November 15, 2008
-
Kanye West: The Voice of This Generation
Kanye West believes he is the voice of this generation.
He said in an interview recently “I realize that my place and position in history is that I will go down as the voice of this generation, of this decade, I will be the loudest voice. It’s me settling into that position of just really accepting that it’s one thing to say you want to do it and it’s another thing to really end up being like Michael Jordan.” Here is the link: Link
When it comes to music, who do you think is the voice of this generation?
Comments (175)
no way.
william hung
I hate Kanye. Hes trying to be llike Puff and be arrogant.
I would say……Britney SPears. Rhianna if she keeps it up and produce hit albums
no way it is
Kanye West……
lol
arrogant much?
@wutuwaitn4 - lmao lol lol lol lol lol
Ummm, I don’t know. But I have no idea who Kanye West is, either, besides someone with a pretty high opinion of himself.
Anyone who gets up and says “I am the voice of this generation” isn’t going to go over well, in my opinion.
Tupac.
He needs to stop putting words in this generation’s mouth and let that be decided on it’s own. Why doesn’t he just come out and say he believes he’s the next messiah already, geez.
Wow that be a bit of megalomania. Its just pop music and nothing more, He is not even very good at that. He is not Tupac Shakur, not even close to that good.
leave it to kanye to be an egotistical ass.
George Bush doesn’t care about black people.
I’ve found Kanye kind of boring, his last few albums.
i love me some kanye.
i love his music.
i love that he’s honest in his beliefs.
How-eh-vuh…
… i do think that he has an over-inflated sense of self worth.
just my humble opinion
Not him, that’s for sure.
ha ha ha, umm…no. I think Justin timberlake would be a better candidate for this,an he wouldn’t have to self-nominate….Kanye is somewhat delusional imho
Huh? Who is this guy?
No. Never Kanye. Never Tupac. Never any hip-hop artist. Any this is coming from a hip-hop head.
‘
There is no voice. Our generation has split off into so many off-chutes that we won’t have a “voice of our generation.”
NO ONE! Honestly, all of today’s artists aren’t as strong as the ones before them. Their “messages” come from what they see around them, true, but it’s just not as powerful, if you ask me, because what they experience is what the last generation experienced.
I don’t listen to enough popular music to say who the musical “voice of this generation” is, although I’d love it if Ray LaMontagne earned that honor. Kanye West is probably the ego of his generation, though.
can we say “EGO”
love his music, hate the man
Why, everyone knows who it is. It’s YOU, Dan!
I don’t know. I’m in my 20s (presumably his generation) and have never heard of him. I think it’s incredibly arrogant to call oneself the voice of a generation.
Eh..too egotistical for my tastes.
Arrogance is something I really can’t stand. I know he is a big entertainer and famous all over the world, but calm down…he needs to learn humility.
I have to say that I have total respect for Kanye, but I do think his ego is a little too large.
haha not him.
plus, there’s so many different tastes of music so there’s no “one voice” that’s going to describe the entire generation.
Humm Britney Spears?
There is no voice for this generation … only babble.
I don’t know who it would be but I am sure that is it safe to say that it is diffentaly NOT Kanye West!! he sure isn’t my voice YUCK
definitely not kanye and his ego. but there just isn’t ONE voice of this generation.
@wutuwaitn4 - genius.
I totally agree.
I like his music, but I would like it a lot better if he wasn’t so cocky.
It’s only Kayne West in Kayne West’s mind.
Kayne doesn’t ever do anything amazing. I don’t see him curing AIDS. I don’t see him enacting change in any way. I don’t even see him making good music. Kayne West is what I like to call a bucket of fail: he’s a failure in all aspects of life including career, love, intrapersonal, interpersonal, aesthetic, and social value, however, he misguidedly thinks himself to be the second coming of Christ and Barack Obama rolled into one.
I can’t say who speaks the most for our generation. I really can’t.
As for as an actually amazing voice to be called the voice of this generation, I’d have to call that a tie between Clay Aiken and…well, no one, really.
I don’t know, but it is NOT him.
