Kanye West's Influence On American Hip-Hop Culture

Tupac Shakur was a very influential person in the 20th century. He was born on June

Kanye West, born June 8, 1977, is a world renown rapper, songwriter, record producer, fashion designer, and entrepreneur. among the most acclaimed musicians of the 21st century, and is one of the best-selling artists of all time, having sold more than 32 million albums and 100 million digital downloads worldwide. He has won a total of 21 Grammy Awards, making him one of the most awarded artists of all time. (Kyles, 2013)

Even though, hip-hop is viewed as primarily of promoting negative message, however, it has reveled the pain behind the lyrics. “Hip hop music, had for over three and half decades, delivered a resounding message of freedom of expression, unity, peace, and protest against social injustices”. (Anderson & Jackson) As hip-hop continues to grow it has continued to remain a strong influential social impact. Hip-hop created a way for many individuals to express themselves on controversial issues seen throughout society.

For my assessment of Kanye West's personality, I am going to use the personality theory that Paul Costa and Robert McCrae invented. Costa and McCrae invented O.C.E.A.N or the Big Five Personality Traits. The theory is that our personality traits fit within five main categories. All of our personality traits either fall under the category of openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, or neuroticism. Openness relates to things such as whether a person is close minded or openminded, the degree to which one is thoughtful and rational when looking at new ideas. Conscientiousness relates to how attentive someone is, they could be very attentive and pay attention to things like detail or could be inattentive and be more careless. Extraversion is about how energetic you are around other people, if you are highly extroverted then you are talkative and enjoy the company of other people. Someone who is less extroverted would enjoy the

Kanye Omari West, an icon of hip-hop, pop culture, fashion and music in general. Kanye Omari West, a person belittled against and a person subjected to a life of racism and hate. Born on June 8th, 1977, Donda West, West’s mother, always knew he was destined for greatness, but did she know her son would turn out to be the Kanye West, a man lacking the respect he deserves for transforming a big part of the music we listen to on this very day? West came onto the scene in the late nineties but didn’t release The College Dropout until 2004, an album that took everybody by surprise. Kanye West changed the gangster filled rap genre by releasing his positive, soulful debut album, changing the way rappers

Kanye West also known as "Yeezy" is American rapper, fashion disaster, and also music producer. People may say that Mr. West is our youth of today voice. He has made a tremendous mark in the music and fashion industry. As we all know Mr. West is known for having his moments. It is safe to say that he has the best and top “omg” Moments, such as interrupting Taylor Swift at the VMA’s. Kanye in the begging when he first came on the hip hop scene was this calm, joyful, his music in my eyes was the most different music out at the time, just because he wasn’t rapping about what everyone else was. Kanye was one of those joyful guys, everybody wanted him on his record or produce it. Then a tragic event occurred where his mom died. After then you see

He is not a politician. He is not pastor. He is not the CEO of a company. But, he brings the discussion to social issues. From how African-Americans were depicted in the media and treated by the government during Hurricane Katrina, to the lack of recognition for art, to the lack of quality luxury items for the middle and lower class, to the killings that have been plaguing his city Kanye is unafraid and unapologetic when it comes to speaking his mind. And in doing so, every “outburst” he has promotes discussion about each topic. Kanye’s actions are laying the groundwork for a discussion that could, eventually, lead to a solution to these social problems, and a big change to the world. Throughout history, it is the most outspoken and freethinking people that make the biggest changes to government, philosophy, and behaviour. These are intelligent and well known people such as Ghandi, Walt Disney, Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Jobs, and Nelson Mandela. And, I firmly believe that Kanye’s name should be included in that

Kanye West likely seeks reinforcement and loves attention, negative or positive from individuals he does not know, or is not familiar with because of his constant need for attention. He acts the way he does due to his thought process and erratic personality/ personality disorders.

Kanye West has many heroic traits about him. One of which, is his capability for

Music can rock your world, enlighten your mind and change your perspective. When you think of rap music who comes first to mind? Without hesitation, it must be the self acclaimed best rapper alive, Lil Wayne. He alone can make such statements as “My picture should be in the dictionary next to the definition of definition” (Wayne, “Shoot Me Down”). Lil Wayne is a prominent force in the rap world. His debut Album in 1999, Tha Block is Hot went double platinum upon its release and even his lowest selling album is still certified as gold according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Rollingstone Magazine declares “Lil Wayne is one of the most popular — and prolific — recording artists in the world” (Kreps). Top this with

On top of that, his line of sneakers and clothes have created a even larger fan base for him at the age of 38. If you don't already pay attention to his presence in the fashion industry, you need to start.We all remember when Kanye stormed the stage to interrupt Taylor Swift at the at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. His IDGAF attitude was on full display for the entire world to see. Since then he and Taylor have made amends and it seems like they are BFFs. And how about also the numerous times he's flipped out on paparazzi, and gone beast mode on live television and radio broadcasts. Point blank period, Kanye doesn't care what people think about him. He speaks his mind and does what he wants to do. At the end of the day he's happy and lives the life he wants. Take note of this if you struggle saying how you feel to people.Not much needs to be said with this one. The tangible results speak for

“Yo Taylor, I’m really happy for you…I’ll let you finish. But Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time!” (West). Most people if they don’t know anything about Kanye West, they know this quote. When anybody hears his name everybody always has an opinion. Some people love him, while a lot of other people hate him, each for a variety of reasons. Though most people only see the arrogant and egotistic side of Kanye, the more important side that people don’t always see is the hardworking musician. In order to fully understand Kanye’s motives and to fully appreciate him, people have to know how he got to the point he is now today.

Hip hop and rap as a musical genre is a very controversial subject for nearly everyone. Its influences are powerful, both positive and negative. There are many positive influences of hip hop, and a few examples are the breaking down of cultural barriers, the economic impact, and political awareness of pressing and urgent issues. Though there are many positive influences, there are many negative influences as well. Some of the more heated debates of the negative influences of hip hop are that it glorifies violence, and the fact that the music sexualizes women and degrades them as well. Attached to the negative outlook on hip hop, there are also many stereotypes assumed by society towards this type of culture

Throughout history, the biggest reforms in government, philosophy, and behavior have been made by freethinking and outspoken people. People such as Ghandi, Martin Luther King Jr., and Nelson Mandela changed the world with their actions and words. While others, including Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Walt Disney implement their talents to business to change the world. All are spoken highly of and are highly regarded. One name that is wrongly not considered for this list is Kanye West. Kanye West is an intelligent person whose actions and outbursts, despite the media’s attempts to make them look incoherent and uncivilized, actually come from a place of goodwill and promote a platform of free thinking.

From being known to creating compose hip-hop music, a fashion icon and establishing a foundation with his mother to being seen as the most hated celebrity in the entertainment industry. Kanye West took it upon himself to defend his opinion when it came to the winner of the Best Female Video on the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. By taking the stage and grabbing the microphone from the country music star Taylor Swift and basically stating that she did not deserve the title. The event left the audience and TV land very stocked. What some may not realize is that Kanye West displayed multiple stereotypes that society may think African Americans possess. The stereotypes, which were displayed, were drunkenness, outspokenness and the fact that a