“The system broken, the school is closed, the prison’s open…
In this white man world, we the ones chosen.”
“Is hip-hop just a euphemism for a new religion?
The soul music of the slaves that the youth is missing?
But this is more than just my road to redemption
Malcolm West had the whole nation standing at attention.”
-Kanye West
Little separates the iconoclast from the prophet. The iconoclast smashes idols to dance on the rubble; the prophet smashes them from zeal for his Father’s house. But neither leaves idols unscathed, and both make enemies of idolaters. Kanye West’s enemies are legion, numbering conservatives, religious believers, racists, anti-racists, progressives, prudes, feminists, and even Taylor Swift. What set of commitments could possibly alienate so many different groups? Does West simply walk into a temple and start swinging, or does he choose targets by some logic?
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