West began making beats and rapping in the early 90s in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois, when he formed the rap group Go Getters with Chicago natives GLC and Really Doe. He later gained nationwide popularity through his work in New York, where he began producing tracks for artists such as Jay-Z, Twista, Mase, Talib Kweli and Alicia Keys.
West's style of production often utilizes pitched-up vocal samples, usually from soul songs, with his drums and instruments. The first major label song he produced was The Truth by Beanie Sigel, and his first major release featuring his trademark vocal sampling style was This Can’t Be Life, a track from Jay-Z’s The Dynasty: Roc La Familia. West said he sped up the drum beat of Dr. Dre’s Xxplosive to use as a replacement for his drums on This Can’t Be Life.
West has said that Wu-Tang Clan producer RZA influenced him in his style, and has said on numerous occasions that Wu-Tang rappers Ghostface Killah and Ol’ Dirty Bastard were some of his all-time favorites. Said Kanye West: “Wu-Tang? Me and my friends talk about this all the time… We think Wu-Tang had one of the biggest impacts as far as a movement. From slang to style of dress, skits, the samples. Similar to the [production] style I use, RZA has been doing that.”
In 2004 (after being pushed aside by many record companies who felt he wasn't a marketable hip-hop artist), he managed to release his debut solo album, The College Dropout on Roc-A-Fella Records. The album received critical acclaim, including 10 Grammy nominations and the awards for Album of the Year and Best Rap Album, as well as defining the style for which West would become known: "wordplay" and heavy sampling of the 70s soul and RnB tracks.
Not content to rest on his laurels, West invested two million dollars and hired a string orchestra to help with his latest effort, Late Registration (2005). West collaborated with Jon Brion to help develop the sound of the album, despite his lack of experience in hip hop production. The album received widespread acclaim like its predecessor and again claimed the Best Rap Album award at the Grammys.
West was no stranger to controversy, such as storming out at the 2004 American Music Awards after not receiving Best New Artist, but just days after the release of his second studio album, West began embroiled in a major controversy after going off-script during Hurricane Katrina broadcast, proclaiming "George Bush doesn't care about black people", which Bush claimed was "one the most disgusting moments of my presidency". In January 2006, West posed on the cover of Rolling Stone wearing a crown of thorns, once again attracting controversy.
For his third release, West was keen to produce songs that could be used more effectively when performing in arenas. For Graduation, the third and ultimately final entry into his 'Dropout Bear' series, West drew musical inspiration from The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. In the lead up to the album he became involved in a friendly rivalry with 50 Cent over which of the two artists' upcoming albums would sell more, as they were both released on the same day. West ultimately sold 957,000 copies in the first week of release, outselling Curtis by a large margin. The albums lead single "Stronger" sampled Daft Punk, and was West's third number one on Billboard 200. Many proclaim West's 'victory' over 50 Cent to be the 'death' of gangster rap as the dominant hip hop subgenre.
Following the death of his mother, Donda West, and the end of his engagement to long term partner Alexis Phifer, West abandoned his initial plan to release a fourth album entitled Good Ass Job, and shocked his fans by releasing 808s and Heartbreak, which was full of autotune singing, extensive use of the TR-808 drum machine, themes of love, loss and loneliness and very little rapping. It received slightly more mixed reviews than his previous efforts, but many critics cite 808s and Heartbreak as the catalyst for a new wave of rappers, most prominently Drake, due to its themes which were uncommon in mainstream hip-hop.
West's grief seemed to lead to a spiral out of control which culminated in him storming on stage at the 2009 VMAs to interrupt Taylor Swift's award acceptance speech to proclaim that Beyoncé deserved the award instead, in a move that is infamous in pop culture and was vilified by the entire world in the aftermath. West disappeared from the public eye following this, and his upcoming tour with Lady Gaga was cancelled. The disgraced West, who was described as a 'jackass' by President Obama, seemed to have much work to do to return to the his former glory, but he was about to embark on what some critics consider to be the best run of his career.
