Kanye West

[tbs fanatic]

Can you believe what Kanye did at the MTV show :woah: That guy really has issues. I felt so bad for Taylor Swift. I'm glad Beyonce invited Taylor back to the stage, it was the right thing to do. Kanye is going to have a hard time recovering from this one. He's pulled stunts like this before but I think he seriously crossed the line this time. The guy really needs some therapy.

[EagleLady]

He's such a loser. What goes around comes around. Beyonce is awesome.

[sodascouts]

He was a huge jerk but you know how it is - folks will forget about it in a month... until the next time he makes a jackass out of himself.

But hey, he apologized - in all caps!

ETA: I tried to link there but it's been taken down and changed to a lower-case, more sophisticated message. Thanks for the help, PR people.

This is the new one: http://www.kanyeuniversecity.com/blog/?em3106=239462_-1__0_~0_-1_9_2009_0_0&em3298=&em3282=&em3281=&em3161=&entry=239462

But due to the power of the internet, we can find the old apology still:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0120a5c1ca4f970c-pi

[Brooke]

What a jerk! :-x

[TimothyBFan]

On top of being a jerk--he apparently missed Grammar class a few times in school also! :-x

[thelongrun]

The 2 Beauties and the beast...

[Freypower]

A non apology apology, like Serena Williams 'effort'.

[Molly]

You know you have a problem when the President of the United States calls you a "jackass".

[EagleLady]

:nod:

[sodascouts]

I know the Eagles don't dig Perez Hilton, but he DOES have the audio of the President's comments - and it's pretty funny!

http://perezhilton.com/2009-09-15-obama-caught-on-tape-calling-kanye-a-jackass

And some clever person decided to do a YouTube vid joking about it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxKIcrDsJAs

[tbs fanatic]

That is funny. Especially when the Prez says at the end 'That's not true.' :hilarious:

[sodascouts]

Oh, BTW, for those unfamiliar with what happened, you can watch it here:

http://perezhilton.com/2009-09-13-taylor-swift-gets-upstaged

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Oh - I love that YouTube joke - how funny!

I hope Kanye realizes that he really did make himself look like a jackass, and that his apology is sincere and not just lip service.

[MikeA]

I don't know a lot about the current crop of artists, but as for Taylor Swift, I do know a little since she is a favorite of my Wife's.

From what I hear, she is truly one of a kind. She writes all of her own material, she choreographs her own performances, designs and makes (or her Mother does) her own costumes. She is the "Total Package" and from what I hear, "what you see is what you get." She might or might not be "innocent" (depending on what the term "innocent" means) but as far as I can tell, she is one of the few artists that I would stack up to my children and grandchildren as someone to admire for more than their professional talent!

To have someone undermine an acknowledgement directed toward her is nothing short of insanity! I have seen other protests during awards ceremonies, but this one served no purpose in exhonoratiing Bianca if she needed any exhonoration, and certainly made no point as far as Taylor Swift goes.

It was nothing more than a display of a lack of common sense on the part of someone whose work I didn't appreciate before and certainly do not now.

[Prettymaid]

As much as I abhor what Kanye West did, I don't necessarily like the idea of the President of the United States calling anyone a jacka**.

[Brooke]

It was nothing more than a display of a lack of common sense on the part of someone whose work I didn't appreciate before and certainly do not now.

Yeah. And all the publicity he's getting now! :rolleyes:

Did you see what Jay Leno did to him?

[EagleLady]

As much as I abhor what Kanye West did, I don't necessarily like the idea of the President of the United States calling anyone a jacka**.


Well, It's his opinion and he is entitled to it.

[MikeA]

I understand where you are coming from Cathy, but to me, it just shows me that he is rather "in tune" with what's happening and that he is Human. I know that it might been more sophisticated NOT to have used that particular vernacular in describing West's actions, but it sure got his point across. And that "opinion" can't come from much higher than that short of from a White Throne in the clouds! <LOL>

I know that if I was West, I'd be heading South!

[Prettymaid]

Well, It's his opinion and he is entitled to it.

...and I just gave my opinion - am I entitled to it?

[EagleLady]

Yes.

ETA: I didn't mean to offend you or anything Cathy, I just happen to agree with the President about Kanye.

[MikeA]

BTW:

What was the context of Obama's statement? I mean was he asked about it or did he call a press conference to express his opinion? I don't know. But I can see him responding to such a question if asked.

[Wildthyme]

The way I understand it during the prep for a press conference the mic that was being put on the President was live when it wasn't supposed to be and during the course of a casual conversation with others in the room someone asked him what he thought of the Kanye debacle and part of his comment included the jackass remark. Unfortunately the live mic recorded what he said and of course someone was opportunistic enough to then make the comments public...

[sodascouts]

It was "off the record" - he was joking around while waiting to get interviewed. If you listen to the audio clip, they asked him about it and everyone was laughing, egging him on. I wouldn't appreciate him using the word in a speech, but he thought his words were relatively private. Perhaps he learned the hard way that nothing is truly private when you're around the press, even if you do specify it as "off the record."