This generation? Would that be teenagers, college student age, or older? I like Kanye West but I’m not sure which generation or if it’s for the whole “generation” or just a section of it. I don’t think anyone can define themselves as The voice, there’s always many voices.
First time I’ve heard of him.
O BA MA! O BA MA! >_>
There he goes again, being waaaaaayyy too cocky for his own good. D:
no! even if he ever was, just saying like that brings him down. delusional. how does one become so full of himself?
Definitely not him! Sorry, Kanye.
I love his music, but he just comes off sooo cocky to me.
I don’t really know who it would be, to be honest.
fuck no
While I do like a lot of his music (let’s face it, the man IS talented), he really needs to get the EFF over himself. He’s such an egomaniac. For real.
As for the musical voice of my generation, I honestly can’t pick a single person. I don’t know that there is any one person or group that has had that profound an impact on the nation or the world. U2 is the last WILDLY popular/successful group (that produced good music) that I can think of, but I think they’re more for Gen X than Gen Y (I hate that term).
Wow, he is so annoying. I’d love to bitch slap him.
Im not sure… But I know its not that guy
I’m not sure–but it’s certainly NOT him.
Oh. Bless his heart. Bless. His. Heart.
@saintvi - The ego of his generation. Yep. I would go with that. haha
i find much to admire in him and much to dislike. the bottom line tho is i have my own voice.
I can’t even name one of his songs.
What a friggin’ narcissist! As far as I can tell there is no voice of this generation because this generation doesn’t know what it wants to say. Divided we fall and all that. There may have been some unity with Obama, I don’t know. We’ll see
I like his music but as a man Kanye West is retarded.
We haven’t had a voice in music since Michael Jackson. Our generation’s attention span is so short that.. Hey! I wanna get a new iPod and hang out at Starbucks all day! Who’s in?
The voice of some wannabe “ghetto” kids, maybe. I don’t listen to none of that hippity-hop music.
Definitely not Kanye. Honestly, Britney Spears is more likely to be remembered when talking about this generation than Kanye is. But I don’t think we have a voice at all..
Paris Hilton compared herself to Princess Diana. This is nothing in comparison to that.
~~Mary~~
gad, he is an arrogant s.o.b. Musicians take themselves entirely too seriously…
Pft. He may think he’s the voice of this generation, but Kanye West definitely doesn’t speak for me.
Sorry, his arrogance annoys me.
well he’s getting a little big-headed
Oh god. My friends know not to put him on if I’m coming to a party, hahaa. I’m still mad about the Daft Punk slight… As an audiophile, I could go on for pages, but I won’t. [=_=]
But I think the idea of having a singular voice representing an entire generation is ridiculous, and pretty insulting to our individuality.
DAN!!!!!!!!!!!
He does realize his voice is only so loud because he’s standing in his marble walled bathroom, right? If you ask my kids who the voice of this generation is and they’re more likely to say SpongeBob or iCarly. AND if he’s referring more to “my” generation then…bruhaha.
well, of course he’s an egotistical asshole. but he could still be the voice of his generation. the two things aren’t mutually exclusive.
i think william hung might be closer to the truth, though, as one commenter suggested. or maybe paris hilton, or lindsay lohan. these aren’t the people who more discerning members of this generation (whatever the media is calling them these days) may WANT to represent them, but like it or not, they do. contrary to popular belief, we don’t always get to choose our representatives, especially not when it comes to discourse; sometimes a speaker self-selects.
Weezer’s pretty tight
and then I like the Linkin Park/ Jay-Z mix.
Mmm.. 2pac?
Right, the voice of the portion of the generation that actually listens to Kanye (percentage please?) … or hip hop in general.
How does one go about getting an ego big enough to say they will go down in history as the voice of an entire generation???
Not him, that’s for sure. If he was, he wouldn’t have to give himself the title, it would speak for itself.
It just makes me like him that much less. You can’t proclaim yourself ANYTHING, especially that. Sorry Kanye. I hope everyone pirates your CD.
Even tho Kanye has some good music, he is not the voice. i would totally say serj tankian from system of a down, because i absolutelly love them.lol.
Just which generation are we talking about here? Kanye’s, yours, SaintVi’s?