West holed up in Hawaii for a few months and worked tirelessly to produce what many consider to be his magnum opus. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, West's fifth studio album, was released in November 2010 to rave reviews from critics, which solidified his comeback. In stark contrast to his previous effort, which featured a minimalist sound, Dark Fantasy adopts a maximalist philosophy and deals with themes of celebrity and excess. The record included the international hit All of the Lights, and Billboard hits Power, Monster, and Runaway, the latter of which accompanied a 35-minute film of the same name. During this time, West initiated the free music program G.O.O.D. Fridays through his website, offering a free download of previously unreleased songs each Friday of the week, a portion of which were included on the album. Dark Fantasy went on to go platinum in the United States, but its omission as a contender for Album of the Year at the 54th Grammy Awards was viewed as a "snub" by several media outlets.
Following a headlining set at Coachella 2011 that was described by The Hollywood Reporter as "one of greatest hip-hop sets of all time," West released the collaborative album Watch the Throne with Jay-Z. By employing a sales strategy that released the album digitally weeks before its physical counterpart, Watch the Throne became one of the few major label albums in the Internet age to avoid a leak. Niggas in Paris became the record's highest charting single, peaking at number five on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2012, West released the compilation album Cruel Summer, a collection of tracks by artists from West's record label GOOD Music. Cruel Summer produced four singles, two of which charted within the top twenty of the Hot 100: Mercy and Clique. West also directed a film of the same name that premiered at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival in custom pyramid-shaped screening pavilion featuring seven screens.
Sessions for West's sixth solo effort begin to take shape in early 2013 in his own personal loft's living room at a Paris hotel. Determined to "undermine the commercial," he once again brought together close collaborators and attempted to incorporate Chicago drill, dancehall, acid house, and industrial music. Primarily inspired by architecture, West's perfectionist tendencies led him to contact producer Rick Rubin fifteen days shy of its due date to strip down the record's sound in favor of a more minimalist approach. Initial promotion of his sixth album included worldwide video projections of the album's music and live television performances.
Yeezus, West's sixth album, was released June 18, 2013 to rave reviews from critics. It became the rapper's sixth consecutive number one debut. Def Jam issued "Black Skinhead" to radio in July 2013 as the album's lead single. On September 6, 2013, Kanye West announced he would be headlining his first solo tour in five years, to support Yeezus, with fellow American rapper Kendrick Lamar, accompanying him along the way.
In November 2013, West stated that he was working on and recording his next studio album. The album was to be produced by Rick Rubin and Q-Tip.. Kanye released a single entitled "Only One", on December 31, 2014 featuring Paul McCartney, as well as collaborating with McCartney on the Rihanna track " FourFiveSeconds", released in January 2015. West appeared on the SNL 40th Anniversary Special on February 15th 2015 to debut a new song Wolves, featuring Sia Furler and Vic Mensa. Another single, entitled "All Day" was released on March 2, 2015, again featuring McCartney as well as Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom. In June of the same year, Kanye headlined the Glastonbury Festival in the UK, which garnered much outrage including a petition with 135,000 signatures against his appearance, leading to West declaring he was "the greatest living rock star on the planet" towards the end of his set, and the performance receiving a mixed reaction among fans and critics, due to its controversy. In September 2015, West performed {album artist kanye west]808s and Heartbreak in its entirety at the Hollywood Bowl over two nights, which received rave reviews a featured a 60 person orchestra, guests such as Kid Cudi and Mr Hudson, and over 70 dancers. West released "Facts" at the turn of the new year.
West had originally stated that his upcoming album would be called 'So Help Me God' before changing the title to 'SWISH' and announcing that it would be released on February 11th. In January 2016 he released "Real Friends" and "No More Parties in LA", featuring Kendrick Lamar. As well as renaming the album once again to "Waves", West became involved in several twitter controversies in the lead up to the album, including with rapper Wiz Khalifa after he suggested that West had stolen the idea of the wave from other artists and seemingly dissed Kim Kardashian, which later turned out to be a misunderstanding over the use of "KK". West again changed the name of the album just days before it's release, this time to "{album artist=kanye west]The Life of Pablo", and debuted it at Madison Square Garden on February 11, but delayed it's release for a few days. On February 14, West released the album are a performance on SNL. West initially claimed the album was to be a Tidal exclusive, but it was later released on other streaming platforms, although it is yet to receive a physical release. West continued to tinker with the mixing and production of the album even after it was released, and it was updated several times, including the final song "Saint Pablo" in June 2016. West had also made public his plans to release an album in the summer of 2016, entitled "Turbo Grafx 16", based on the 1990s games console, which never surfaced, although he did release a single thought to be from the upcoming G.O.O.D. Music album "Cruel Winter", called Champions. In the same month, a video for "Famous" was released, including nude wax figures of celebrities such as West, Kim Kardashian, Taylor Swift, Donald Trump, Chris Brown, Rihanna, Bill Cosby and George W. Bush.