ETA: I didn't realize he didn't even know his mic was on! Thanks for the extra piece of info, WT.

[MikeA]

So Barak Obama is shooting to be another Andrew Jackson? Next thing you know, West will call him out for a duel at ten paces <LOL>

[AmarilloByMorning]

That comment marked the first time Obama actually said something with which I could wholeheartedly concur. I actively campaigned against the guy, but have to support him in this matter.

Swift annoys me to no end... but West's capacity for sophomoric and cretinous behavior seems limitless. Nobody deserved that kind of treatment, least of all a teenager with a reputation for really not saying anything negative about anybody.

[Prettymaid]

http://www.comcast.net/video/obama-on-kanye-s-vma-outburst/1255344385/Comcast/1257444839/

[Molly]

That comment marked the first time Obama actually said something with which I could wholeheartedly concur. I actively campaigned against the guy, but have to support him in this matter.


Swift annoys me to no end... but West's capacity for sophomoric and cretinous behavior seems limitless. Nobody deserved that kind of treatment, least of all a teenager with a reputation for really not saying anything negative about anybody.

:hilarious: I said the same thing yesterday!

While I'm not particularly a fan of Taylor's music or videos, I do admire the poise, humor and grace she's shown at such a young age, not just at the VMA's, but every time I've seen and/or heard her. She's really an engaging young woman.

I've heard she's also amazingly wonderful with her fans, especially the young girls who look up to her.


In today's entertainment world, she is a rare combination of talent and personality in a good way.

And kudos to Beyonce who has more class in her little finger than Kanye...well, you know how it goes.

[MikeA]

And THAT shows you how familiar "I" am with either one of these two young women. I can't even spell their names right! <LOL> But you won't hear me bad-mouthing either them or anything they are doing! I don't know anything about West either, but you don't have to know a lot about someone to form an opinion over something as blatant as he pulled.

That was just shocking. Beyond comprehension. Still can't believe anyone could be so stupid as to show himself like that to that big an audience!

[AmarilloByMorning]

Molly, I completely agree. She seems an exemplary role model in a world of Miley Cyrus and Gossip Girl. Doesn't keep me from gritting my teeth when her songs air, but I'll take one for the team.

Haha Mike, we got the point with their names. But, no kidding! You really don't need to know much about him - this is merely the latest in a series of slights he's made against, oh, just about everyone. And then using his Jay Leno Show appearance as a vehicle to issue a PR apology... jeez.

But this is why I love Leno - he opens by saying to Kanye in his congenial manner, "Tell us about your day. Did you have a bad day?"

[bernie's bender]

The last few music and video awards shows have had controversies that all ended up being set up.

You can look it up. The Borat thing, the eminem thing and so on and so on.

If you have ever worked a show like that or an event with security... nothing and I mean nothing happens without planning... even going back to the 'soy bomb' incident... it was an inside job.

MTV is not really a music channel anymore. It is a third or fourth rate cable channel with very very small ratings. It is owned by viacom and if you look at all the participants they all have relationships with viacom.

Will Taylor Swift want to remain a 'country' singer for her entire career? Will she want to broaden her audience and maximize her earning potential and be as big as she can possibly be? Did the Eagles add Joe and Don because they wanted to rock or because they needed to rock?

In this case, the scenario ends up with everyone winning. Kanye is already Jayz's boy and because of that he earns street cred for doing what, in the end, was a very mild thing... he interrupted her. Go back and watch, there were no raised voices, no violence, no threat, he was just mildly rude... and someone allowed him on stage. They didn't edit it out (it wasn't live and they do 'redos' on those shows.)

So, sure he looks like a jerk, but that spins Jay's new show way up in the ratings, it gives MTV new life for reruns of that show (and why they pulled down the youtubes) so they make out too...

Kanye gets cred in his fan base and Beyonce, well, Beyonce gets to be the new queen, right? she is gracious and a winner of her award and she brings Taylor back and gives Taylor credibility among the pop people... practically welcoming her into the pop world ... right there on the pop awards show....

it was her 'coming out party'.... Now, Taylor is a controversial character among the country audience. she is widely mocked and it is said that she has major pitch problems and is not a strong singer. She also sings 'new' country which the traditionalists hate. Along comes this urban rap guy who is rude to her... guess who suddenly takes up the Taylor Swift defense? Yup. The very people who had disrespected her. Big win solidifying her base and now she is introduced to a whole new base...

Now, I wonder who Jay will have on real soon to continue to feed this frenzy? We'll see!

Now the really big winners are the fans! Everyone gets to be upset and see a boogie man and have a 'black hat' who we can take all of our frustrations from our own lives and pour them out on the evil man Kanye.

He doesn't mind because he has watched pro wrestling for years... in pro wrestling everyone takes their turn as the villain and then they get to be heroes. When Snoop Dog was part of NWA they were banned and were horrible individuals... now we know snoop as a sweet guy who coaches his kids football team and is a religious man who slips sometimes and chases women and smokes a little dope... a long way from the evil snoop....

