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Kanye the Vulture
Kanye West on February 2, 2024, in Los Angeles, California. (Rachpoot/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images via Getty Images)
Kanye’s newest album is at turns haunting, petty, and discordant. And you can’t ignore the shadow of his antisemitism over the whole thing. So why did I like it?
By Eli Lake
02.23.24 — Culture and Ideas
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The first time I really took notice of Kanye West was at the tail end of hip-hop’s golden age in 2001. He was one of the hot new producers on Jay-Z’s Blueprint, framing Hov’s rhymes with candy-coated samples of classic soul tracks sped up and augmented with heavy drum loops. Most people would be content to be heirs to Pete Rock and DJ Premier, creating …

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Eli Lake
Eli Lake is the host of Breaking History, a new history podcast from The Free Press. A veteran journalist with expertise in foreign affairs and national security, Eli has reported for Bloomberg, The Daily Beast, and Newsweek. With Breaking History, he brings his sharp analysis and storytelling skills to uncover the connections between today’s events and pivotal moments in the past.
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