Hi, everyone, and happy birthday Kanye West! The legend himself turned 42 years young today! In honor of that, I figured I would rank all of the Kanye West releases from worst to best. Yeezy is one of my favorite musicians ever, so this list was pretty hard to make! For the record, I will not be including the G.O.O.D music mixtape Cruel Summer. My justification for that was that it is not primarily Kanye and/or another artist. In terms of ranking the albums, it’s based on my overall likeability and if it is still listenable today. So, without further ado, here’s my opinions on each of Kanye’s major studio releases.
WORST: WATCH THE THRONE- KANYE x JAY Z (2011)
This project is kind of blah to me. I’m really confused at why these guys decided to make a record together. Sure, they’ve collaborated in the past, but I sit and scratch my head at this project. I’ve never really been much of a Jay-Z fan, and a lot of this record seems unpolished and flavorless. The music is not as inspiring or interesting as other Kanye projects have been As a follow-up of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, I expected Watch the Throne to sound a lot like it. However, it really missed the mark for me. I usually tend to skip over this project when I re-listen to Yeezy’s discography.
BEST TRACKS: Niggas In Paris, Otis, No Church In The Wild
#9: YEEZUS (2013)
Kanye entered the experimental rap trend kind of late, and Yeezus really proves that point. The production is really oversaturated, and I find myself uninterested in a lot of the tracks on this album. I mean, why couldn’t we have gotten another record like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy? That was experimental, but not over-the-top like this. I think Kanye kind of lost his identity here, as he seems to be trying to mimic a trend rather than make his own stuff. It’s a shame that I don’t like this album as much as other ones. I’ve tried, but I just don’t enjoy it. Sure, there are some standout songs, but Yeezus just seems really shallow and not super inspiring.
BEST TRACKS: Black Skinhead, New Slaves, Bound 2
#8: THE LIFE OF PABLO (2016)
“I miss the old Kanye”... I hear a lot of people rave about this record, but I’ve never been a big Life of Pablo fan. It’s a continuation of the experimental rap trend he had on Yeezus. Yeah, it’s got a lot of themes about Kanye’s life, but I never really understood that on a first listen. Now, I think of it almost like the White Album of Yeezy’s discography- it’s a hodge-podge of songs that don’t really mesh together. In a sense, it’s almost like a mixtape rather than a real “album”. Don’t get me wrong, there are some really amazing songs on here. Despite for my general distaste of the album, that fact cannot be overlooked. Though I will typically find myself uninterested in a lot of the random cuts this record has, I will always go back and relisten to the great songs.
BEST TRACKS: Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1 & 2, Famous, Highlights
#7: YE (2018)
You may have read that I placed this album pretty high on my end-of-year list last year. While that still holds true, I feel kind of guilty not saying a lot about this album. There isn’t really too much to comment on. While it isn’t Kanye’s most interesting release, it’s still a solid return after his two year hiatus. The album is short and sweet, clocking in at around 23 minutes. There’s nothing super revolutionary on here, it’s just a solid bunch of self-reflective tracks. I do think some of his rhymes can get a little confusing at times, but I’m a fan of them for the most part. Additionally, the production on here is alright for the most part. While there are very few complaints from me, I was still hoping for a little bit more musically on this record.
BEST TRACKS: All Mine, Ghost Town, Yikes
#6: GRADUATION (2007)
This was one that I used to like a lot, but it’s lost a lot of its charm as I’ve gotten deeper into Kanye’s discography. I really like a lot of the tracks on this album today, as they’ve got that “party”-like feel to them. The production is actually really diverse, more than a lot of his other records if I’m being honest. However, I’ve kind of lost touch for some of the more bouncy, braggadocious cuts on this album like “Barry Bonds” or “Drunk and Hot Girls”. Those kinds of tracks really overshadow the real quality of this record. I’m also not really a big fan of the more pretentious lyrics on Kanye’s part. I guess it’s because he shifted away from rapping on social commentary towards and reflecting more on his own life. That’s all well and good, but I think his writing could have been a little bit less haughty. While I may sound like I’m bashing this record, I’m not. I don’t hate this record, but it’s not one I’ll come back to right away when listening to Yeezy.
