The Ubiquitous Kanye Bracket: Our Picks
The tournament may be over, but Bracket Madness is still everywhere in America. Yes, if you have been on social media, or really anywhere on the Internet, in the last month and a half, you’ve no doubt seen some pop culture bracket making the rounds. In other words, seemingly as present as College Basketball picks this past March were people’s Tweets or Facebook posts about their selections in the Pixar bracket, or candy bracket, or Nintendo bracket, or Leonardo DiCaprio’s hats bracket. But the bracket that spawned all these others— indeed, the one bracket to rule them all — was undoubtedly the ‘Kanye Madness’ bracket, started by Twitter user Carrington Harrison. Whether it was the ardent fanbase the rapper has, or the pretty colors/formatting that Harrison used that inspired such virality, we don’t know. But there have been countless submissions of Kanye Madness, and we want to throw our hats in the ring.
For reference, as you follow along, here’s the bracket in its original form.
Daniel: Let me start by saying that I was terribly inconsistent in my criteria for selecting my winners. Oftentimes, I just picked the one I flat-out liked more, but other times, I tried to choose the ‘objectively better’ song. Many of my picks were fueled by nostalgia, many others were fueled by not wanting to reward one album’s tracklist more than another… I was all over the place. I’m not saying take my picks with a grain of salt, I’m just saying don’t read too much into my reasoning for each selection.
Micah: Let ME preface this bracket by saying that I’m not near the Kanye-homer that many others are. I didn’t listen to College Dropout or Late Registration when they released (don’t worry, they’ve been perused since. I approve). I listened to Yeezus once through... aaaaand that was that (some great songs, not a great album). Graduation was my first “ohhhh MAN” Kanye moment -- that album was part of my initial immersion into hip-hop. Graduation, 808s, MBDTF, Watch The Throne, The Life Of Pablo -- all so great.
Daniel: So in conclusion: there’s a healthy dose of objective skepticism to counteract the fanboy-ism?
Micah: Right.
Daniel: While we’re prefacing this, we both had issues with the seeding, didn’t we?
Micah: Big time. I don’t think either of us had too many issues with the field themselves, except maybe for “Waves” and “Wolves” being left out of the Life Of Pablo representatives. But some of the seeds in which certain tracks ended up, whether it’s over-seeding or under-seeding, are inexplicable. I’d love to know the creator’s criteria.
Daniel: RELEASE YOUR TAX FORMS, HARRISON.
First Round
Daniel:
Micah:
Daniel:
(3) ‘Flashing Lights’ over (14) ‘Famous’
This was brutal for me. These were two songs I had anticipated making a run in my bracket. I described this matchup as “the 3 v. 14 game that goes to Triple OT, but you know the 3-seed will eventually pull it out.” In my heart, I knew ‘Flashing Lights’ was going to win, but the beat and drop on ‘Famous’, as well as my well-documented Taylor Swift hatred, made me seriously ponder this one.
(15) ‘No Church In The Wild’ over (2) ‘Through The Wire’
Another brutal first-round pairing, largely due to the atrocious underselling of ‘No Church.’ I fault absolutely nobody for going with the higher seed in this matchup; ‘Through The Wire’ was essentially Kanye’s first track. And he rapped it with his mouth wired partially shut after an accident that left him seriously hurt. And, with all that in mind, it’s so GOOD. But: inferior backstory and all, large contribution from Jay-Z and Frank Ocean and all, ‘No Church’ can’t be beat here for me. Such an epic song.
(13) ‘Blood On The Leaves’ over (4) ‘Runaway’
This is where I’m a little glad The Couch doesn’t have the nationwide readership of other blogs. Because I know the Kanye-heads would tear me apart for this one. ‘Runaway’ is largely considered one of his greatest songs, and in fact, was one of the most popular picks I saw on social media. But it just doesn’t do it for me; there are two drawn-out, heartwrenching, self-aggrandizing tracks on Dark Twisted Fantasy and between the two, I think ‘Blame Game’ is superior. Plus, ‘Blood On The Leaves’ is criminally underrated. The Nina Simone sample with those booming horns give me goosebumps.
(13) ‘Black Skinheads’ over (4) ‘Stronger’
I know readers are probably angry about this pick, too, but direct your anger towards the creator!! ‘Black Skinheads’ a 13 seed?! That song was legendary, easily the most massive and impactful track of Later Kanye. ‘Stronger’ also should probably be higher than a 4, and it is a phenomenal song. But that booming drumline beats out the Daft Punk sample for me.
