Between Beyoncé’s Super Bowl show, Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy performance, and Kanye West’s assault on reason, Black Power is igniting every pop culture barricade in sight in defiance of convention. When Beyoncé released “Formation,” fans expecting another version of the club-ready recycled trap hit “7/11” were left distraught. Gone was the[Read More…]
Tag: Kanye West
Staff Round-Up: Kanye West’s The Life Of Pablo (TLOP)
As a long-time Kanye West fan, I knew The Life of Pablo (TLOP) would deliver in terms of innovation, and considering Kanye’s career progression it was easy to guess that TLOP would feature heavily over-processed samples and gospel-esque backing beats with strong hooks and stronger guest artists. Admittedly, the best[Read More…]
Album Review : Caracal – Disclosure
Three years ago, house-pop duo Disclosure took the reins of the U.K. house revival movement by dropping the one-two punch of singles “Latch” and “White Noise.” Their major-label debut, Settle, ended up being nothing less than a feature-studded masterpiece that redefined dance music. By mixing both past and present Disclosure[Read More…]
Album Review: Rodeo – Travis Scott
Texas-born rapper Travis Scott has been cultivating hype for his debut LP for more than a year now. His earlier mixtape, Days Before Rodeo (2014), showcased a 12-track warm-up with a title that promised that this was only the beginning, which only makes the hit-or-miss[Read More…]
Pop Rhetoric: Time for an Album-of-the-Year alternative
When Prince announced “Morning Phase, Beck,” as the recipient of the 57th Album of the Year award at the Grammys on Sunday, Feb. 8, the reactions ranged from stumped (the general public) to outrageously excited (Beck’s wife) to frustrated (Kanye West), to total and utter shock from Beck himself. As[Read More…]
Deep Cuts: Joyful Hip-Hop
Eye Know Artist: De La Soul Album: 3 Feet High and Rising Released: March 3, 1989 This is perhaps the most unabashedly romantic song in the history of rap. De La Soul, the original hippies of hip-hop, crafts a song that tracks the trajectory of a relationship from courtship to[Read More…]
Pop Rhetoric: Bound 2 falling out of love: The plight of celebrity romance
On Sept. 21, news broke that Wiz Khalifa and Amber Rose were getting divorced after 14 months of marriage, citing “irreconcilable differences” as cause for their separation. Since the announcement, the web has been abuzz with rumours of cheating and betrayal on both sides, while internet forums are reveling in[Read More…]
Deep Cuts: Sensitive club bangers
Bitch I’m Lugubrious