Kanye West is mistaken.
My voice is the voice of this generation.
What makes up “this” generation? I’ve never understood that. But, no matter what group of people it is, Kanye is definitely not the voice. I’m kind of agreeing with some of the people that say Tupac, though…
He is arrogant as fuck, but I LOVE his music.
he got arrested. LOL.. 50 Cent said the same thing. Micheal Jackson probably felt the same way. They are all the loudest voice of the generation. [Sorry I can't seem to think of any other singers out there .. ]
http://www.nypost.com/seven/09112008/news/nationalnews/kanye_west_arrested__report_128605.htm
don’t get me wrong, he’s a great musician… but pompous idiot. “George Bush hates black people!” Really??? That one will go down in the history books as a quote of the man who was “the voice of our generation”? For our generation’s sake, I certainly hope not.
Kanye is so arrogant and self-absorbed that no one listens anymore anyhow.
I’m tired of his baloney, and he needs to just stay in his place, and that is making hits for me to jam to. Keep your mouth closed Kanye, it’ll get rid of the Charley horse from sticking your foot in.
Hell to the NO!
Not Kanye West.
Someone needs to take him down a peg.. Or five.
If the voice your looking for is one of an incompetent idiot, sure.
He’s really good at what he does, which is to say he’s very good at advertising himself. I saw him in concert and it was entertaining, but he was mostly jumping around on a stage advertising himself and seeking praises the whole time. His opening acts were especially focused on garnering attention for themselves. N.E.R.D had a segment where they got the crowd going and announced the release date of their new album, and got the crowd going in a call-and-answer routine where they got the crowd to memorize the release date and to shout it back at the stage over and over.
Most of Kanye’s lyrics (as well as most of mainstream hip hop’s) are focused on the self, and on how good he (or artist X) is at being himself, and how everyone pays attention to him whether or not they like him. After a while people start to believe it, so that if one of them says “I am the voice of this generation” than a very large part this generation will go around saying “Hip Hop artist X is the voice of this generation” just because he told them so. I’m sure that this type of narcissism runs rampant through all genres of music, but it seems to be most obvious in hiphop.
As long as we live in a free-ish society, no one artist will ever be “the voice.” It’s a bit ridiculous to think that any artist in particular could claim to be the largest signle influence on tens or hundreds of millions of people.
No. He’s a terrible, yet he thinks he’s so amazing. Seriously, dude, don’t compare yourself to Jesus
anal sex, oral sex, birth control … those things weren’t “chill” 30ish years ago.
There is no such thing, he just needs to get over himself.
JT
ew
NO WAYYYY
Not Kanye West. But I don’t know. It differs between people, what music they like…
the beatles
I wonder how white middle-aged mothers will respond to this one.
Not Kanye that’s for sure. Sure, he makes great music but that’s about it. =P
You don’t call yourself “the voice of this generation”. People will give it to you only if you’re special enough.
Wow how arrogant.
And there’s no specific “voice”. There are wayyyyy too many genres and no center ground.
Kanye who?
Wow, that’s extremely arrogant. He definitely doesn’t speak for me, or anyone I know, for that matter.
Personally, I think it’s a combination of different musical styles and musicians that define a decade. One singer cannot be the sole voice of a generation. That’s just stupid.
@AmeriKen - Agreed ;D
LOL! I hate Kayne West. I read an article about this earlier, and it made me dislike him even more. Egoistical and arrogant much? I don’t care who’s the “voice of this generation”.
I have heard of him…but I don’t know his music…so I would go with a no.
I don’t think that you can truly pick one person as the voice of this generation due to the fact that our generation is so divided and interested in many things.
Uhh… someone who isn’t Kanye West.
kanye has come a long way. I wouldn’t be surprised if he did end up being it.
He also is dressed like Jesus on one of his album covers, so I don’t really trust his opinions.
If I had to pick anyone… I don’t know, Dave Matthews Band? I don’t feel like our generation is very easily categorized.
there really is no voice for this generation in music cause the music artists are too busy writing about love and relationships that people of this generation apparently like so yea…..
kanye is definately not my voice. i cant stand the arrogant asshole. i think our generation is soooo diverse, no one person could be the voice of our generation.
ryc: i have refrained thus far. but every time the offer is put out there, it gets harder and harder to resist.
