A journey into the unpredictable mind of a hip-hop visionary

Kanye West started out as the first backpacker with a Benz, a genius producer with a deep throwback streak, lacing hardcore rappers and R&B players with soulful Golden Age beats. Grabbing the mic from his heroes, Yeezy immediately unlocked his inner swag, blurring the lines between audacious pop superstar, musical visionary, and intensely intimate MC. While he drops more outrageous boasts-per-minute than just about anyone, Kanye's rhymes mix deadly seriousness with over-the-top silliness, injecting even his most political and personal bars with razor-sharp punchlines. His sound is just as kaleidoscopic, tracking a restless creative mind as he flips dusty jazz loops, soaring EDM riffs, angelic gospel harmonies, furious rock drumming, and so much more. He'll rip up your heart on haunting slow jams like “Love Lockdown,” pump your adrenaline with ferocious bangers like “Black Skinhead,” and have you going rhyme for rhyme on all-time anthems like “Gold Digger.”