March 26 2009 15:05 PST
By Alex Gonzalez
Kanye West, you are probably one of the most high profile artists in music today, let alone hip-hop. From your amazing beats to your trendy fashion sense you have captivated the globe. There are some people out there that might not like hip-hop, but love you as an artist. You're a big fan of challenges, Kanye. How about this for a challenge: conquer India. While hip-hop has definitely become a global phenomenon going 30 years strong, India is still developing their identity when it comes to rap. You got your artists here and there who pop up that they like, but Kanye, you have everything in your power to become the most popular artist in the world's largest democracy.
Let's just start off with your beats. You produced a big portion of Jay-Z's 2001 classic 'The Blueprint.' That album to a lot of US fans was the soundtrack of the fall of 2001 and they credit your soulful sample heavy beats. Fast forward 8 years later to your latest opus, '808s And Heartbreak', now your beats are tailor made for the clubs. That's not a bad thing though, Kanye. India loves those up-tempo drum heavy beats. You said on your hit single "Jesus Walks," that you hope the next time you're in the club everybody's screaming out "Jesus Walks." Well, they're definitely yelling out now, "How could you be so heartless?!" vocoder not included. Maybe you should make a club visit so you can see that for yourself.
Next up, Kanye West, is your performances. They're so "out there" yet India hasn't had a chance to personally see what the fuss is about. Your Glow in the Dark Tour show was like a trip to outer space. For that hour and a half or so, when you perform, everyone is in your world. How about the thought of getting a billion people to be in your world? Yeah, that would be pretty crowded, but you get mad when award show voters don't give you awards. I'm sure a billion people singing your praises would be a cool thing to experience right? I can see it now. You, in Mumbai, by yourself, on stage, and thousands of people in the crowd wearing your venetian blind shades. Then, when you go off on your regular rants about what is on your mind like how you do on your blog, you'll have India co-signing you. Talk about strength in numbers!
Lastly, your fashion sense is like how your rate your swagger: on a hundred, thousand, trillion. India has their own bit of swagger, but sometimes it comes in the form of sarees and sherwanis. The Indian youth is definitely more in touch with the Western fashion trends though, and you can make your style the predominant choice there. Think about it, 'Ye. Kids can go to school wearing Louis Vuitton backpacks to go with the new Louis Vuitton sneakers and the fancy sweater to boot (well, maybe not the sweater, India can get really hot, you know). In Indian barbershops, they can say "I want the Kanye haircut" and point to the shag haircut you had recently. Your fashion sense is the stuff Bollywood movies should be made out of. While nobody can duplicate what you do, it sure would be cool to know hundreds of millions of people are trying to replicate it.
Kanye West, do not pass up this opportunity to make your presence felt more than it already is in India. With a country still looking to figure out who their rap heroes should be, put your name in the ring and do what you have to do to make yourself the prominent figure out there. Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent have made names for themselves in India, but you've beaten 50 Cent before, so that shouldn't be too big of a problem. There's a billion people there so even if you impact 10% of the population, that's 100 million new Kanye West fans. India's waiting for you man. Take advantage before these new hip-hop fans out there find another rap hero.
So what do you think Kanye needs to do to get India more into hip-hop? Is Kanye West a good ambassador of hip-hop? Let us know what you think.
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