In August 2016, West embarked on the ambitious Saint Pablo Tour, which included a mobile stage suspended from the ceiling. After the violent robbery of Kim's jewellery in Paris in October, West had to end a show early and postpone shows following it. In the following performances, West cancelled shows early and went on long winded rants against fellow artists such as Jay Z and Beyoncé among others, as well as making controversial political statements including implying his support for Donald Trump. On November 21st 2016, West cancelled the rest of the tour and was hospitalised due to sleep deprivation and extreme dehydration. Following this, West disappeared from social media, and only resurfaced 11 months later with a series of tweets which included many philosophical thoughts and the announcements two albums in June 2018, a solo album which would include 7 tracks on June 1, and a collaboration with Kid Cudi to be released on June 8.
On August 29th, 2021, Kanye released his 10th highly anticipated studio release Donda via GOOD Music and Def Jam Recordings after a series of three listening parties.
Personal life:
West was born in Atlanta, Georgia. When he was three years old (as mentioned in Hey Mama) his parents divorced, and he moved with his mother to Chicago, Illinois. His father, Ray West, was a former Black Panther; one of the first black photojournalists at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution; and is now a Christian counselor. Kanye’s late mother, Dr. Donda West, worked as a Professor of English at Clark Atlanta University, and the Chair of the English Department at Chicago State University before retiring to serve as Kanye’s manager. He was later raised in an upper middle class background, attending Polaris High School in suburban Oak Lawn, Illinois after living in Chicago.
After attending The American Academy of Art, a Chicago art school, West attended Chicago State University but eventually dropped out due to poor grades and to continue working on his music career. While attending school, West produced for local artists, including on rapper Grav’s debut album Down to Earth. He later gained fame by producing hit singles for major hip hop/R&B artists, including Jay-Z, Talib Kweli, Cam’ron, Paul Wall, Common, Mobb Deep, Jermaine Dupri, Scarface, The Game, Alicia Keys, Janet Jackson and John Legend among others. He also “ghost-produced” for his once mentor Deric Angelettie according to his song Last Call and the credits of Nas’ Poppa Was a Playa.
West was married to Kim Kardashian. Together they had four children: daughters named North (*2013) and Chicago (*2018); and sons named Saint (*2015) and Psalm (*2019). In 2021, Kardashian filed for divorce.
In 2020, West launched an unsuccessful independent presidential campaign that primarily advocated for a consistent life ethic. In 2022, he faced backlash and lost a number of sponsors and partnerships—including his collaborations with Adidas, Gap, and Balenciaga—after making antisemitic statements.
Arguments
kanye west Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Chorus)
We can't even sit & talk
Witout chu arguin
Girl you must be outta your mind
You're the one who started it
(Gangsta, ugh!)
1st Verse:
I gotta girl at home
But she don't cook
I have my condoms in the store cause she won't look
And she neva-eva go to the grocery sto
So I figure it's safe to pull a grocery-ho
She was buyin 'Alazee' out the liquor isle
She said, 'i hope its not too ghetto'
Rock-Dawg, Gold Force, Baggy style
I kept her number on file
For my girl be actin wyld
Like last week, I told her take me to the mall
But she don't drive
My otha girl picked me up at 3:05
She got a brand new car, sixteen
Now the car only 1 yrs old, oh
Man, but the body look grown, "whooa!"
