Why Kanye is king. (An explanation to non rap fans who don't get it)

Sorry I've been away for so long. It's been a busy few weeks (almost a month, now) for me. Launching a new website at the Local has pretty much kept me from this awesome blog.

Of course, I haven't really had any good inspiration. Was toying with a piece about Deerhunter, but couldn't work up much enthusiasm for it. Thought about taking a look at reissues by NIN (Petty Hate Machine) and Weezer (Pinkerton) but didn't have anything worthwhile to say about either.

So, I thought, why not weigh in on Kanye West? 

If you read this blog, you're probably not a big fan of hip hop. Chances are you're a rock fan. Well, I'm not a huge fan of hip hop, either. I was 20 years ago, though. There was a time in high school when Public Enemy, Run DMC, Boogie Down Productions, De La Soul and Tribe Called Quest were everything to me. 

Big Boi: much less than a glass half full

It's been a long time since Outkast took the hip-hop and pop worlds by storm with the double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. The Atlanta duo was able to do something that few artists ever accomplish: They recorded a serious album that was wildly inventive, pushed the boundaries of the form in which they worked and did so in a way that was wildly popular. "Hey Ya!" and "The Way You Move" were mega hits. "Hey Ya!" might have been one of the greatest so-called crossover singles of the last decade (perhaps second only to Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy"). 

Maybe 2003 doesn't seem that long ago, but popular music can experience what seems like generational turnover every six to 12 months. And despite the impermanence of the contemporary pop/hip hop record, the legacy of Speakerboxxx/The Love Below feels as enduring as any of other record of the time. It is in that album's long shadow that Big Boi, the "grounded" half of Outkast, released his solo album Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty a few weeks ago to nearly universal acclaim.