Kanye West tierlist

I am and I am happy to admit it a Kanye West casual. I have only been listening to Ye for a few years but I have opinions and I love music. With the release of Donda, I have done a tier list of all albums and I will try to eloquently back up my points and explain my reasoning.   

S: Late Registration 

Late registration is a fucking banger of an album. The features on any album are like any other Kanye album so that can't really be an argument for me. Wake up Mr West to Heard em Say is one of the cleanest previews into song I have ever heard. The album feels bluesy with tracks like Drive Slow and Addiction featuring laid back beats with Kanye spitting all over it. Addiction is a great beat coupled with spitting about something which is not talked about enough. Hey Momma is a beautiful song a real tribute to Donda and gets me emotional every time I listen to it. 

Also you may have noted that I have one S. Pisses me off when people do tier lists and there's 4 S's. That makes sense its the best tier and it should only have one unless there is a tie for the best. 

A: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (MBDTF)and Life Of Pablo (LOP)

MBDTF was the closest for me with Late Registration for the S spot. Runaway is as close to perfection a song can get to me, the build up, the slow piano beginning, leading into verses from Pusha T and Kanye and almost the feedback style music at the end is perfect. Monster has Jay Z, Rick Ross as well as Nicki Minaj who absolutely kills it and steals the song. Devil in a New Dress is another highlight speaking of Rick Ross and MBDTF is only behind Late Registration due to the consistency of that album. The highs of MBDTF are higher but Late Registration hits about eight or higher pretty much every song. 

LOP is a very deep album. Theres so many songs on here that if you came on, you're getting gassed and turning up the music. No More Parties in LA and Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1 are peak Kanye, laid back beats with beautiful construction making the song feel like a work of art rather than pop music. Famous has got the most famous one of the most ironically famous bars of Kanye's music regarding Taylor. Ultralight Beam is a precursor for Jesus is King and how it could have been done better with more variety. 

B: YE, Yeezus and College Dropout (CD) 

Ye is almost a no skip album for me. The only reason the album isn't any higher is that it feels like an EP. It's a 7 track album totaling 23 mins and 43 secs, that is not long enough for me and unless every song is a 10/10 which this album is close to, it cannot be any harder. Ghost Town is beautiful and is in my top 3 Kanye songs and is the reason I started to listen to Kanye in the first place. A slow builder that hits on every note and crescendoes throughout the song. 

Yeezus feels like a pop album. Black Skinhead goes hard but I have heard it too many times on adverts and I know that isn't the fault of the song but it impacts it for me. I really like Bound 2, there is something about this song that gets me every time. Lyrically it isn't great but it is catchy and I have a great time listening to it. The only reason I think the song is not properly rated is because of the fucking crazy and mental music video. 

CD is a great first album and due to Kanye's producer skills means this debut does not sound like a debut but someone who has been doing this for years. There is some great songs on the album, New Workout Plan, Slow Jamz and Jesus Walks are all time Kanye Songs and offer a glimpse of the future of this upcoming rapper. There is only a few songs on this album though that stand up and if I was setting up a top 50 of Ye's songs there would only be a few on this album for me. 

C: Kids See Ghosts (KSG), Watch the Throne (WTT) and Graduation 

KSG is another great album but again feels like an EP. It is just under 24 minutes for me and this impacts the album for me. It is not close to a perfect album for me and that is why it is lower than Ye. It is a great sound and when two highly accomplished artists like Ye and Kid Cudi. I would love to hear a new collaborative album but please can it be longer. 

WTT is an album that I wasn't expecting to like but grew on me and especially the first song being No Church in the Wild, sets this album on the correct path. The people in Paris is headbanging, great lyrically and is a perfect mix of Kanye and Jay. Otis is another highlight of the album and stands the next of the time with a great combination of Jay and Ye and Otis Redding being featured as a sample of sorts. 

Graduation feels like a pop album to me. A few good songs but nothing really has a bit of an edge. Everything feels like a bit PG and a bit stereotypical. The songs feel extremely produced and just pretty filtered Kanye. Stronger is an example of this, good song a bit poppy but just feels pretty harmless, there is something there but not much below the surface. Good Morning, Champion and Stronger is a great start to the album which feels to be a constant opinion, great songs to start. 

D: Jesus is King (JiK)

Probably the most controversial album of Kanye's release. Most people would have it at the bottom of the list but I do see some promise in this album. I think a gospel songs can work, its shown in previous works. Jesus Walks and Ultralight Beam are examples of this, they have a gospel tinge to them but are great fucking songs and there a few on this album. Closed on Sunday and Follow God work but this album needs more variety and then it would be higher. 

E: 808s & Heartbreaks (808s)

808s is bottom for me and this is bottom of Kanye, it is still a good album. It is lot more electronic and doesn't feel like a rap a or a Kanye album. In most discographers there is one album that stands out for the bad reasons and feels different to the rest of them, this is the one. A few good songs on it but most of them just pass me by. Paranoid is a good use of the synths and the electronic sounds work but that is few and far between on the album.