Before I catch a case I betta take my ass home
Where the problems is
Arguments be daily like
Carson is
Martin again:
F**k you. F**k yooou. I on't give a f**k whatchu have. This little indoor-indoor, outdoor pool, little bowlin alley. Material buuullshit. It don't mean shit. It don't make what's in the muthaf**kin heart".
(Chorus)
We can't even sit & talk
Witout chu arguin
Girl you must be outta your mind
You're the one who started it
(I'm gangsta, ugh-ugh)
2nd Verse:
Hol' up, wait a second man
That's that thrift sto info
That's all second hand
Why don't chu talk to the mouth a the horses
bout my porshes?
Condo's in front a the golf courses
Instead you stay up
Count every second like a fake rolley
I'm real, so you know I move real slowly
The way this relationship should go if you know me
I ain't call you
You wanna know why? I mean you know why
How on the low i push jet-skee's so I
Couldn't return them pages, on my motorolla
Nextel, my cell it don't work down there
And what happened in cancun, stay down there
What's happenin here, made me wish I stayed down there
Take a seat. Why you always makin a beef?
You know these walls too thin in this apart-a-ment
Now everybody hearin our arguments
What the problem is?!?!?
Martin again: (audience laughs & applauds) "Why you actin like this? But letchu have some fly shit. Some nice beautiful shit. (Gangsta) They act like they gon leave yoou. You can tell em look here, Ya know. I'm tired a arguin".
(Chorus)
We can't even sit & talk
Witout chu arguin
Girl you must be outta your mind
You're the one who started it
(I'm gangsta, ugh-ugh)
Last Verse:
Man boo you know what I do
So don't trip when I come home after two
Or three or four
I ain't messin wit them girls no more...this week
The benz coup is so sweet
When I roll down the street
Tears roll down her cheeks
She said, 'you must love that car more than me'
A nigga i was wit chu before the cheese
So you need to work on your priorities
If she went wit 'Fabulous'
I bet that she'd be a:
AR-GU-IN-G, Please
I'm not actin like this cause I'm gettin spins on
WU-KR, Cin-ci-nat-ti
You think I get my voice so deep
Like WU-KR, cin-ci-nat-ti
That's how much of a f**k I give
You seen cribs? That's how the f**k I live
As far as this...
(Chorus)
We can't even sit & talk
Witout chu arguin
Girl you must be outta your mind
You're the one who started it
The song "Arguments" by Kanye West features a spoken interlude by Martin Lawrence, who tells a story about trying to share something with someone who won't stop arguing, emphasizing the importance of valuing inner qualities instead of material possessions. West's lyrics, however, portray a toxic and selfish relationship in which he cheats on his girlfriend and criticizes her for starting arguments. He also boasts about his possessions and uses urban slang to express his aggression towards his girlfriend.
The song highlights issues of communication, trust, and priorities in relationships, with an overall message of self-reflection and learning to value what is truly important. However, some critics have called out the song for perpetuating negative stereotypes and promoting toxic masculinity.
Line by Line Meaning
We can't even sit & talk
Our conversations always escalate into arguments
Witout chu arguin
Because you always start arguing
Girl you must be outta your mind
You must be crazy to think I'll put up with this
You're the one who started it
You're always the one who starts the arguments
I gotta girl at home
I am already in a committed relationship
But she don't cook
My girlfriend at home does not like to cook
I have my condoms in the store cause she won't look
I keep my condoms in a store because my girlfriend won't look for them
And she neva-eva go to the grocery sto
My girlfriend never goes to the grocery store
So I figure it's safe to pull a grocery-ho
I think it's safe to cheat on her with a girl from the grocery store
She was buyin 'Alazee' out the liquor isle
The girl I cheated with was buying 'Alizé' from the liquor aisle
She said, 'i hope its not too ghetto'
The girl I cheated with was afraid of getting a ghetto drink
Rock-Dawg, Gold Force, Baggy style
The girl I cheated with was dressed in a rock-inspired fashion
I kept her number on file
I saved the phone number of the girl I cheated with
For my girl be actin wyld
My girlfriend at home acts crazy
Like last week, I told her take me to the mall
Last week, I asked my girlfriend to take me to the mall
But she don't drive
My girlfriend at home doesn't know how to drive
My otha girl picked me up at 3:05
The girl I cheated with picked me up at 3:05
She got a brand new car, sixteen
The girl I cheated with has a new car
Now the car only 1 yrs old, oh
Her car is only one year old
Man, but the body look grown, "whooa!"