It is all theater folks. It is all made up and staged for your benefit and as long as you pay with your time, attention and money. None of it is real.

Even when you read a biography... it isn't real.. it isn't the way it usually happened.. it is a story like the ones your grandpa told you when you were a little kid.

It is fun to get caught up in... and make generalizations about society and the future and the way people act...

My grandfather was an entertainment lawyer in Hollywood. He once won a case for 100K for defamation of character for her. That was a lot of money back then... He received the entire 100K. It was basically a setup to generate free PR for her. He didn't know it until well after as he would never have participated (he would have been disbarred if he knowingly did it.)

That doesn't mean that Taylor Swift was in on it... Lets face it, she isn't important enough to have to know, right? It is so much better theater if it is a genuine response...

In awhile, as it all dies down... we'll discover it was made up and created... and it will be long enough that we won't care anymore....

but, hey, have fun... It is a lot of fun to get really upset and be indignant....even if we are being used.

[EagleLady]

Um, Huh? :headscratch:

[bernie's bender]

Um, Huh? :headscratch:

to use the rapper vernacular... we're getting played.

[sodascouts]

I understand what you're saying, BB. You're not the first to argue it's all a big set up. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. If there's deceit involved, it's on their head, not mine. When I see a person act like a jerk - yes, I get angered. I'm not going to go "Oh well, it was probably just an act, it's all good!"

None of us want to get "played," but I guess we have to make a choice - do we react to what we see, or do we treat it all with cynicism and not allow ourselves to be engaged? What if we're wrong? I'd rather give people the benefit of the doubt. Does that mean that I'm more easily misled by those that are dishonest? Certainly, but that's acceptable to me because I don't want to harden my heart against those who are genuine.

[bernie's bender]

I would never claim first as to concluding that it was a cynical act by the viacom folks.

I don't disagree that a person's reaction is valid since it is theirs. But, coming to the conclusion that it was set up doesn't make me cynical. There are significant instances from the very folks who produced that show of doing this in the past.

I remember in the late 70's when decorum started to fade at awards shows... people started showing up with jeans and tux jackets and being less formal. When guys like Steve Allen and Johnny Carson hosted awards shows they were formal. When we started having the Chris Rock's and the David Letterman's host these kinds of things... the show became 'meta' based. Dave's thing is to 'break the 4th wall' and joke with the viewer the way you would if you were sitting next to someone. He does the joke, but the joke is the joke about the joke and a wink and a nod to the viewer....

because of that lack of formality, the interruption is a natural part of the progression. I see it in meetings at work. Even in presentations, someone will interrupt. We all saw that even in congress we have 'talking back' during a speech. It isn't one guy behaving badly it is a commonly occurring thing.

That doesn't make it right or good... but there are so many examples (the shout down stuff at public meetings is a pretty obvious one.) But it is commonplace.

To me, being a good viewer, or a thoughtful person means considering the circumstances and context of an action and trying to make sense of it. That doesn't mean my conclusion will match everyone else's... but it will be considered and defensible.

Why would Kanye West do that? simply answering that he is a jackass isn't enough for me because it isn't an answer. He is a successful person. He makes money, he has influence, he has demonstrated the ability to promote and self promote. I don't know his music or who he is as a person... but, I have learned some of the relationships he has with folks on that show.

He may have acted impulsively, he has a history of that.. in each instance it paid off for him.

So, we may never know what really happened there... but, I don't think it is cynical to conclude that the scenario was the creation (or the 'look the other way this will be great theater') of a producer, manager or artist.

I'd imagine the outcry is that Taylor Swift was damaged by the event, I'm not sure anymore if that is really what the upset is about.

I remember a few years ago during the baseball playoffs there was a fight between the Yankees and the Red Sox on the field... it appeared (momentarily) that the Red Sox pitcher (known to be volatile) Pedro Martinez attacked and pushed an old and revered and widely loved coach Don Zimmer to the ground hurting him. The announcers went nuts and called for Martinez to be banned from baseball and fined and well, they were super angry.

By the next day, Zimmer gave a tearful apology for his actions and apologized specifically to Martinez for attacking him and thanked Pedro for protecting him when he lunged at him.

Our emotions often get the better of us when we feel before we think.

I didn't watch the initial broadcast of the show. I am not interested in that kind of thing... I've never thought of art as a competitive sport. I know some grammy and academy award voters and, well, it is not fair and never has been nor will it ever be (and maybe it can't be fair.)

I respect anyone who comes to an honest conclusion and holds their beliefs regardless of what they are... I come to my conclusions honestly and without cynicism, the data just seems to support that there has to more going on in this instance than has been considered.

[MikeA]

BB,

I LOVE IT! Makes sense. What was that guy's name...the Godfather...can't believe I can't pull his name out..Marlon Brando! Didn't he refuse to come to the awards and sent a Native American to "accept his award" and make a speech in protest of something?

Not quite the same as what you are putting forward as this was something obviously pushed by Brando himself, but it is in the same vane.