Before I get started I have to say this: This blog was written after hearing snippets of Kanye West's performances on Saturday Night Live. I haven't heard these songs ('Black Skinheads' and New Slaves') all the way through as of yet so my opinions of them at this time are limited. This post is based on the reaction of those who commented on the performances.
As we all know, Kanye West is the most arrogant artist of our generation. Or, at least, he is perceived that way. Or he just comes off that way. Either you love him for that or you hate him for that. I, for one, love him for it. He's perfectly imperfect and has found the perfect way to present that to the world, through his music. He comes off as a pompous jerk most times, but there are other times when that arrogance can be clearly seen as defiance to a system that exists only for the elite (and for celebrities like him). The responses to what he creates are often negative, mainly because those individuals see Kanye West but are not listening to what he says. Granted, not all of what Kanye says is worth listening to. From what I have heard, so far, from the two songs he performed on SNL off of his frorthcoming album "Yeezus", it might be worth it to take a listen.
The song that caught my attention (and again, I've only heard snippets) was 'New Slaves'. On the song, it seems that West is speaking in regards to the perception that many white Americans have on Black people. At one point in the opening verse he says "All you Black people, wanting the same thing...", referencing, I believe, things that are trendy amongst Black entertainers and their fans, or talking about how Black people often speak of racial equality. Once I heard that, I immediately went to the comments section to see what was being said about the songs and about Kanye. Of course, it was the typical hate and that is ok because Kanye does what he does probably to spur some sort of reaction. But this comment stood out to me:
"We have enough racial lyrics in this world. Yes it’s reality, what you have in your heart is what comes out of your mouth. Sorry Kanye."
Not quite sure what the person meant when they made that comment but it seems like they either meant the topic of racism has been over-discussed or that Kanye is racist.
I saw this one, too:
"Kanye it's 2013. Most America's (sic) came to this country after slavery was abolished. (1865) They have nothing to do with it as neither do you. The only slaves in this country are the middle class and they come in all shapes, colors and sizes"
Now, while I get what this guy is saying, that no one who is alive right now has actually experienced slavery in this country (and by that I mean none of us were actual slaves, brought here from Africa), his comment on the middle class being today's slaves makes me a bit uneasy. I say that because that comment seems to be directed toward another Black man, who just happens to be our President. Without going off on that particular tangent, I will say this: Either you get it or you don't.
What I mean by that is racism is still here and it is not going anywhere. The most common way people use to spark any type of dialogue on the subject is to bring up slavery. And while notable artists like Kanye who are very wealthy and aren't subjected to being denied opportunities to succeed in the same way a regular person would be, they are still affected by it. It seemed to me, though that Kanye, while touching on the subject of slavery, was actually talking about people being slaves to society, being followers instead of leaders, trendy instead of trendsetting. I thought it was interesting that these two people sought to discredit West immediately because he mentioned slavery. Kanye is an artist; whether you think he's a particularly good one or not is another story. Artists who decide to conduct social commentary through their work are basically telling us what they see. Can a rich person who notices those not as well off as him/ her speak out against the injustices that said wealthy one sees others go through? Can they speak out about this country's injustices through their platform, in Kanye's case, through his music? People often use our right to free speech to defend people who make comments that might rub someone or some group the wrong way. But a lot of times, when a wealthy Black person mentions slavery or speaks on racism, they are shunned because they are seemingly not being oppressed. But, as the above commentor said, it is 2013 and we are still subject to the after effects of what our ancestors had to go through. Unless a high profile individual is speaking on the subject, racism is often viewed as an "old scar" on this country's history that many would easily soon forget. One other person commented to the affect that they were sure Kanye never picked cotton; in other words, if you didn't go through it, you can't talk about it. So does that mean a Jewish person of this current generation can't talk about the Holocaust? What about the current generation of Japanese Americans, can they not talk about their family members who were placed in internment camps during World War II?
The issue of this nation's history is that it tries to brush under the rug the atrocities it has committed against those who do not look like the majority. Nowadays, terms like "preserving the American Dream", "Taking back America" and "entitlement groups" are used when some white Americans, usually politicians and/ or the wealthy, try to defend their "questionable" views on the modern state of America. Unlike in the past, say during slavery times or during the Jim Crow era in the South, when racism was overtly obvious, today it is mostly covert. A politician won't go on television and call the President a nigger per se, but in some cases, the sentiment is there. In a lot of cases, the way Predsident is viewed has a direct affect on how Black people an other minorities as a group are viewed and vice versa. It's no mistake that Black entertainers and other high profile indidviduals that white America once embraced are now looked upon in an unfavorable light. Even with President Obama, once the mistique of him being the first Black President wore off, the vitriol statred to spew. Criticism of policy by the Presdident is one thing. Criticism of Black athletes and entertainers performances is one thing. Attacking their character for being human and or prone to make personal mistakes is completely another. Saying that Obama is "destroying the fabric of this once great nation" without giving any real concrete reasons, other than he doesn't have a clear understanding of what this country is about, is code for "He's Black and he couldn't possibly understand why wealthy white Americans want to be able to continue to live high on the horse at the expense of the poor being taxed to no end so that the goverment can pay its debts. Again, I'm not saying criticism of Obama or Kanye or any other Black person is racist. I'm merely pointing out that sometimes that criticism is baseless or it is based on people "not being used to" or "not being ready" for certain things, change being amongst those "things".
Kanye West is a loud, arrogant voice of a wealthy man who knows he's only where he is because of his own hard work and the help of other hard working artists who gave him an opportunity to be heard. When he stood on television during the telethon for Hurrican Katrina victims and said "George Bush doesn't care about Black people", I'm sure he knew exactly what he was doing. He was using his celebrity to give a voice to those who were literally being ignored. He may have also been using that moment to boost his own star power, but the method was effective. Now that he has acheived his current global status he's at it again, only this time he's speaking on how he feels when he sees what is happening to people who look like him. It's funny how events in history can happen and while they are happening, it is expected that these events be accepted. Once they are stopped, it's like it's taboo to ever talk about them again. "Things are supposed to be improving", people might say. "Don't bring up the horrible past, it'll only open up old wounds". But in the case of race relations and racism in 2013, the old wounds never fully healed and new ones are always being administered. Some people feel like if they turn a blind eye or if they convince themselves something isn't happening, then it really isn't. Fortunately for those living in the real world, we have people like Mr. West to remind everyone that just because YOU don't see it or YOU convince yourself it's not there, that doesn't mean your right. It just means you want everyone like Kanye to shut up and stop bringing up old stuff. He's no revolutionary, at least not in the formal sense. But he poses as one pretty nicely.
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