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-62 posts tagged "Kanye West"
Matthew Kellenberg | Tuesday, December 3, 2019
Kanye West’s latest album, “Jesus Is King,” is a deeply spiritual, if equally controversial, project. Religion is a common theme in West’s music, from his 2004 song “Jesus Walks,” to his controversial “I Am a God,” to his gospel-infused “Ultralight Beam.” But never has West’s focus been so defined as on his latest album, “Jesus
Nia Sylva | Thursday, November 14, 2019
Kanye West has been born again. Anyone with even the slightest interest in mainstream culture knows this to be true. But that doesn’t make the release of his gospel-rap hybrid album, “Jesus is King,” any less noteworthy. The man once penned a song called “I Am A God.” He delivered lyrics that most Christians would
Ryan Israel | Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Three weeks ago, William Barr, the Attorney General of the United States and a prominent figure in the Trump administration, came to Notre Dame’s campus to deliver a speech at the law school. In his speech, Barr emphasized the importance of upholding Judeo-Christian values in our increasingly secular society, saying, “I think we all recognize
Ryan Israel | Thursday, October 17, 2019
Last Friday, Notre Dame announced that Billy Joel would be performing in Notre Dame Stadium following in Garth Brooks’ footsteps as the second artist ever to perform in the legendary venue. While Scene offered up a number of Joel-related takes Monday, I’d like to offer a different response to the announcement — a humble suggestion as
Ryan Israel | Wednesday, October 9, 2019
2019 has been a strange year for rap music. Drake and Kendrick Lamar, two of the genre’s most prevalent artists, have yet to release any new music. Kanye West’s recent “Jesus Is King” debacle has garnered plenty of attention but has yet to yield any actual music. So instead of the usual players dominating the
Ryan Israel | Friday, September 6, 2019
To “go sicko mode” is to go off, to go crazy, to reach a level of performance, excitement, joy or fanaticism that could be defined as “sicko” — the definition is fairly open. In “Look Mom I Can Fly,” the new Travis Scott documentary on Netflix, Travis goes “sicko mode” when first playing Drake’s contribution
Ryan Israel | Friday, April 5, 2019
A classical piano plays a familiar melody. A comforting voice begins to sing, “Mama, just killed a man / Put a gun against his head / Pulled my trigger, now he’s dead.” It’s Freddie Mercury; this is “Bohemian Rhapsody,” a classic rock song long launched back into popular culture by the historically inaccurate, self-aggrandizing Queen
Chase Cummings | Wednesday, April 3, 2019
In the early 2000s, hip-hop was overwhelmed with bling-flaunting artists like 50 Cent, Juvenile and Lil Wayne who rapped about chains, sex, drugs, money and guns. Much of the music of that era may as well have been copied and pasted from one artist to the next, for when 50 Cent released “In Da Club,”
Nora McGreevy, Sara Schlecht, Ryan Israel, Mike Donovan, Jake Winningham, Nia Sylva, Kay Bontempo, Lucas Masin-Moyer, Carlos De Loera and Ethan Utley | Thursday, December 6, 2018
In early December, as finals begin to emerge on the horizon, Scene writers take off their headphones, pause the music and look back at what they’ve listened to throughout the year. Each writer picks their personal 20 best albums, and 2018 had no shortage of albums to choose from. Old names returned to the scene,
Ryan Israel | Wednesday, October 10, 2018
One day, a Harlem teenager had to make a pivotal decision. Option one was to attend his high school basketball team’s playoff round matchup. Option two was to be a model in the biggest hip-hop/high fashion crossover event to date, Kanye West’s Yeezy Season 3 fashion line release. Sheck Wes, that teenager, chose the latter,