Ode to Kanye, Verse 2

Yes, he’s known for throwing the occasional public tantrum and saying whatever’s on his mind (i.e. “George Bush doesn't care about black people.) But have you ever really listened to his lyrics?

They’re clever, gritty, humorous and at times relatable.

In case you hadn’t figured it out yet by our blog posts and comments, Kanye has quite the fan base here with some of us Link222 bloggers. And of course, we're all too thrilled that he beat his contenders to the No. 1 spot on the charts. So, we decided to have a little fun and try something different to the end the week in honor of his third album release “Graduation,” released Tuesday.

It was difficult to do, but we picked out at least 10 of our all-time favorite Kanye lyrics as well as 10 of our all-time favorite songs.

What do ya’ll think? Let us know what you’d add…or take off. (As much as we LOVE free speech, we must warn you - comments with expletives may get deleted.) Here goes:

Top 10 classic Kanye West lyrics:
1. “If you ever wanted to be anything/There’ll always be somebody that will shoot down any dream/There’ll always be haters/That’s the way it is/Hater (men) marry hater (women) and have hater kids.” – “Bring Me Down,” Late Registration (Submitted by Janelle Rucker)

2. “Will I make it from a student loan to a Benzo?/Like old folks pissin’, I guess it all Depends, so …” – “Late,” Late Registration. (Submitted by Joel Anderson.)

3. “Why everything that’s s’posed to be bad, make me feel so good?/And everything they told me not to is exactly what I would?” - “Addiction,” Late Registration. (Submitted by Donecia Pea)

4. “Crack raised the murder rate in DC and Maryland/We invested in that it's like we got Merril-Lynch/And we been hangin’ from the same tree ever since/Sometimes I feel the music is the only medicine.” – “Crack Music,” Late Registration. (Submitted by Greg Pearson)

5. “Damn ‘Ye it’d be stupid to diss you/Even your superficial raps are super official.” - "Gone," Late Registration. (Submitted by Janelle Rucker)

6. “It seems we’re living the American Dream/The people highest up have the lowest self esteem/The prettiest people do the ugliest things.” - “All Falls Down,” The College Dropout. (Submitted by Donecia Pea)

7. “They say because of the fame and stardom/I’m somewhere in between the church and insane asylum./I guess it’s messing with my health then/And this verse so crazy when I finish I’m just gon’ check myself in. Again.” - “They Say,” from rapper Common’s “Be.” (Submitted by Donecia Pea)

8. “I’ll be good like God with an extra O/God knows that my check needs some extra Os.” - “Can’t Tell Me Nothing (Remix.)" (Submitted by Joel Anderson)

9. “Ahh, the sweet taste of victory/Go ‘head and breathe it in like antihistamine/I know they say ‘Dang they snapped with this beat.’/What you expect? I gotta history.” - “They Say,” from rapper Common’s album "Be.” (Submitted by Donecia Pea)

10. “Everything I'm not made me everything I am.” –“Everything I Am,” Graduation.(Submitted by Janelle Rucker)

Top 10 songs:
1. Celebration (Late Registration)
2. All Falls Down (The College Dropout)
3. Late (Late Registration)
4. Touch the Sky (Late Registration)
5. Jesus Walks (The College Dropout)
6. Never Let Me Down (The College Dropout)
7. Stronger (Graduation)
8. Addiction (Late Registration)
9. Spaceship (The College Dropout)
10. Good Life (Graduation)

An ode to Kanye

Yep, that’s me.
I’m that girl that ran to Target yesterday to get Kanye West’s new cd, "Graduation."
I’m also that girl you saw driving around the city yesterday and this morning blasting that same cd, dancing behind the steering wheel and singing loudly.

It’s awesome.

But I knew it would be. In a time when "artists" are putting out cds with 10 or 12 tracks, of which only one or two are good, Kanye is giving people what they pay for.

Of the 13 tracks on "Graduation," I love 12 of them and the last one may grow on me as I replay the album - over and over and over again.

Each song sounds different than the one before it. Known for his production skills, it comes as no surprise that the beats and melodies don’t only vary from song to song, but also vary from his previous albums.

"Graduation" perfectly wraps up the trilogy of Kanye’s story. From "College Dropout" to "Late Registration" and now "Graduation," the cocky rapper/producer keeps moving us forward, never presenting us something that he's given us before.

So, here and now I’ll proclaim my love for Kanye - not as a groupie but as someone that respects his talent, his struggle and even some of the crazy things he says and does.

I’m not even going to get into the whole Kanye vs. 50 Cent album sale competition, because to me, there’s no contest. It’s Kanye all the way. But here is a review that ran in the Boston Globe that I feel sums up that whole situation perfectly.

So, has anybody else heard it? What do you think?

And stay tuned. Donecia and I are putting together a Kanye related list that we want you to get in on...

A little common sense...

Ok y’all.
I tried to hold back from talking about this, but I can’t help it.
I just gotta tell you.
You GOTTA get your hands on the new Common CD released today, “Finding Forever.” In a word or two: It’s FIYAH!

OK, here’s a quick de-briefing for those who have no idea who in the world I’m talking about.
Common is only one of the best lyricists in hip hop. (Hip hop heads, correct me on this if I’m wrong.) Mainstream audiences may know him best for his last album “Be,” which was produced by Kanye West. However, this Chi-town rapper has been in the game for more than a decade and is one of the most respected out there in the hip hop world. "Finding Forever" is his seventh album to date.

I like him because he’s always speaking truth and talking about things that really matter. Real life issues. Not rims, chicks and other silliness. And he's able to brilliantly intertwine these conscious rhymes with a soulful blend of old school, jazz and hip hop music, thanks to innovative producers like the late J.Dilla and Kanye and the crooning vocals of folks like Bilal and John Legend.

And of course he’s sexy as all get out! But I digress…

Clearly, I’m a big Common fan and I’ve been practically counting down the days to this CD release ever since I saw him in concert at Essence Fest.
In fact, it’s taking everything for me to restrain myself from posting the gazillion pictures I took of him during that concert. (And the pics actually came out great ... A lot better than my Superdome pics!)

Instead, I’ll just tell all you Common fans to get your hands on this CD asap, so you can tell me what you think about it. Now just 42 days till Kanye's "Graduation"...