The Contradictory Sides of Kanye West Explored in 'New York Times' Profile

The only people who spend more time talking about Kanye West than the man himself are members of the media, and it's hard to say which is more full of misinformation and bluster.

Video: Kanye West's Surprise Visit to Rolling Stone

Which is why an article like Jon Caramanica's feature in this weekend's Sunday New York Times is a breath of fresh air. In light of Kanye's controversial appearance on the Today show, the Taylor Swift/VMA incident and more, Caramanica examines one of pop culture's most confounding and contradictory figures and calls him out on his flaws, examines them and assesses why they help make him the great artist he is. In other words, he essentially says Kanye is a genius and a bit of a jerk at the same time, although not exactly in those words:

"In the future maybe [West] will become like Bono," Caramanica writes, "giving one or two interviews per album cycle, never revealing too much, waiting around long past the point of appearing intriguing. "Except that Mr. West could never be like Bono. Mr. West isn't content without feedback; his effort is valueless without response. Plenty of artists insist their work speaks for them, but as spectacular as his work is and likely will continue to be, Mr. West will never be one of them. A blowhard with subpar records wouldn't merit the trouble."

Kanye West, Still Unfiltered, on Eve of Fifth Album [New York Times]

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Song Stories

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell | 1974

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.

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