Piper residence for him and 15 other guests including Beyonce and Jay-Z (Jay-Z is in Sydney for his supporting gig with U2 tonight and tomorrow).

On Sunday he was spotted snacking with Sports Illustrated model and Pedestrian buddy Jess Gomes, who Yeezy gives a shout out to in his track ?Christian Dior Denim Flow?:

Jessica Gomes, y’all, I would damage her
And see, uh Jessica Stam got the stamina

Jess told Perth Now “I’m a good friend of Kanye’s, and he wanted to visit some of the local designers, so I took him to Josh Goot, Scanlan and Theodore, Assin and The Corner Shop. Then we went to lunch at Bondi Icebergs.”

Last Thursday we got a tip off relaying that Kanye West had been in Surry Hills pub The Flinders the previous night. The tipster told us ?he was there for 20 mins surrounded by girls and body guards and then left?.

If you see Kanye around you can email us here.

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Fabolous scoops up Kanye West’s ex Amber Rose for the video for “You Be Killin’ Em,” his current single from his EP, There is No Competition 2 that dropped in August. The Ryan Leslie-produced track has garnered a good amount of radio play, and the video treatment is a theatrical/performance mix with a bit of violence, sex and product placement.

The video is directed by Aristotle of by Any Means films, who was recently at the helm of the video for the Reek Da Villian, Busta Rhymes, Swizz Beatz collaboration, “Mechanics.”

WorldStarHipHop has the goods, so take aim at the clip below, and if Fabolous doesn’t do it for you, Amber Rose should help you pull the trigger.

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The setup:
No shocker that Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was a top-seller at Radio-Active Records (so was Nine Inch Nails’ Pretty Hate Machine reissue). In addition to Rolling Stone, Spin, and Pitchfork all proclaiming that this album is, like, awesome, the album is actually, like, awesome.

Was Ramirez impressed? Read on.
Here’s a good place to start: who is a more polarizing figure, Kanye West or Trent Reznor?

Mike Ramirez: Haha, that’s a tie. Reznor re-invented himself as the king of the marketing geeks. He was able to stay relevant through the means of research, social media, viral marketing and linking up with new up and coming indie rock bands that would expand his worth in the marketplace. Kanye has just dug such a hole for himself that it amazes me how he has so much support from different communities. But then again, he has marketed himself wisely.

Reznor’s been pissing off a lot of people all along.
Yeah, he’s had a mouth since day one. But in the world of hip-hop, you do not complain, bitch or cry. R. Kelly did that on his joint tour with Jay-Z, and he got booted. In the words of A League Of Their Own, “there’s no crying in hip-hop.” Don’t get me wrong, from being in music retail for over 10 years, I understand why he appeals to people and how he is marketable. I just can’t stand artists who complain, especially rappers. Ice Cube doesn’t complain. Rakim doesn’t complain. Really what he needs is his ass handed to him in a fight. Then I’m sure all of his bickering will cease. And then he’ll make a gospel record like Mase.

So did you play the record in the store, in spite of your feelings about him?

I did. People ate it up. Sold out in a few days. Everyone’s asking for the vinyl version which will be available at the end of December, right before Christmas.

Many publications have called My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy album of the year (I actually liked 808s & Heartbreak better than this one).

Album of the year. Ok. Moving on.

So is there any scenario that you can fathom that you can listen to this music and not be reminded of all the BS? Are there songs you wish you could enjoy if not for the Kanye circus?

Unfortunately, I’m stubborn in that aspect. But I could get into “All Of The Lights.” But I’m sure this guy realizes that he is both loved and loathed. That’s the key to his success. Same with Reznor, I guess.
http://www.youtube.com/v/fEiz9y7nNlc?fs=1&hl=en_US

Kanye’s one of the few guys left who cares about making albums. Especially within hip-hop.

Yeah, except for R. Kelly’s “Trapped in the Closet” series, which is light years ahead of Mr. West. He’s got his own image problems too, though.

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Kim Kardashian had everyone talking when she was spotted hanging out with Kanye West in New York last month. Kardashian’s face time with the rap superstar was documented for the upcoming E! reality show “Kourtney and Kim Take New York,” and it also has generated a lot of rumors. Many gossip blogs began speculating that not only were Kim and Kanye dating, but that they also were expecting a little bundle of joy. The reality starlet laughed off the allegations when MTV News caught up with her at Z-100′s Jingleball in New York on Friday night.

“My reaction is, ‘God, I’ve got to stay away from those hot dogs and nuts on the street corner and the ice cream!’ ” she explained. “Like those trucks, I’ve never seen that before — trucks of ice cream. You have to stop and eat! I couldn’t control myself, so [in] New York [I] put on like 10 pounds and then I’m pregnant with Kanye’s baby, so whatever! What can you do?! Hit the gym!”

