Exclusive: Kanye West Discusses Collaboration With Jay-Z

Kanye West may not be doing many more interviews after his experience with Matt Lauer on the Today Show this morning. But in the new issue of Rolling Stone (available in the digital archives this Friday) the rapper sits down with Austin Scaggs for a wide-ranging conversation about his insane year, the upcoming disc he's cutting with Jay-Z and how he sees himself as the new Miles Davis.

"This new music just beats everybody's ass," the emcee says. "Right now I'm maybe three, or five spots from the top — historically speaking — with Biggie, Jay, Eminem and Wayne. I'm not saying I'm the best, I'm just saying it's a goal of mine, and anybody who tries to knock my goals can eat shit."

Read Rob Sheffield's five-star review of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Other highlights of the article:

• He's already begun work on Watch the Throne, a joint record with Jay-Z. "It's going to be way more awesome than My Dark Twisted Fantasy," West says. "My growth in music production and mixing is retarded."
• At a screening of his 35-minute video Runaway in Paris, West broke down into tears and spoke about having suicidal thoughts. "I'm basically the most honest person that you'll ever meet," he says. "That's what gets me into trouble. My ego comes from knowing I can change people's lives, I can make people happy, I can push art forward, and I can crash worlds together. That's what keeps me alive."

Kanye West Makes Surprise Visit to Rolling Stone

• West has been reading up on the life of Miles Davis. "Everything I hear about him sounds so awesome," he says. "At no point was he ever letting society of people's opinions beat him down. I like to bring up the fact that I can't sing, dance or play an instrument, but somehow I made it to the mountaintop of music."