Have Kanye West Fans Had Enough?
The last time Kanye West came to the U.S., in April of 2011 he stopped by a concert in Austin, Texas. But this time, the rapper is coming to New York City’s Roseland Ballroom, where he’ll perform on October 23. And though he’s not even 30 years old, he is certainly a legend.
“I can barely remember when he was here last,” says longtime friend and producer Teddy Riley, who’s in attendance at this concert. “I’ve been coming to his shows since he was in high school, and we’re all friends.”
West debuted at the 2009 Source Awards and performed alongside Kanye in concert for the first time on the West Side Story Tour, which he would later release on a Best Buy release. (There’s a “Watch the Throne” video in the middle of the “Jesus Walks” video on his most recent album “Graduation.”) On the day of the performance, West gave his first interview to a newspaper about his then-upcoming album, in which he explains his belief that “it’s not about a rapper, it’s about a song.”
“I’m going to bring you my music—my story,” he says. “I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel. I’m just going to tell you what happened to me, and you will learn from it.”
His upcoming album is expected to be released before Thanksgiving.
“We would have to call the album ‘Graduation’ in Kanye’s style,” says Teddy. “I actually had Kanye come on a trip with me to see the Grateful Dead play at Madison Square Garden. We had a blast.”
Riley adds, “There’s a lot of new stuff on his albums, but you could use Kanye West—not just as an artist, but as an artist, and a musician. Kanye is really the opposite of rap, and it’s the ultimate of art, to me. It’s the ultimate expression of artistry in the arts. And if you’re going to take the arts, which are the most powerful tools humans