Of course, fans also are buzzing about the album that Kardashian is recording, and she teased that they will know more about it once her E! series kicks off this January.

“It’s ‘Kourtney and Kim Take New York,’ so it’s a little bit different,” she said. “They might freak out about [my friendship with singer] Ciara — just all my girlfriends are on it so we have our girl time.”

She added, “Ciara kind of talks me into doing something really crazy and unexpected. You’re going to have to wait and watch the show. It’s kind of in her world and not mine … I don’t know … I’m having fun — that’s all I’ll say, but you’ll definitely see it all unfold on the show.”

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In a culture where biting has always been frowned upon, Araab Muzik has recently said Kanye West bit his style. In an interview with Thisis50.com, Araab noted that after doing some work in the studio, West took his style and ran with it on stage. Araab, who calls himself “the MVP of the MPC” is saying that West saw his work on an MPC player and decided to do the same type of routine as part of his live show. 

“That nigga went and jacked my whole shit,” Araab said. “Hell yeah…He started doing the shit I do. That nigga went on the VMA’s doing that,” he said. ”I’m disgusted. There was no need for him to do that.”

Araab Muzik is best known for his work with Cam’ron, producing extensively on last year’s Crime Pays album. Earlier this year, Diplomats emcees Cam’ron and Jim Jones also voiced displeasure with Kanye West, on their rendition of “Runaway.”

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“Modern Family”‘s Ed O’Neill has started a rivalry with the cast of “Glee” after saying that Jane Lynch didn’t deserve her best supporting actress Emmy this year. He thinks it should have gone to Sofia Vergara, who plays his wife on the show. It’s nice to stand up for your teammates, but it’s kinda rude to rain on other people’s award parade.

Maybe this is a new trend in celebs voicing their opinions a little too openly? We rounded up a few other award party poopers for the occasion.

Kanye West

Of course we can’t forget Kanye West’s interruption of Taylor Swift’s VMA acceptance speech. Kanye has gone on to say that the country/pop singer also didn’t deserve Grammys and in his opinion, neither did the Dixie Chicks, Ray Charles or Herbie Hancock. Maybe Kanye thinks he should be in charge of judging all award shows all by his lonesome?

Natalie Cole

Singer Natalie Cole told People that Amy Winehouse didn’t deserve her five Grammy awards because of her drug addiction. “I think the girl is talented, gifted, but it’s not right for her to be able to have her cake and eat it too. She needs to get herself together… This is about discipline and hard work, and you don’t get to just do your drugs and go onstage and get rewarded.”

For the record, Natalie Cole battled addictions to LSD, heroin and cocaine herself before going to rehab in the ’80s.

Gabriella Cilmi

An Australian singer named Gabriella Cilmi is apparently gearing up to be the next Kanye, claiming that Katy Perry didn’t deserve to win the Best International Female Brit Award they were both up for. She said, “Katy is OK but I don’t think she should have won. … Beyoncé is amazing.”

The “Sweet About Me” singer also threw in for the record that Lady Gaga “needs to put some clothes on.”

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The contest, which runs until Feb. 5, involves more than 50 artists who have recorded special videos encouraging fans to subscribe to their pages. The artist with the most points accrued by the end of the competition will be added to a YouTube masthead, allowing users to subscribe to their page without having to leave the homepage. The placement is also beneficial to artists since videos on the main YouTube page get the most views. Internet hits are becoming more and more important. Billboard recently announced the new Social 50 chart which measures an artists’ popularity on the Internet.

To bolster their popularity for the contest, artists are offering prize incentives to five fans who click subscribe. Some rewards are smaller, such as a signed ‘Pink Friday’ CD from Nicki Minaj, a ‘coutoure edition’ of Rihanna’s ‘LOUD!’ and signed albums from Soulja Boy and Lupe Fiasco. Others are more substantial, with Diddy giving away pairs of DiddyBeats headphones and Chrisette Michele offering Carol’s Daughter gift bags and a Hair Milk travel set. Winners will receive a notification email during the week of February 14, 2011, and can sign up for the promotion on MyYouTube.

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Kanye West, “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” (Roc-A-Fella Records)

We knew well before “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” that Kanye West is a tortured genius. He had made enough headlines and leaked enough music to make that clear. The main question left for his fifth album was, what’s in it for us?

A lot — if you like reality TV, celebrity tabloids and car crashes. As a producer, Kanye’s immense gifts have reached a new peak, and his lyrics remain double-edged blades of young black pathos. The only thing missing from this “Fantasy” is a good time.

Kanye’s previous album, “808s & Heartbreak,” also was a bleak experience, but “Fantasy” delves into an uglier place. There’s no happiness, vicarious thrills or funny stories, no touching odes to his mentor or his mother, just a man torn apart by the world and himself. You get women, ego, fame, evil, power, pain, even sex and religion as unholy bedfellows — all delivered in defiant rhymes laden with multiple meanings and punch lines.

