A handful of years before we were inundated with the latest news and shenanigans of Mr. Kardashian, paparazzi & gossip magnet, there was simply Kanye West. Producer turned producer-emcee, plain and simple. Even before his first-class tickets to fame, fortune and media infamy were punched forever, Kanye had seemingly always possessed a larger-than-life presence, replete with a super-sized dose of ambition and arrogance. But there was indeed a time earlier in his career—and not too long ago, mind you—when the quality of Kanye’s musical output superseded his cocksure, ubiquitous persona.

Indeed, Kanye’s first three albums are fantastic. Each song suite is a masterclass in near-flawless synergy between sonic, lyrical and thematic substance, with West’s unbridled passion and vision the creative lifeblood that courses through the albums’ excellent tunes.
But somewhere along the way, at least for me, Kanye’s music lost its luster and vivacity. Granted, with 2008’s 808s & Heartbreak and 2010’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, his sound became even more innovative and experimental in many respects, and he was subsequently even more universally venerated by critics and consumers alike. Admittedly, I respect Kanye’s aversion to the tried-and-true approach and his commitment to constantly evolving his sound.

However, with his ever-expanding dependence on auto-tune and relatively bland beats, his music has become progressively more insipid, devoid of the vibrancy that defined his earlier work. I find his most recent fare (“Runaway” and “Only One” are prime examples) stagnant and boring. However, remarkably, and proof that Kanye has the power to sway even the most skeptical of minds (i.e., mine), I still hold out hope that his next musical move will revive my faith. Naïve optimism on my part, quite possibly.

Kanye’s solo chapter of his recording career followed the prologue of a prolific production run in the late 1990s and early 2000s, a period during which he served as Roc-A-Fella Records’ in-house sonic whiz.

His earliest production credits most notably include four of the thirteen tracks on label co-founder Jay-Z’s universally lauded 2001 LP The Blueprint, solid work that would earn him subsequent collaborations with the likes of Talib Kweli, Ludacris and Alicia Keys, among others. Regrettably, Kanye’s all-star production skills actually pigeonholed him with certain expectations and undermined his ability to get a solo recording deal, as it took some time for labels to take him seriously as an emcee. He ultimately remained with Roc-A-Fella, though Damon Dash and Jay-Z were allegedly somewhat skeptical about his viability as a rapper.

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