Scoff as much as you like, but the truth is self-evident: Kanye West was right when he called himself the greatest living rock star on the planet.
This grandiose statement of himself, the sort we are not unaccustomed to, came during his controversial headline set at Glastonbury on Saturday night. Social media erupted with anger. HOW DARE HE? screamed thousands of "music fans", he doesn't even play rock music! But the truth is that, in every single possible definition of the word other than he plays music with two guitars, bass and drums, there's not an artist in the world alive that's as rock and roll as Kanye West.
What do you define as "a rock star"? Do you need to play music to be one? If so, why is it we commonly use the term to define things that have nothing to do with rock music, like lifestyle, haircuts or demeanour?
In terms of attitude, Kanye is one of the old breed of rock stars. A brash, can't-be-bothered to engage interviewee who says what he wants to say because he knows you wouldn't have asked to speak to him if you didn't want to hear it. When John Lennon calls The Beatles bigger than Jesus, or the Gallagher brothers direct some sweary tirade towards their peers, we canonise them as leaders of the pack, stars of such clear and present talent that they have simply become aware of their own destiny.
Kanye says what he wants, and gets nothing but mocking from the media. Sure, he's made some inconsiderate proclamations over the years - the Taylor Swift thing, the George Bush thing - but Kanye has always apologised. If you can forgive Lennon for beating his first wife, cheating on his second and disowning his eldest son, you can forgive Kanye for spoiling Taylor's precious moment.
If you want to talk in terms of decadence, Kanye lives the rock star life to the extreme. A world leader in style for a decade, Kanye dresses how he wants and has frequently shaped the face of men's fashion. Remember that leather skirt he wore in the N****s In Paris video? Of course you do: faux leather has made a comeback since, those over-long, loose ASOS shirts and jeans. At a time when white fashion has dived into repeating earlier decades, Kanye dresses like a futuristic hobo and gives no fucks that he looks different.
He's a role model for anyone that doesn't fit in in more ways than just dress sense. From the early stages of his career, West has been separate from the pack. His first album, recorded in the wake of a near-fatal car accident and released without much support, changed the face of hip-hop and brought the iron fortress of 90's gangster rap toppling down. His fourth album, written after the death of his mother (West personally blames himself for her death, following complications from plastic surgery she would never have gotten if not for the West family's newfound fame and fortune) wasn't well received at the time, but it's heartfelt melodies and minimalism once again wiped the slate clean and was the springboard upon which Drake and Kid Cudi gained attention. His fifth album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, was named album of the century by Pitchfork. And deservedly so.
West manages to come across as brash, unapologetic, and an unpredictable bomb of energy that thrashes around wildly on stage and shouts at the audience because he knows how big he is. If that isn't rock and roll, what is?
Glastonbury, a secret preserve of the middle-class, is an ageing festival. More musicians aged 70+ performed there this year than ever before, a trend that's been rising since the festival's beginning. Why are we turning Glastonbury into a pale, nostalgia-fuelled blur, blotting out the world with rose-tinted memories of the good ol' days, when we can puncture it with moments of modernity and invention?
You're welcome to believe Kanye West is the worst thing ever. But Kanye West does not take drugs and never glorifies them. Kanye West is a doting father, and married the woman of his dreams. Kanye West has never been convicted of sex with a minor, or of buying child pornography. Kanye West has never ordered a hit on anyone. Kanye West has donated hundreds of thousands to charity. I'm welcome to believe you're desperate to avoid the fact that the world's biggest musical star isn't a white face with a friendly smile. Thank God.
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