Micah:
(13) ‘Real Friends’ over (4) ‘Devil In A New Dress’
Don’t shoot me but… I don’t like ‘Devil’ as much as everyone else does. *ducks* Look, it’s a great song, but Ricky Rozay outshines Kanye and it’s the one song on Twisted Fantasy that Ye didn’t produce (that honor goes to Bink!). ‘Real Friends’, on the other hand, is new Kanye at his most powerful and vulnerable. Also, a Ty Dolla $ign feature always brings out the best in every song.
(9) ‘Heartless’ over (8) ‘Monster’
Listen, ‘Monster’ is an objectively greater song than ‘Heartless’, but it’s not because of Ye. Nicki is that song. But Heartless is a redefiner. When 808s came out, it was received very tepidly. But with hindsight and all that, it was a revolution. It paved the way for rappers at the forefront of this generation -- the Lil Uzi’s, the 21 Savage’s, the Travis Scott’s, the XXX’s -- to create like they do. The dissonance, the emoting -- do we get this without this? I lean towards no.
(2) ‘Power’ over (15) ‘Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1’
*my thought process when I saw this matchup*
Me: Ooooh, intriguing. ‘Power’ isn’t that big of a Goliath..
Metro Boomin: “if Young Metro don’t trust you…”
Me: Any song that has enough gravity to start a vine trend has potential for an upset…
Kanye: “Now if I F*** this MODEL! and she just BLEACHED her A**H***!”
Me: Nevermindnevermindmovingon
(13) ‘Dark Fantasy’ over (4) ‘Diamonds From Sierra Leone’
I love ‘Diamonds’, but ‘Dark Fantasy’ features perhaps the most recognizable/imitatible chorus of Ye’s discography, and Kanye’s entire first verse threads along a single rhyme scheme. Peep it: Chicago/Murcielago/that I blow/no hablo/Diablo/bravado/the models/Serato/do I know/a Nas flow/Phoebe Philo/Sleepy Hallow. Geez.
Round Of 32
Daniel:
Micah:
Daniel:
(2) ‘All Of The Lights’ over (10) ‘Get Em High’
This was still a relatively easy pick for me, as ‘All Of The Lights’ is an epic, inspiring, collaborative song. But I did want to give a shout out to ‘Get Em High’; this was one of the 2 or 3 tracks that I was grateful to this bracket for re-introducing me to, and has been on repeat the last week or so.
(5) ‘We Major’ over (13) ‘Black Skinheads’
I know it wasn’t by accident, because it was a bit of a chore to format the winner before Micah made his attractive formatting, but I still can’t believe I picked ‘We Major’ here. Maybe I was drunk or sleep-deprived at the time. ‘We Major’ is a fine song, but not better than ‘Black Skinheads’, particularly when the latter just unseated ‘Stronger.’ Consider this my formal retraction of that pick.
(2) ‘Power’ vs. (10) ‘Good Morning’
This was the closest I came to having a 2-seed lose in this round; ‘Power’ is one of Kanye’s objective bests, and that’s ultimately why it won for me. But ‘Good Morning’ is just so pleasing, calming, and emotive, all in one. Graduation is a nostalgia-packed album for me, and its leadoff track is one of the most nostalgic of them all.
(9) ‘Otis’ over (1) ‘Touch The Sky’
UPEST ALERT UPSET ALERT. We have our first #1 down! (In my bracket.) I always thought ‘Touch The Sky’ was the Xavier of this bracket. Really good song, sure, but a 1 seed? Nah. Moreover, ‘Otis’ is just so good. A 3-minute, energy-packed joy ride.
Micah:
(11) ‘New Slaves’ over (3) ‘Flashing Lights’
I’ll refer you to Daniel’s write-ups on ‘Flashing Lights’ to give you a sense of how great that song is, but ‘New Slaves’ is just different. Please harken back to a Yeezus tweet from July of 2013: “I open the debate…The 2nd verse of New Slaves is the best rap verse of all time….meaning … OF ALL TIME IN THE HISTORY OF RAP MUSIC, PERIOD.” Who am I to disagree with the man himself?