BEST TRACKS: Flashing Lights, Homecoming, Can’t Tell Me Nothing
#5: 808S AND HEARTBREAKS (2008)
I’ll be real with you, I was not a fan of this album after a first listen. A lot of people think it’s the black sheep of Kanye’s discography because it isn’t rap music. I beg to differ. If anything, the musical direction Kanye had on this is actually really fascinating. In fact, it may even be the most ambitious artistic direction he’s ever taken. It was definitely a huge risk to shift away from rapping, but it sure paid off. 808s was influenced by the death of his mother, and a lot of his melancholia seeped into the tracks on this album. His smooth, Auto-Tune vocals paired with quiet instrumentals serve as a nice break from the persona ye brought on Graduation. While some may be confused with this record after a first listen, I suggest you give it another chance. Once I did, I fell in love with it. I hope you will, too.
BEST TRACKS: Heartless, Love Lockdown, Coldest Winter
#4: KIDS SEE GHOSTS- KANYE x KID CUDI (2018)
I was considering putting ye and Kids See Ghosts as one album, but it wouldn’t be fair to give KSG the praise it deserves. My goodness, are the tracks on here sensational. All disrespect aside, it seems like Kanye put a lot more effort into making this project than he did with ye. The production is super rich and layered, yet super chill at the same time. I love nearly every song on here, and 23 minutes was just not enough to get out the potential the collab has! Cudi’s contributions to this album are pretty meaningful, and Yeezy’s verses are no different. This album single-handedly saved Kid Cudi’s career, and I hope these dudes consider doing KSG2 in the future.
BEST TRACKS: Reborn, Free, 4th Dimension
#3: LATE REGISTRATION (2005)
It was really tough getting down to the top three, but I feel like The College Dropout is only marginally better than this project. It’s a really great sophomore outing from Kanye, but I find myself liking Dropout more as a whole. I love a lot of the cuts on this record, as they continue to dive in on the social themes Kanye addressed on his debut. The production, per usual, is very technical and well-done. A lot of the features on this were super memorable as well. He brought in guys like Adam Levine, Jay-Z and Nas to contribute some stuff. The diversity sonically is present, but some of the tracks were not as enjoyable for me as some of his other stuff. Still, I find very few flaws with this album, and I continue to cherish it to this day.
BEST TRACKS: Diamonds From Sierra Leone (remix is slightly better), We Major, Heard ‘Em Say
#2: THE COLLEGE DROPOUT (2004)
This is Kanye’s longest project, at an astonishing 76 minutes… but it’s great, from beginning to end. There are so many memorable tracks that I love listening to that it was so hard to pick my top three. In terms of listenability, the production and sampling on this record is truly amazing. Kanye made every soundbite he added count. Lyrically, I might say this ye’s best outing. The socially conscious lyrics are really outstanding, focusing on pertinent themes like consumerism and crime. However, my only complaint was that there were so many damn interludes that took away from the enjoyment of the album. They’re not really that amazing and don’t hold up super well today. On the bright side, Yeezy deleted them from the vinyl release. That was a good move, so definitely listen to the vinyl if you want the ultimate College Dropout listen. All that aside, this is Kanye’s best project, except for my #1 pick. BEST TRACKS: Jesus Walks, We Don’t Care, Through The Wire
#1: MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY (2010)
I’ve had a lot of people disagree with me on this being at #1, but hear me out. This is Kanye West’s (literally) most beautiful outing. From cover to cover, I find myself so engrossed with what Yeezy did on this album. It never ceases to amaze me. MBDTF a sonic masterpiece, and was really ahead of its time back in 2010. He experimented with so many different styles of music on this record: electronic, stadium rock, psych rock, jazz, classical piano, the list goes on. The amount of depth Kanye put into each and every song is nothing short of commendable. I watched an amazing YouTube video by The Most Unruly that detailed the making of this album. It made me appreciate the time and effort Kanye put into this album on a whole new level. Despite focusing a lot more about the shit that had been going on in his life, his writing and rapping are some of his best in his discography. I think it’s somewhat justified that he wrote about that kind of stuff, because it had been two years since he’d really expressed how he was truly feeling. He collaborated with a lot of amazing musicians from across the spectrum of music, and that made the project so much more enjoyable to listen to. That’s why My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is objectively Kanye’s best.
BEST TRACKS: Power, Runaway, Hell of a Life
So, do you agree with my list? Was there an album you thought should have been higher or lower, or a song you liked more than I did? If so, reach out to me! I’m always down to chat music! Thanks so much for reading this, guys. I cannot thank you all enough for supporting bazzreviews. I know I say this after every piece I write, but yes, more awesome stuff is coming your way soon!
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