Whenever Kanye West does a thing that is not shrouded in an Illuminati-supplied hithlainian cloak of secrecy, invisibility, and non-disclosure agreements signed in triplicate with every page initialed, it is an event. Yes, Kanye West is arguably the most famous rapper on the planet, so by default everything he does is going to be covered, because people are interested in him and what he does. But unlike say Jay Z, with his carefully manicured public image, or Drake, who despite his emotional lyrics is an entertainer first and a public personality second, Kanye West is Kanye West, for better or worse, at all times. If he’s going to release a song, you’re going to know that it was the best song he was capable of creating at that current moment. If he plays a show, he’s going to play that show like it’s the last one of his life. If he accidentally runs into a sign, he’s going to run into that sign like he goddamn means it. He does not care that he might look like an idiot sometimes; instead, he is concerned that his looking like an idiot will eventually give people a better understanding of Kanye West. Some might call this egotistical; we’d prefer to think of it as self-aware.
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Part of what has made Kanye such an interesting figure is his relationship with the press. Some time after the release of Graduation, Kanye West stopped giving interviews, instead relying on his blog, and later Twitter account, to relay whatever messages he chose not to offer in his music. And we were fine with that—Kanye is clearly a musical genius, and sometimes genius needs not explaining. Last year, shortly before Kanye recalibrated hip-hop by dropping Yeezus, Kanye broke his silence, speaking to both The New York Times and W Magazine for two very different pieces. In the time since, he’s given enough interviews that, simply by paying attention to him, you really get a sense of how his brain works now that he’s one of the biggest musicians on the planet. In that spirit, we mined Kanye West's recent interviews for nuggets of his own wisdom that you could apply to your every day life.Dopeness is what I like the most. Dopeness—people who want to make things as dope as possible and by default make money from it. I don’t follow rules of normal celebrity. Sandals with socks. Keep it gangster.
KANYE WEST’S GENERAL PHILOSOPHY
Photo by Jason BergmanI’m a creative genius and there’s no other way to word it.Everything in the world is exactly the same.Fashion isn’t always practical. It’s more about emotion. It’s more about swag. It’s more about, you know, pussy.Life is life, there’s ups and downs. It’s like a car crash—you could just be driving, and just out of nowhere it happens. The point of life is getting shit done and being happy.In order to win at life, you need some Kim K skills.
KANYE WEST ON GENIUS
KANYE WEST ON EVERYTHING IN THE WORLD
KANYE WEST ON FASHION
KANYE WEST ON THE POINT OF LIFE
KANYE WEST ON THE KIM KARDASHIAN GAME
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Photo via Kim Kardashian's InstagramI’m totally weird, and I’m totally honest, and I’m totally inappropriate sometimes. And the thing is for me to say I wasn’t a genius, I would just be lying to you and myself. I’m not running for office, I’m just here to make good music, and make people feel good when they hear my music.The person who wrote that, were they involved with anything last year that was as culturally significant as the Yeezus tour or that album?Don’t ask me a question about something you saw in a tabloid. Don’t try to antagonize me. It’s not safe for you in this zoo. Never think that I’m not from Chicago for one second and think you can walk right up and disrespect me in front of my family.
KANYE WEST ON KANYE WEST
KANYE WEST ON BEING ABLE TO COMMENT ON KANYE WEST
KANYE WEST ON YOUR PERSONAL SAFETY AROUND KANYE WEST IF YOU DISRESPECT KANYE WEST
Photo via @tonyhawk on InstagramI’ve got my astronaut family. Becoming famous is like being catapulted into space—sometimes without a space suit. We’ve seen so many people combust, suffocate, get lost in all these different things. But to have an anchor of other astronauts and make a little space family…I think there’s something kind of depressing about a product being final, because the only time a product is really final is when you’re in a casket. As my grandfather would say, “Life is a performance.”The longer your ‘gevity is, the more confidence you build.OK, now I’ve got the Will Ferrell sample, so I need to say something that finishes the verse. But people have to know not what it means. So it’s like problem solving to get to the point where you’re saying, “Going gorillas!” It’s difficult sometimes.
KANYE WEST ON HIS ASTRONAUT FAMILY
KANYE WEST ON DEATH
KANYE WEST ON LONGEVITY
KANYE WEST ON PROBLEM SOLVING
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KANYE WEST ON GREATNESS
KANYE WEST ON THE MEDIA
KANYE WEST ON FIGHTING FOR JUSTICE
KANYE WEST ON PUTTING YOURSELF OUT THERE
KANYE WEST ON CHOOSING FRIENDS
KANYE WEST ON KIMYE
KANYE WEST ON INFLUENCE
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KANYE WEST ON THE FUTURE
KANYE WEST ON BEING ABLE TO TELL THE FUTURE
KANYE WEST ON BULLIES
KANYE WEST ON SELF-ESTEEM
KANYE WEST ON BEING COOL
KANYE WEST ON KANYE WEST'S MESSAGE
KANYE WEST ON LOVE
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