(3) ‘Good Life’ over (11) ‘Roses’
This one wasn’t close. I just wanted to let you all know that ‘Good Life’ is MY JAM.
(6) ‘Gold Digger’ over (3) ‘Slow Jamz’
‘Slow Jamz’ is, well, a jam. It’s a great song! But Twista murderrrrrrrrrs his verse, and actually co-released the song on his album two weeks before College Dropout released. It’s simply not gonna beat out the song that Shea Serrano dubbed The Most Important Rap Song of 2005 (if you like rap and you like witty writing, check out his book The Rap Yearbook). ‘Digger’ was #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 for ten weeks straight and (at the time) set the record for most digital downloads in a week ever. So yeah.
(7) ‘Family Business’ over (2) ‘N****s In Paris’
I’m playing my trump card here. ‘Paris’ is the better song, I know, I’m not denying it. But ‘Family Business’ is just… nostalgic. I realize I’m a middle-class white guy from Iowan suburbia (about the furthest thing from Southside Chi as possible), but the sentimental piano riffs and fuzzy production evokes familiarity. Plus, I’m protesting the seedings of the other Throne songs by eliminating this one early on. That doesn’t make sense but I don’t care. DRAIN THE SWAMP.
Sweet 16
Daniel:
Micah:
Daniel:
(14) ‘Homecoming’ over (2) ’N****s in Paris’
The observant eye will notice that most of my Cinderella teams fell to titans in the Sweet 16: ‘Real Friends’ and ‘Blood On The Leaves’ to 1-seeds ‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’ and ‘All Falls Down’, respectively. ‘No Church In The Wild’, the Florida Gulf Coast of the bracket, went down to ‘Flashing Lights.’
One Cinderella that’s still dancing? 14th-seeded ‘Homecoming.’ I mentioned the power of nostalgia in Graduation, and this track may take the cake. It helps that it features the lead singer of my favorite band growing up, and, released maybe 5 months after I moved away from the suburbs of Chicago, the song’s lyrics discuss the emotional complexities of coming home to Chicago. But more than that, “Homecoming” is just a wonderfully-realized song, genuinely superior to ’N****s In Paris’, which mostly made it this far due to a relatively easy bracket.
Micah:
(2) ‘Through The Wire’ over (11) ‘New Slaves’
This matchup came down to the wire (no pun intended). It’s a last second shot -- ‘Wire’ puts up a Kanye slurring his rhymes through a busted jaw shot, but ‘New Slaves’ Kanye flex: co-sign the greatest male vocalist of our generation (Frank Ocean) but not even have a chorus’ hand is in its face. The ball goes up… and up… and up -- it’s a really high-arcing shot -- and finally splashes through the net. ‘Through The Wire’ moves on.
(1) ‘Jesus Walks’ over (3) ‘Stronger’
I’m pretty sure ‘Stronger’ was on every pre-game basketball playlist in 2007 ever. Every dang gym was bumping Ye -- and for good reason. ‘Stronger’ is hype -- though probably a little too risqué for 7th grade warmup songs -- and one of the greatest samples in rap history. But did you know that there’s a ‘Jesus Walks’ dance? Betcha didn’t. Any song with a choreographed dance automatically wins in my book. And wedding DJs, take note: I don’t want none of that ‘Electric Slide’ garbage any more.
Elite Eight
Daniel:
Micah:
Daniel:
(3) ‘Flashing Lights’ over (1) ‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’
The second 1-seed to fall is, well, the 2nd-weakest one. ‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’ is a great track, and certainly marked the emergence of Kanye The Persona. But in comparison to its fellow Graduation-mate ‘Flashing Lights’, it pales in terms of wordplay, emotion, and musicality.
(4) ‘Diamonds From Sierra Leone’ over (14) ‘Homecoming’
If you just read my notes from last round, you’ll know how hard it was to not pick ‘Homecoming’ this round. But remember when I said ‘Get Em High’ was one of the songs I was most thankful for re-learning? ‘Diamonds’ was the other one.
I had completely forgotten how incredible this song was. The vocal sample, the beat, the lyrics…all of those are among Kanye’s best. Fun fact: I had been listening to the remix with Jay-Z’s verse (also great) in the first couple rounds before remembering the original with just Kanye, which is even BETTER. ‘Diamonds’ partially benefitted from being in the easiest bracket, sure, but it also has certainly launched itself into my Top 5 Kanye songs.
