Comparing Kanye West And The Confederate Flag

Kanye West is a widely known American hip-hop musical artist known for his presence in fashion and pop-culture. His music is often regarded as the work of a musical genius and also that of a narcissistic egomaniac. In this photo you see Kanye West draped in the Confederate flag while on tour for his sixth album Yeezus. This is a provocative image – a Black man draped in an iconic image of the South. He is Kanye West sought to rebrand the meaning of the flag which has deep roots of African American hate and make it his own, stating “You know the Confederate flag represented slavery in a way—that's my abstract take on what I know about it. So I made the song "New Slaves." So I took the Confederate flag and made it my flag. It's my flag.” (Wilson). One could interpret this in one of two ways. One being that West is a fool for trying to change such a long standing symbol of hatred. Or, two, that he is indeed an innovator, giving the symbol new meaning: that any person owning a Confederate flag no longer supports or endorses slavery; they endorse Kanye West. West

Kanye West’s musical career was a story of success from the start, with his first album The College Dropout debuting at #2 on the Billboard Charts and later winning a Grammy for best rap album of the year (Current Nominations and past) to his most recent self-titled album Yeezus Debuting at Billboard #1 and receiving multiple Grammy nominations with total music sales amounting to 87 million units (“Gold and Platinum Database”).When he first came into the limelight he rivaled rappers such as gun-toting 50-Cent with his more honest and easy-going raps. Because of his style he not only cast the genre in a different, more positive light, he made it easier for more sensitive rappers, such as Drake, a Toronto based R&B/Hip Hop artist to be accepted into the genre. Not only did he popularize his own style he made it the status quo for the new age of hip