Kanye West

Inner Keys to Success:

• LET YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS OUT: Kanye implements his creativity into his work. He is known as one of the most creative producers and rappers in the hip-hop game which makes him unique and original compared to others. Thinking outside the box and being unorthodox with his music has given him the edge. His producing style consists of everything from “vocal-sampled soul songs”, to synth-pop music”. He states “I never felt completely comfortable. I’m tormented by the need to create. With the loss of McQueen I feel like we lost one of those faces of modern creativity’s Mount Rushmore…There were times that the only thing that kept me on this earth was the need and responsibility to create. Maybe McQueen felt his job was done because his last collection was the greatest of the decade.”

• PROBLEMS ARE OPPORTUNITIES IN DISGUISE: Kanye didn’t let adversity stop him from succeeding. In fact, the problems in his life are what inspired him, to rap. Jay Z was reluctant to let Kanye rap because he didn’t have the “street” image that rappers had, however after Kanye suffered a severe car accident; it inspired him to come out with his first single “Through The Wire” anyways. When you change your perspective on your solutions to problems they can help lead you to a ton of success. For Kanye, he feels that the limitations society puts on people, can be opportunities to push the human race forward. “I feel like all the words are in you, you’re just blocking yourself, you’re blocking your creativity. Society has put up so many boundaries, so many limitations on what’s right and wrong that it’s almost impossible to get a pure thought out…”

• STAND UP FOR YOUR PASSION: Kanye West took the risk of dropping out of college to focus on his passion, as he cut off all ends of retreat. Although he states he got A’s and B’s in school, Kanye’s passion was in music and he was willing to give up the good to go for the great. This bold move even inspired the title of his first album, “College Dropout”. Kanye says that creative individuals need to stand up for their dreams and stop being pushed around: “People don’t stand up and protect their dreams. People are too scared of getting spoofed, in a way…Creatives have gotten beat up my entire life. There’s moments when I stood up to drug dealers in Chicago and said, ‘You can’t have my publishing, come and kill me.” He credits this to much of his own success.

Little Known Success Fact:

Kanye West was a success before his rapping career as a producer, however, the one music video that rose Kanye West to rapping fame, Through The Wire, was created with West’s own money. Consequently, the sample used for the hit song was not even cleared by its original creators until the video was on MTV2. Bold individuals make it far, period.