Micah:
(4) ‘Runaway’ over (2) ‘All Of The Lights’
I see these two as somewhat-polar opposites. While both are impeccably produced (which is, in my mind, what separates Kanye from other geniuses of the rap world), they’re structured completely differently. ‘AOTL’ is an overwhelming flood of of brass, snares, and vocals. You knew Rihanna sang the chorus, but did you know Drake is in there too? And Alicia Keys? And Kid Cudi? The list goes on too. It’s crazy. Runaway is different though. It’s staccato; skeletal; soul-piercing. The outro is one of the most trance-enducing things I’ve ever heard. Kanye has a lot of ‘AOTL’s, but not so many ‘Runaway’s.
(1) ‘Jesus Walks’ over (6) ‘Gold Digger’
This is tough. Both won Grammys (‘Jesus Walks’: Best Rap Song; ‘Gold Digger’ Best Rap Solo Performance) and both established dominance on the charts. I’m gonna have to tip the cap to ‘Jesus Walks’ though, because a) to have critical acclaim in mainstream hip-hop with a faith-based song is incredibly difficult, and b) he released three different music videos and two remixes of it, which is just awesome.
Final Four
Daniel:
Micah:
Daniel:
(3) ‘Flashing Lights’ over (1) ‘All Falls Down’
Don’t worry, you're not alone. I stunned myself with this one. I genuinely thought at first glance of this bracket that ‘All Falls Down’ might win it. It’s, at worst, in my Top 3 Favorites. Lyrically, it may just be Kanye’s best. But good lord, ‘Flashing Lights’ is the rush of endorphins I can’t quit. My love for Graduation is part musical appreciation, part wistful yearning for the emotional days of high school. And no moment on that album takes me back to those times more than the opening 45 seconds of ‘Flashing Lights’: the strings, then the flute, then the snare, then the claps, then the spoken voice, then the synth, then “She don’t believe in shootin’ stars/But she believe in shoes and cars”…perfection.
(1) ‘Jesus Walks’ over (4) ‘Diamonds From Sierra Leone’
I know I just waxed lyrical about my newfound/re-discovered love for ‘Sierra Leone’, but knocking off ‘Jesus Walks’ in my book is a pretty big ask for me. ‘Jesus Walks’ was my introduction to Kanye, it hits hard musically and lyrically, and makes a statement bolder than many of the inflammatory things ‘Ye has proclaimed in his career. I want to also take this time to promise that I really do love My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. It’s Kanye’s best album, and at worst, my 2nd-favorite, and thus, I feel bad how little representation its songs had in the later stages of my bracket. It all came down to matchups, matchups that rendered all 4 of my Final 4 candidates being from Kanye’s original trilogy.
Micah:
(4) ‘Runaway’ over (1) ‘Can't Tell Me Nothing’
‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’ is a monster. It’s the manifestation of one of the biggest egos the hip-hop genre has ever seen. Every two-bar is quotable. Every line is big ol’ F U. A few examples of such: “I had a dream I could buy my way to heaven/When I awoke, I spent that on a necklace”; “So I parallel double parked that motherf****r sideways/Old folks talking ‘bout ‘back in my day’”; “But homie this is my day/Class started 2 hours ago, OH AM I LATE?”. Put this track on at any house party in the country and the place will go nuts.
‘Runaway’ is the exact opposite. ‘Runaway’ speaks on these ever-present subjects of fame, sex, and success, but strips away every ounce of glamour from them. Kanye only delivers 16 bars over the entire nine minutes and seven seconds (excluding the bridge and chorus), but they’re hauntingly beautiful -- a perfect recipe for the best song on an album entitled My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy that’s filled to the brim with over-the-top orchestras, features, and bravado. Pusha T’s (S/O Clipse) feature is the perfect addition to the song. It creates an opposing layer of internal anxiety. Pusha’s arrogant, I-can’t-help-it-and-I’m-not-gonna-try attitude flawlessly offsets Kanye’s remorse. And, with it being sandwiched between Ye’s two verses and precluding the song’s 4:40 outro, it doesn’t overshadow Kanye in the slightest.
