Kanye West’s legacy

Can the hip hop star rightfully call himself "the voice of this generation"?

“In his humble estimation,” said Louise Dixon in the Associated Press, Kanye West “is to music what Michael Jordan was to basketball—at least that's what West thinks.” In a recent interview, the Grammy-winning rapper-producer made that comparison and declared himself “the voice of this generation”—that’s a pretty bold statement.

“Modesty” has never been Kanye’s “strong suit,” said The Irish Times online. But there’s no doubt that he is “is the most interesting hip-hop artist in the world today.” It’s also “not an overestimation to regard his second album, Late Registration (which contained ‘Touch The Sky,’ ‘Gold Digger’ and ‘Diamonds From Sierra Leone’) as rap's White Album.”

Maybe, said Paul MacInnes in the Guardian online, but Kanye’s voice on his upcoming album 808s & Heartbreak relies heavily on “Autotune”—he sounds “like a reedier T-Pain.” And it's “just a shame he thinks the only way he can leave a lasting legacy is by aspiring to create a 21st-century ‘Sussudio.’”

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