Kanye West

Kanye West And Iggy Azalea Added To Jay Z ‘s Made In America In Los Angeles.

By Alyson Camus | July 18, 2014

Kanye (who is already playing at the east coast version in Philly) will play on Sunday and Iggy on Saturday, but she is not headlining, you are still stuck with the always generic Imagine Dragons for that. Will this addition make me spend $200 and go to the two-day festival?

How Nice Should You Be To Your Opening Act? West And Lamar Did Not Bond

By Iman Lababedi | June 28, 2014

Patrick was wrong. If you are the warming act, shut up and warm and if you did it well (Patrick did it very well: he was hysterical that night, telling the audience, on St. Patrick’s Day, at a Pogues, to drink sensibly) perhaps the band will say thank you. In 2014, if the headliner isn’t charging you, you are one step ahead of the crowd.

Kidchella Or Kidcutoff? The Dilemma In Raising Celebrities' Kids

By Alyson Camus | June 25, 2014

There must be a middle ground between disinheriting your children and spoiling them to the bone marrow, some celebrities have a hard time finding balance it seems.

Kanye West And Kim Kaddassian Simpsonized

By Iman Lababedi | June 24, 2014

Milan artist AleXsandro Palombois the man befhind the illustrations and personally? I love. Oh, by the way, I blew off Dave Chappelle Sunday night but if I had gone on Friday night, I’d have seen Kanye West perform “New Slaves,” “Jesus Walks” and “Gold Digger

Let's Play With Food For The Rock Stars

By Alyson Camus | June 21, 2014

But let’s imagine for a minute all the possibilities for other bands. If it would be very easy to imagine any entrée inspired by the Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Meat Loaf, Salt-N-Pepa, Spice Girls, the Black Eyed Peas, Korn

Kanye West's New Testament?

By Alyson Camus | June 14, 2014

Is Kanye West the new prophet? The new chosen one? The material is impressive, I had no idea Kanye’s insane verbal diarrhea could fit so well basically… with anything as long as it is scored by Jonny Greenwood’s ‘There will be Blood’,… or is it ‘the Master’? It’s so ironic

The Weird Story Of A New Kanye West Song: Listen To A Snippet Below

By Alyson Camus | June 1, 2014

The rapper is about to drop a new album and some snippets of a new song have appeared online here, on rapdose, and when I say snippets it is really the case! They last less than 6 seconds each and the 5 snippets make 23 seconds all together! There is another one here a bit longer, lasting a whopping 32 seconds!

Did Lana Del Rey Really Perform For Free At The Kimye Wedding?

By Alyson Camus | May 30, 2014

Del Rey was supposedly paid an astonishing $2.8 million to sing like four songs? Not a bad deal. However, the Born to Die singer denied the whole thing to TMZ while she was doing some signing of her album. ‘I would never let a friend pay me to sing at a wedding’, she declared

Are You Ready For Kanye West, Mayor Of Chicago?

By Alyson Camus | May 28, 2014

Yeah, charisma is key for the job, and Kanye can give us the New Chicago because he is famous! Shepard thinks that Kanye’s lyrics and his famous quotes are good enough to prove he is the right man… does Kanye even know about this? Probably not, he was busy getting married this weekend, remember?

Eminem Wanted To Write A Song Dissing Kanye West, Lil Wayne and Drake

By Alyson Camus | April 7, 2014

So because these other rappers were ‘killing it’, Eminem got super jealous and wanted to write a song ‘dissing everybody’, but alas he never did it, as this would have been a ‘career suicide’.

"Yeezus" Coming To A Movie House Near You

By Iman Lababedi | March 11, 2014

There hasn’t been an album as good as Yeezus since then and most hip hop albums, a Danny Brown and Earl Sweatshirt here and there is the exception and not the rule, are a mix of the dark hued children of Wu tracks and vicious Lil Wayne brag and drag

Kanye Wants To Stop The Coinye!

By Alyson Camus | January 13, 2014

Far from being honored, Yeezus did not appreciate it at all , and his lawyers have taken action to shut down the virtual currency called Coinye West. It’s true that the creators of the coin had pushed the Internet joke a bit far

10 Songs: what rock nyc is listening to 1-2-14

By Iman Lababedi | January 2, 2014

Future Farmers Of America – Lou Reed – It sounds like it has escaped off his New York album, with a swift powerful kick and hard buzzing guitars from his final masterpiece as the millennium turned – A

10 Songs: what rock nyc is listening to 1-1-14

By Iman Lababedi | January 1, 2014

Chicks, Man – The Del Lords – This might not be the best song of 2013 (I think I put it at # 3) but it is my absolute fave and it goes to the heart of what I was writing earlier about happy-sad songs, here you get a perfect pattern song that ends with death! – A+

MY TOP 18 ALBUMS OF 2013: # 3 – YEEZUS – KANYE WEST

By Iman Lababedi | December 30, 2013

This mix of harangued fury, industrial strength beats and wildly brilliant samples have lived alone with mostly rock critics and rap geeks flipping out and the rest of the world.

