This upcoming Saturday, I will be seeing Kanye West for the first time ever and I am so freaking excited. You probably wouldn’t expect me to be a huge Kanye fan upon first meeting me or even after knowing me for a while, but I am a gigantic fan–and I’m not ashamed of it.
Sure, Kanye had some pretty freaky moments, but the fact of the matter is, we’re all human and we all make mistakes. Luckily, Kanye also makes fantastic music–so much so, in fact, that we (okay, maybe just me) can often forget the Taylor Swift incident, his Hurricane Katrina statement about Bush or his various run-ins in with the paparazzi.
In order to help you all understand exactly why I still love the self-claimed genius, here’s a helpful guide.
1. He loves his mom and sharing her teachings
Before this whole fame game caught up with Kanye, he was a momma’s boy–actually, he will forever be a momma’s boy, and it’s precious. They founded the “Kanye West Foundation” in Chicago in 2003 to help battle dropout and illiteracy rates in the city, while also partnering with other community organizations to provide underprivileged youth access to music education. After his mother passed in 2007, he rechristened the foundation to be “The Dr. Donda West Foundation”–although it ceased operation a few years ago, Kanye still carries on his mother’s legacy and teachings by working with a variety of foundations, including the Millions More Movement and 100 Black Men of America.
2. He has a gorgeous smile
Yes, I have made this a point to love him. I mean, c’mon, what a gorgeous smile. How could you pretend not to like him?
3. He’s actually the greatest comedic lyricist of all time
The only way I can truly prove this is by providing examples, hence:
“One last announcement/ No sports bra, let’s keep it bouncing” (“On Sight”)
“In the French-ass restaurant/ Hurry up with my damn croissant” (“I Am A God”)
“They ordered champagne but still look thirsty/ Rock Forever 21 but just turned 30” (“Bound 2”)
“They be balling in the D-League/ I be speaking Swaghili” (“I’m In It”)
“Pink-ass polo with a f****** backpack/ But everyone knows you brought real rap back” (“I Am A God”)
Okay, so all of these wonderfully humorous examples are from Yeezus, true, but you’ve got to admit that Kanye is still amazing. The best, I believe, is the following:
“I just talked to Jesus/ He said, ‘What up Yeezus?’/ I said, ‘S*** I’m chilling/ Trying to stack these millions” (“I Am A God”)
4. He has hung out with Oprah and is besties with Jay-Z and Beyoncé
Okay, so we already know how awesome Oprah is, but the fact that she hangs out with Kanye? Perfection. I only wish I could have been there to see what the two elite Chicagoans were conversing about. Plus, he’s besties with two of the most influential musicians in the world right now—he even mentioned the couple in his song “Blood on the Leaves” on the new album. C’mon, if Beyoncé and Jay-Z are besties with Kanye, is he really that bad? (Answer: probably not.)
5. Have you listened to his music?!
If you aren’t willing to admit that you love Kanye’s west, then you’re lying to yourself. Hell, listening to “Homecoming” confirms my dream of moving to Chicago in the near future. One of my lovely friends got me the “Yeezus” album this summer as a secret pal gift, and I have thus far listened to it about 75 times (I’m even listening to it now). Seriously, once you start listening to Kanye’s music, you need to—and do—forget about all of the controversy. This man really is a genius.
If you’re still worried about the fact that I’m listening to Kanye, then I’m sorry, but I will probably listen to him for the rest of time. And you better believe I will be going crazy in Key Arena this Saturday—probably going to be the highlight of my year.
If you need even more reasoning for loving the man, check out this Buzzfeed video which states even more awesome reasons Kanye is fantastic.
