When Kanye West was inspired by the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin
What do bands like U2, Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin with Kanye West have to do with them? The answer is in “Graduation”the third album of the rapper who came out In 2007 And by many considered by his most important album. The reason is in the objective, completed, to lead rap at a higher level not only from a content point of viewbut also musical. Just this last aspect was fundamental to allow the album to be played in the maxi arenas and in front of tens of thousands of people. Kanye, in fact, immediately, wanted the project to reach the masses, to the general public. But to do this he had to change skin, once again. After spending the previous year around the world with The U2 in their “Vertigo Tour”, West felt inspired in observing Bono open their concerts in the stadiums Every evening and remained speechless in front of the ovations he received.
Thus, in “graduation”, he tried to compose rap inni designed to work better in these contexts. So much so that some critics called his new “stadium rap” sound universe. For most of the album, West has adopted an exuberant rap style by focusing on more open vocality, but with melancholy and introspective texts. In addition to U2, it also drawn inspiration from rock groups such as Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin for the creation of the melody and the progression of the agreements. It was he himself who declared it in several interviews. Starting from the warm soul samples of “The College Dropout” and the orchestral rap of “Late Registration”, Kanye moved towards a more atmospheric, rock and electronic sound with magical collaborations inside e Quotes to Elton John, to U2 themselves, Michael Jackson, Public Enemy, obviously to Daft Punk and Coldplay, and there are also incredible goodies such as tributes to refined rock groups such as mountains and Can. “Graduation” is a manual on the art of sampling and on the search for a pop sound, in the meaning of “popular”, capable of reaching everyone. And yes, it remains one of Kanye’s most brilliant records.