Kayne is just going to stamp his tiny feet and hold his breath until everyone admits how totally awesome he is
If there’s such a thing as an ego reduction surgery, dude needs one.
I’m sorry Kanye,
but ever since your trial shutter shades have gained massive popularity in all teenagers and young people in this generation, you’re ego has become greatly inflated.
You are not the voice of my generation, and if anyone would be, most would agree that’s Obama.
(And I don’t even like Obama.)
He’s more like the voice of his ego.
his lyrics are motivating and life-changing? =O
I definitley wouldn’t say he’s the voice of his generation. But I do think he’s pretty awesome.
We all have our own voice.
Kanye West is a fucking idiot who should be kick’d right in the bawls on an hourly basis.
LOVEFOXXX IZZZZ!!! (even if her engrish isn’t all that good yet
)
And his music is totally derivative and has went about inventing new ways to suck all on it’s own, and he’s a broke-jaw-havin’ ‘tardpole motherfucker.
It isn’t Kanye West. I like him, but he needs to STFU.
He’s not my voice, that’s for sure, and neither are the Jonas Brothers. I’m my own voice; a servant to no man!
Probably
John Legend
or Lupe Fiasco
their music has a message behind it
Kanye is such a fucking idiot. He got booed off stage at a concert here when opening for U2.
There is no voice of our generation. Every commercialised musician is manufactured. Every actor who wants to save a whale is just another person wanting to do good. Every politician sucks. There is NO voice of our generation. And that saddens me.
“mayonnaise colored benz, i push miracle whips”
but in all seriousness, i dont think theres a such thing for the voice of a generation. sadly kanye has lost most of his social conscious musically, his first album is simply amazing.
Kanye says he is the voice of the generation because he speaks about issues that others are too afraid to speak about – he’s confident, he’s blunt, and he doesn’t care what anyone says. I do believe he is ONE of the voices of this generation. Just my opinion. Initially, I wasn’t a big of fan of Kanye’s, but listening to his music has changed my mind.
Not this idiot…never heard a single “tune” of his. He obviously thinks very highly of himself.
it’s nice to know I’m not the only one who uses Yahoo!
This generation is narcissistic. They have an attitude of entitlement. They place the blame of their current situation on everyone else other where it actually belongs which is on themselves. Maybe Kanye West is right. Maybe he is the voice of this generation.
@AilinCorazon -
I agree with this.
Yeah, I saw this article and threw up in my mouth a little.
Please, he is so full of himself it is pathetic.
I heard about that. It gives me a different view of him.
I honestly don’t think we have a voice for this generation.
We have a wide variety of popular music, no way is Kayne the best.
he and lil mama need to relax.. they need to stop calling themselves the voice of my generation… they are NOT my voice.. i’ve got my own
-adieu, stace
no.
how can someone in the “hip hop” industry claim something like this? It seems to me like hip hop is just all about having sex with women and making lots of money. I enjoy hip hop, but that is the extent, I enjoy it. What changes has kanye, the ‘voice of this generation’, brought about? None really. A ‘voice of a generation’ is someone like MLK… not some hip hop icon.
I am sorry, but it’s pretty arrogant to say that about yourself. Furthermore, there won’t just be one singular voice for this generation
BARACK OBAMA
If he’s the voice of this generation, and this generation has got some serious problems, then I’m putting the blame on him. Kanye can’t get away with the privilege of being the voice of this generation without taking on the responsibility as well. If he wants to be the voice of this generation, he should also be responsible for a lot of the shit that this generation does and what this generation thinks, if it does.
no way! Kanye West!?! He’s like a sham of hip hop; tries to be all “I care more than the bling homie” but really he’s a flip flop. Tries to be different than the hip hop stereotype but still adds it in to make some cash.