This dysfunction still sounds incredible, though, because West lays down his torment on beds of sound that reveal new beauties with each listen.

It makes you wish Kanye could finally find the woman or the award he yearns for, so he could escape from his own head and give us another hilarious “Gold Digger” or redemptive “Jesus Walks.” Until then, he’s like a Picasso who only paints self-portraits.

Check this out: The minute-long “All of the Lights” interlude is haunting, beautiful — and wordless.

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Even if Drake and Kanye West aren’t best friends, Drizzy still counts the Chicago rapper/producer as one of his musical idols.

Drake dropped into Shade 45′s morning show Thursday (December 9) and chatted it up with host Elliott Wilson on a variety of topics, including being removed from the final version of Yeezy’s “All of the Lights.”

An early version of the song, whose crowded guest list includes Elton John, La Roux’s Elly Jackson, Charlie Wilson and Ryan Leslie, had previously leaked that included Drake, but the Toronto rapper is nowhere to be found on the version that appears on West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

“Kanye’s creative process is ever-changing,” Drake said, adding that he doesn’t know why he was removed. “We make music differently. I make what comes to me and I hate changing it, whereas ‘Ye will change something 30 or 40 times to get it perfect. To each their own, and the change was to put all those people on it, and I wasn’t one of them. That’s completely OK.”

Since Drake came to national prominence with the release of his So Far Gone mixtape, the MC has been compared to West — not just for his introspective lyrics, but for his overall sound as well. Back in August, Drake’s main producer, Noah “40″ Shebib, relayed a story about Kanye West cursing him out for using his production style. Add to that mix the fact that Drake and Kanye have appeared on relatively few songs together — including “Forever,” with Lil Wayne and Eminem — and conspiracy theorists feel there must be tension between the two.

“I can never sit here and tell you that’s not one of my idols, that’s not one of my favorite rappers,” Drake said of Kanye during the Shade 45 interview. “Whatever energy I’ve ever felt is irrelevant. When you ask me, ‘What do I think of Kanye West,’ I’mma always have something positive to say.”

The host then interjected by asking, “But sometimes the energy is not always where you want it to be?”

“I feel like we can co-exist,” Drake answered. “I feel like hip-hop is broad enough that we can both exist and give great music without feeling like it’s one or the other. I might be the only one that feels that way, though.”

Drake stressed his reverence for Kanye West. At only 24 years old, the Canadian MC said he missed the Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac era, and Yeezy is a personal favorite artist whose career he can personally trace since its inception.

What do you think about Drake’s thoughts on Kanye? Let us know in the comments.

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Farewell, Kanye West: Susan Boyle is back at the top of the Billboard album chart.

Ms. Boyle’s second album, “The Gift” (Syco/Columbia), has been out for a month but it’s holding strong. Last week it sold 272,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan, a slight sales gain from the previous week that was enough to bump it up two spots to No. 1. Mr. West’s album “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam) fell six spots to No. 7 with 108,000 sales, a 78 percent drop from its first week.

Taylor Swift’s “Speak Now” (Big Machine) is No. 2 with 182,000, Jackie Evancho’s “O Holy Night” (Columbia) is No. 3 with 145,000, and the expanding “Glee” franchise on Columbia holds down the next two slots: “The Christmas Album” is No. 4 with 129,000 sales in its third week out, and “The Music: Volume 4” opens at No. 5 with 128,000. “Glee” has seven albums in the Top 200, with combined sales of nearly 3.4 million.

Besides “Glee,” the only other new release in the Top 10 this week is the Black Eyed Peas’ “The Beginning” (Interscope), which opened at No. 6 with 119,000.

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The actress 35 years of age, who appears in a set of feathers, and recently told Larry King on the possibility of having more children.

When asked by MTV if you prefer Lady Gaga or Kanye West, Angelina could not give an answer and had to say “ask my kids!”

He also said that while the fans on the Internet like it as interpret Catwoman in the next Batman movie, she doesn’t know anything about the project.

Cuscoinca.NET

Posted by Cuscoinca.net on 11 Dec 2010. Filed under entertainment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave to response or trackback to this entry

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WHY are rappers so obsessed with eating chicken wings?

Kanye West had a craving for some fried treats on Saturday night and it was up to a Sydney chef to deliver the goods … literally. Rumour has it the spotlight thief called Thai hotspot Longrain about 8pm on Saturday requesting a cook at a private Point Piper residence, where Jay-Z and wife Beyonce were said to be as well.

“Kanye West wanted a chef to go over and cook chicken wings for them and 15 guests,” a source said yesterday. “The head chef [went].”

Kanye recently got club treatment he’s not used to – the cold shoulder.

The rapper was initially denied entry to the strictly-invitation Ivy Penthouse before eventually being allowed in.

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