Hear Ye: what rock nyc is listening to 12-30-13

By Iman Lababedi | December 30, 2013

Sweet Baby James – James Taylor – Written for his nephew when his nephew was still a baby, it remains a self-portrait and a lullaby to loneliness and aloneness and late night fears put away and rocked to sleep – A+

Rolling Stone And Pitchfork Have The Same # 1 And # 2 Albums Of 2013: The Word Of The Day IS Consensus Opinion

By Iman Lababedi | December 21, 2013

                                                It is not that I don’t agree that Kanye West and Vampire Weekend released great albums, I agree and both albums made my top 20 albums of 2014, it is that…

Top Five Hip Hop Albums 2013

By Iman Lababedi | December 18, 2013

Tis the season to make lists and thank god for that because there is nothing going on in the music business and I’d be left reviewing Jingle Ball again in anticipation of next years where I think we will finally be getting Katy Perry. Or Taylor Swift. Or most likely both because they owe us for the disastrous 2013.

Winner And Loser Week Of 12-2-13: U2 And Kanye West

By Iman Lababedi | December 10, 2013

Talk about timing being everything, the Nelson Mandela movie, “Long Walk To Freedom” was having its premiere the night Nelson died and U2, who I would love to claim opportunism but can’t because, well, I don’t believe it was, have their stinky “Ordinary Love” saved from the fag ends of the pop bonfire

Did Kanye West Say He Was The Next Mandela? He Could Have…

By Alyson Camus | December 9, 2013

Lots of people found it extremely disrespectful! For whom? Kanye West? And that was crazy because the joke was on him, not on Mandela!! I’d certainly hope everyone would understand this, but the fact that so many people took it for the truth without questioning even a minute the interview, tells a lot about West’s public image.

The Annotated Rolling Stone Magazine Top 50 Albums Of 2013

By Iman Lababedi | December 7, 2013

Not that anybody asked me, and not that I am in major major contradiction, but Rolling Stone spend another year being relentless average, whiich is better I guess than being relentlessly average and avant garde a la Pitchfork.

Kanye West Sued For Anti-Semitism

By Alyson Camus | December 6, 2013

Black people don’t have the same level of connections as Jewish people. Black people don’t have the same connection as oil people.’ As usual, the first thing I did notice is that the statement doesn’t make sense,… Did Bush convert to Judaism? Or did Obama lose all his Jewish connections?

Best Concerts Through November 30th, 2013

By Iman Lababedi | November 30, 2013

M.I.A. – Terminal 5 – November 1st, 2013 – A masterpiece of modern pop with a conscience that puts former contemporaries like Madonna and Lady Gaga into the nostalgia files, while M.I.A. finds the middle ground between beats and beatings.

Not With The Band: Kanye West Is No Punk

By Alyson Camus | November 26, 2013

I was the first black man to ever pitch an Italian designer leather jogging pants’. Every time, I say to myself, this has to be a joke, right? But if it is a joke, it’s getting old,… we don’t need more of this absurdity, the real Kanye should show up, or is this the real Kanye West?

Kanye West: To Behave Or To Be Free

By Iman Lababedi | November 25, 2013

Yeezus isn’t what Kanye thinks it is, the move from “On Sight” -not giving a fuck to “Bound 2” -his emotional resurrection, to giving a fuck, through love. He doesn’t recover, he hasn’t recovered, even with Jesus in his sights

That Was The Week Of 11-18-13, That Was

By Iman Lababedi | November 25, 2013

This was Kanye West’s week, he played four nights, I saw him twice and he was the epitome of artistic integrity and musical mayhem; an astounding statement defining musical and racial freedom in 2013.

Two Musicians Per decade Define It!

By Iman Lababedi | November 21, 2013

1950s – Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley – the American songbook and the King Of Rock and Roll, and really, if there is a changing of the guards in 1956 it is between these two men. Incidentally, a sign of the time but neither wrote their own material.

hear ye on spotify: what rock nyc is listening to 11-21-13

By Iman Lababedi | November 21, 2013

Sounds like a refugee from Wowie Zowie, all quirk and melody and none the worst for it. But it begs an answer to the musical question: exactly how much does Malkmus hate the rest of Pavement and also why does this sound like an influence on Vampire Weekend – B+

Kanye West At Barclay Center, Tuesday, November 19th, 2013, Reviewed

By Iman Lababedi | November 20, 2013

As a black man Kanye West’s ancestors were slaves and treated as property and the ramifications still effect West and black people till this day. His response is make music to enforce his absolute refusal to be anything but free. West is the sound of freedom.

What If Kanye And taylor Made Up And Went On Tour together: Teezus 4EVER

By Iman Lababedi | November 20, 2013

Rock nyc is close with both artists and have come up with the perfect solution, Tay and Yeezus should tour together. Can you imagine the synergy…?