AND. He throws the nastiest hissy fits. Yeah you totally deserved the grammy’s man, TOTALLY. and yeah they totally hate on you cause you’re black, that’s why you didn’t win!
shiiiiiiiiet. voice? not him. and not anyone who claims to be it, that’s for sure.
what a joke.
john mayer is too much of a wuss to be the voice of this generation but i have him above kanye.
so far, nobody. the ones that have the public’s ear have yet to display the kind of courage to go against the grain.
@seedsower - word up! “We gotta start making changes. And to two distant strangers.”
2PAC
And some of my others:
Jimi Hendrix
John Lennon
Bob Marley
JFK
I think voice of a generation is what we interpret it to be. It can be our parents or someone we care about like a great friend or maybe it is a smart actor or a politician if there’s such a thing.
Athletes can’t be viewed this way tho Derek Jeter comes close and so too does Bret Favre and Martin Brodeur.
I guess it depends. Musicians can if they care enough for a cause. Kanye’s an ego we know that. stick to music. he bitches way too much when he loses awards. just rap.
if i chose a rapper, I’d say someone like Nas who’s smart and has a real message in his lyrics. Pick up his new album and you’ll see what I mean.
Is it Bruce Springsteen or Bono or have they each let their musical influence gone to their heads? Nobody cares what their political views are.
There’s so many ways to answer this. To each their own.
I was watching Kanye live in concert videos on youtube. HE can’t even sing on key without auto tune, (look on youtube, you’ll find him performing some songs live that he “sings” on his new album) that’s embarrassing for an artist as popular as him to be tone deaf!
Coldplay. It’s a band. The lead singer, Chris Martin, is a Pisces(like me) and married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow.
His Chinese zodiac sign is Snake….he was born twelve years before my sister.
And I don’t know much about the other band members. Oh, they’re British.
EWEEE, gtfo, he’s like “now that barack obama is the first black president, that must make ME very important as well”
i cant stand his music. ewee. he has the audacity to think he could possibly represent anyone? oh lawd!
Kayne West… Yick. Even my generation isn’t that petty.
A few years back Michael Jackson likened (or is that “lichened”?) himself to Leonardo da Vinci… At the time of the Dan Brown book, at least, who was getting more press and pr… the living –or the genius?
I would say if you have to tell us you are the voice of this generation..then you probably aren’t.
Dan I think you should proclaim yourself the voice of our generation…before this whole kanye west thing gets too big, and then people wont accept any other spokesperson.
@wutuwaitn4 - William Hung, agreed.
I say Kanye West is full of himself.
I don’t know, but it certainly isn’t Kanye.
@Zayin_michael -
Kanye West….stop opening your mouth…..
I’d say Tupac and Barack Obama
I adore Kanye’s music. He’s very talented. His HUGE ego does bother me sometimes, but I don’t stop listening to his music because of it. (I know people that are like that, which I think is weird). Anyways, as for being the voice of this generation… I don’t think that’s true. He’s good but he’s not THAT good! Gotta love him, though
Kanye West needs to get over himself. This generation does not have one definitive voice, and that’s the beauty of it.
that pompous ass
i hate his attitude…
i’d say christina aguilera, britney or backstreet boys
uh. ego, much?
haha, kanye is ssooo cocky and ridiculous. but i absolutely love his music.
it’s funny how it works that way..
yeah, he’s arrogant, and has a huge ego. but he has a reason to be.
i think the worst part is that kanye is so arrogant people can’t burst his bubble. i would love to see him get slapped with a hard reality check.
It’s not Kanye, that’s for sure. It is almost impossible to be the “Voice of a Generation”. People have varied interests. Kanye isn’t my voice, because I don’t listen to Hip Hop, R&B, etc. I just don’t. I don’t enjoy it.
Besides, who said each generation needs a ‘voice’? I have my own, thank you very much.
However, if I had to choose a musician that PERSONALLY I identify with…Damien Rice knows how to write my brain into melody.
@maganda - I read that as “Realty Check” at first. However, now that I think about it…Maybe a Realty Check would be a good reality check.
“Oh shit, I’m not famous anymore, and now I have to actually find different ways to pay the bills like everyone else.”
@latexunicornfetish - LOL. Yes.
Is he saying that he is the voice of everyone in this generation, or only the black people in this generation?