Her body looks mature for her age
Before I catch a case I betta take my ass home
Before I get in trouble, I need to go home
Where the problems is
Where our issues lie
Arguments be daily like
We argue every single day
Carson is
Martin Lawrence references his own show, The Jamie Foxx Show
F**k you. F**k yooou.
An exclamation expressing frustration and anger
I on't give a f**k whatchu have.
I don't care about your material possessions
This little indoor-indoor, outdoor pool, little bowlin alley.
These things don't impress me
Material buuullshit.
Material possessions are meaningless
It don't mean shit.
These things have no value
It don't make what's in the muthaf**kin heart".
Material possessions don't reflect what's important inside
Hol' up, wait a second man
Hold on, wait a minute
That's that thrift sto info
That's information from a thrift store
That's all second hand
That's all used information
Why don't chu talk to the mouth a the horses bout my porshes?
Why don't you ask the people who have seen my cars about them?
Condo's in front a the golf courses
My condos are located in front of golf courses
Instead you stay up
But you still stay up arguing
Count every second like a fake rolley
You're counting every second like a fake Rolex
I'm real, so you know I move real slowly
I am authentic, so I take things slow
The way this relationship should go if you know me
This is how our relationship should be, if you know me
I ain't call you
I didn't call you
You wanna know why? I mean you know why
You know why, so why are you asking?
How on the low i push jet-skee's so I
I secretly ride jet skis
Couldn't return them pages, on my motorolla
I couldn't respond to your messages on my Motorola phone
Nextel, my cell it don't work down there
My Nextel phone doesn't work down there
And what happened in cancun, stay down there
What happened in Cancun should stay in Cancun
What's happenin here, made me wish I stayed down there
Our argument is so bad, I wish I was still in Cancun
Take a seat. Why you always makin a beef?
Sit down. Why do you always start arguments?
You know these walls too thin in this apart-a-ment
These walls are too thin in this apartment
Now everybody hearin our arguments
Now everyone can hear our arguments
Man boo you know what I do
You know what I do
So don't trip when I come home after two
Don't get upset when I come home late
Or three or four
Or even later
I ain't messin wit them girls no more...this week
I'm not seeing other girls anymore... for now
The benz coup is so sweet
My Mercedes Benz is amazing
When I roll down the street
When I drive around
Tears roll down her cheeks
She cries
She said, 'you must love that car more than me'
She thinks I love my car more than her
A nigga i was wit chu before the cheese
I was with you before I had money
So you need to work on your priorities
You need to focus on what's important
If she went wit 'Fabulous'
If she was dating Fabolous
I bet that she'd be a:
I bet she would still argue
AR-GU-IN-G, Please
Still arguing
I'm not actin like this cause I'm gettin spins on
I'm not acting like this to get radio spins
WU-KR, Cin-ci-nat-ti
Referring to the radio station WKRQ in Cincinnati
You think I get my voice so deep
You think I lower my voice to sound cool
That's how much of a f**k I give
I don't care enough to change my voice
You seen cribs? That's how the f**k I live
You've seen my luxurious home, that's how I live
As far as this...
As for our relationship
Contributed by Hailey S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@danas916x
Damn I miss this Kanye...shit still goes in 2018
@mikeiannucci9581
2021
@danas916x
@@mikeiannucci9581 bet. I gotta bump this now thanks to you 🤣
@tosin9701
2022
@georgefree-da-man4070
2023 represent
@greedymeat7870
@@danas916x ⁹and uu😊uu6u
@landocaIrissian
12 years later and still fire
@vapidfr
why am I discovering this masterpiece only now
@zen-god
2022 still🔥🔥🔥🔥 Keep Bouncin' 💪💯💯💯💯💯
@mrbeaconwoodz
Still cranks in 2016! #Yeezy