Kanye West Launches DONDA’s 'Design Lecture Series’ At Harvard Graduate School of Design

By Alyson Camus | November 20, 2013

He is this kind of guy, getting excited about a word, having all kinds of thoughts vaguely related to each other getting on his mind at the same time, and producing this collage of words that can only make sense to Kim Kardashian, and will make you unnecessarily scratch your head for a minute or two

Active Viewin': rock nyc concert picks week of 11-18-13

By Iman Lababedi | November 17, 2013

This is the big one, Kanye west being opened for by Kendrick Lamar. Four nights, and I have tix for two, one at Barclay Center and, more importantly, a Saturday night gig at MSG. I’ve seen West twice In the past year, both times, the 12-12-12 gig and closing down Governor’s Ball, have been the sort of gigs you think about for a long time to come

Not With The Band: A Proof That Stars With Inflated-Egos Are Capable of Nice Gestures

By Alyson Camus | November 12, 2013

I am not saying these rock stars don’t have big egos, they still do, but they are nevertheless capable of nice gestures sometimes, even though their actions are often calculated

Winner And Loser Week Of 11-4-13: Gary Clark Jr. And Eagles, West, Timberlake

By Iman Lababedi | November 10, 2013

Live on stage the man is a whole other thing. Whether at the Gov’s Ball or the Clapton Crossroads, or, indeed, opening for King’s Of Leon, which he will be doing early next year, GCJ is aiming for the highest reaches of rock God status.

Kanye West's Proposals, A Lawsuit, And Lana Del Rey?

By Alyson Camus | November 3, 2013

Media whores Kanye West and Kim Kardashian are suing Youtube co founder Chad Hurley! How can these two morons, who can’t do anything privately, justify such an act is beyond my comprehension but I gave up understanding anything related to Kanye West a long time ago

It's Such A Relief: Kanye West's Future Is Not In Music But In Fashion

By Alyson Camus | October 30, 2013

“I think what Kanye West is going to mean is something similar to what Steve Jobs means. I am undoubtedly, you know, Steve of Internet, downtown, fashion, culture. Period. By a long jump.”

Kanye West Meets His Homeboy On Stage Every Night

By Alyson Camus | October 26, 2013

‘I didn’t come here to make bad people feel good. I came here to make dead people alive. That’s all I need from you is to show people the light — the light of truth in you.’ And he comes back later on, at the top of a mountain, ‘alongside a group of women back-up dancers dressed in white’… What? Jesus had back-up dancers?

Fiona Apple Needs To Be Careful With Her Health

By Iman Lababedi | October 25, 2013

Fiona was the poster girl for growing up with a sense of the pressures that bear down on girls, it was a rare gift, she spoke for and to injured girls but surely the hope (even the point) was that she gets better

Kanye West 2013 Setlist Annotated And Spotified

By Iman Lababedi | October 23, 2013

So, the tour has begun, and while I won’t be catching Kanye West for another month it is never too soon to start checking out the dancecard, is it?

Hear Ye On Spotify:what rock nyc is listening to 10-23-13

By Iman Lababedi | October 23, 2013

When you Wish Upon A Star – Cliff Edwards – Disney’s finest music moment from one of their signature achievements, the sound of your conscience, yes, of course, but also the sound of our deepest wishes. All in a crickets chirp. Astounding – A+

Christopher Nolan And Kanye west Changed The Face Of Fun In 2008

By Mahalia Dark | October 9, 2013

But depression, sorrow, the infiniteness lightness of blueing, the pain of fame gam?. These are the colors of modern r&b and superheroes. Thanks, guys.

Best Concerts Through September 30th, 2013

By Iman Lababedi | October 2, 2013

This is the sort of meeting of a subculture defined by so many failed attempts to reunite in a moment and also extened the moment into the present. The moment was the Lower east Side in the late 1970s, and the extension was musical and triumphant.

Best Albums Through September 30th, 2013

By Iman Lababedi | October 1, 2013

The Long Lost – David Bronson – The prequel to Story is, at its best, just about the most deliriously deep and beautiful music you will here this year but so lost in its sorrow it can be difficult to penetrate

Late Night War Between Kanye West And Jimmy Kimmel

By Alyson Camus | September 29, 2013

Kimmel mocking his fantastic and ever-expanding ego? The comedian got several answers from the rapper in the form of all-caps tweets. But the problem is that Kanye should have stayed quiet, very quiet, his arguments were those of a 10-year-old, his insults had the face of SpongeBob SquarePants and all he could say were things like ‘YOUR EX-GIRLFRIEND IS FUNNIER THAN YOU !’

Is Kanye West Our Greatest Rock Star: Oh, Yes, Indeed

By Iman Lababedi | September 28, 2013

Who else could have written “Hey Mama” and “Robocop” and then, in 2013 come back with the impenetrable brilliance of “New Slave”? It doesn’t take me to point this out to you, now, does it?

Does Kanye West Really Like His Carpet Ironed?

By Alyson Camus | September 23, 2013

According to several tabloids (the Sun, Radar online,…), the diva rapper asked for the unbelievable, beating Maria Carey’s craziest demands: he asked for the walls of his dressing room to be all white with white curtains and white flowers, and he asked for the carpet to be ironed! What?