No rap! for sure…I don’t think Kanye is serious about that,he is just wanting attention like always.He knows that he doesn’t even come close to alot of talented people out there.He is just wishing….
Can you say HELL to the no?
What an egomaniac.
Not Kanye West… I’ll choose Funky DL over him any day. Mainstream Rap is polluted period. Hip hop on the other hand has a lot more substance than BS mainstream. There isn’t only one voice for this generation…whoever says they’re the voice of this generation is ignorant. Music artists or anyone should have a collaboration. One is only one man or woman. Everyone has to work together. Kanye West is dillusional. I’ve already heard enough from that meglomaniac messiah-complex ridden flea bag. There’s other underground artists, like Murs, Living Legends. There’s even more…but I’ll leave that to others who have the will to search deeper other than listening to bullshit music about drugs, sex, and money (oooh wow rapping about that makes you unique *shivers* *rolls eyes*).
not Kyane!!
This is a little late, but I think JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE is the man! He’s talented in every aspect!
Love him!
is he the one who said bush doesn’t like black people and made mike myers flip out? ’cause that’s seriously the only funny thing mike myers has done. also, it’s the only thing i’ve ever heard from kanye west.
i’d like mos def as the voice of this generation, please.
HAHA! I remember reading this article the other day, and practically laughing out loud.
I’m not sure who the “voice of this generation” would be, but I would certainly never consider it to be Kanye West.
I find him to be extremely cocky, arrogant, and does not has much sense of class. (especially considering some of his past comments.)
@ughstupididiot - me too! I love to jam to his FutureSex Love Sounds cd!!!
@two_days_until_forever - No way? Where did you read that? I think Paris has a LONG way to go before she can even be thought to be compared to Princess Diana. I have never seen her do a thoughtful deed in all of her “publicity.”
@Zayin_michael - haha that’s what I remembered when I read the story! I think someone who is trying to divide our country and promote racism is never qualified to be a “voice” of this generation.
@elegantphoto - http://www.theinsider.com/news/630898_Paris_Hilton_Thinks_She_s_an_Icon_Today_s_Princess_Diana_PICTURE_says_mag
i dont see how he is the voice of my generation. i never hear anything about him unless it’s a new song he has out, or he is speaking out about his mom, etc… in order to be a “voice” shouldn’t you be speaking out FOR something(s)? Really… what has he done?
everyone thinks they are the messiah until the true one arrives.
He sounds sound pretentious! There are many voices, with much to say- he is a voice of many. As the American currency dictates” E Pluribus Unim”
@musinuite - LOL
Hell to the!
No1!
@maganda - Time is everyones foe
no. what a *^#$*&#!
Hell no!
Kanye is a decent rapper, maybe even good…
but let’s be real here
#1: He just said he will be the voice of this generation…. need I say more?
#2: If it’s because he raps about real problems, he’s got something else coming. How about Immortal Technique, Brother Ali, Atmosphere, Mac Lethal, MF Doom…. etc.
He’s a pompous asshole, and everyone thinks so.
He’s the voice of himself.
Okay, first of all, Kanye West is most definitely not the voice of any generation…he is an embarrassment. He will never be like M.J. was to basketball because, M.J. did not have to say it. In addition, for those of you who said Britney Spears, you are just as stupid as Kanye. Why in the hell would you say Britney Spears? If either one of these people are the voice of my generation, then I don’t want to be a part of it. Honestly, I would take William Hung over Britney Spears! Think of somebody who speaks out intelligently for political issues, someone who gives off a positive image for our youth!
Here are some realistic candidates: Dave Matthews, Jack Johnson, John Mayer, Nickleback, Linkin’ Park, Coldplay, Damien Rice, Michael Buble, John McLaughlin, O.A.R., Matchbox Twenty, Foo Fighters
Pick one!
What do you think?
No one is the voice of the generation (i’m guessing those of us around 17-30 maybe, big generation but we all listen to the same stuff). This generation is to the point where it cant be defined, there is too many styles of music and with the way technology has increased the production of music there is no way to pin point one artist as defining a generation.
Go figure its Kanye West we’re talking about. He’s always had a big head. no need to take him seriously.