(1) ‘Touch The Sky’ over (1) ‘Jesus Walks’
‘Jesus Walks’ is a redefiner. Kanye created an explicitly faith-based rap song and launched it into the stratosphere of mainstream media. Sure, other rappers had often mentioned their backgrounds in Christianity in songs before, but nothing like this. This is a different kind of mention. It’s a strange, I’m-so-big-I-can-do-even-this type of flex. Judge the validity of Kanye’s faith yourself (I personally will leave that job to the Man Upstairs), but when he raps this in a song and it still rocks charts like it did, you know the dude’s got some pull. Peep: “I’m just tryna say the way school need teachers/The way Kathie Lee need Regis, that’s the way I need Jesus/So here go my single dog, radio needs this/They say you can rap about anything, except for Jesus/That means guns, sex, lies, videotape/But if I talk about God my record won’t get played, huh?” That’s different.
‘Touch The Sky’ is the best feel-good song that Kanye has ever made. It tops ‘Good Life’, ‘Champion’, ‘Homecoming’ and any other track you want to put up against it. The horn blasts, the drum snaps, the way the beat cuts out at the end of each verse -- it’s all so GOOD. But all of that is outdone by Kanye’s delivery. It’s a relentless, lilting stream of swag. It’s awesome. The lyrics aren’t anything special and the song was actually produced by Just Blaze, but this is peak Kanye the Rapper. Lupe’s feature is iconic in its own right, too. Previously an unheralded rapper from Chicago, ‘Touch The Sky’ undoubtedly launched his career. Shortly after this single released, Lupe released his debut album Food & Liquor, an all-time great (and yes, we’ll ignore Lasers). He can thank ‘Touch The Sky’ for the once-in-a-lifetime springboard.
Championship
Daniel:
Micah:
Daniel:
‘Jesus Walks’
Before discussing this bracket with Micah, I actually spent an hour and a half through the whole thing with my little brother, a neophyte rap fan whose appreciation of the genre mostly began with a full survey of Kanye’s discography. Despite several disagreements, particularly at later stages in the bracket, we both arrived at ‘Jesus Walks’ being the winner. Our rationale was similar.
This isn’t a head choice or a heart choice. It’s both. Objectively, ‘Jesus Walks’ is one of Kanye’s best creations. The militaristic chant, coupled with the gospel vocals, perfectly ties the thematic blend of “We at war” with “Hell yeah, Jesus walks with them.” The lyrics are some of the most profound discourse Mr. West has had to this day. It was also, of course, his first mega-hit.
But this one’s also personal. For both my brother and I, as was the case for many, this was the track that introduced us to Kanye, the first indication that a real new talent was on the way, someone who was making music in a way that had not really been done before. More personally: as a Christian, I spent about 4 years forsaking rap in the name of a youth-group level understanding that all songs that used dirty words or talked about drugs were inherently bad. My freshman year in Calvin College, I attended a lecture that changed that for me, titled ‘The Theology of Hip-Hop’. In it, Professor Daniel White Hodge (and yes, consider this my voluntary plug for his book) critically analyzed several rap songs, pointing out the very impactful socio-economic themes and ramifications, as well as how religion/spirituality/Christianity intertwined in those songs. It was an amazing lecture, one that completely opened my eyes to the importance of and beauty and craft involved with the genre of Rap, and in the question-and-answer session, someone asked about the place of Lecrae, Propaganda, and other Christian rappers. His answer has stuck with me since then, and I’d like to close by paraphrasing him here:
There is something to be said for high-quality Christian hip-hop artists and the messages they bring and the work they do. But it’s another thing altogether when a mainstream star uses their platform to make a statement and proclamation to an audience that may not hear it otherwise. In that regard, ‘Jesus Walks’ has done more for Christianity in rap than any other religious artist or song could do.
Micah:
‘Runaway’
The championship, les triomphes ultime of Kanye the Producer vs. Kanye the Rapper. I’ve already said most of want I want to say about these two songs in the Final Four section. But every iconic, theoretical-march-madness-bracket-winning song needs a backstory. Both have stories associated with it, but one is significantly better than other.
‘Touch The Sky’ had a music video accompanying it that portrayed Kanye as “Evel Kanyevel”, a stuntman attempting to jump the Grand Canyon in a rocket, much to the dismay of his girlfriend, Pamela Anderson. Well, the real Evel Knievel got mad and sued Kanye for copyright infringement (it never got to court because Kanye offered to meet Evel in person and talk things out. Evel called Kanye “a perfect gentleman”. lololololol).
Emile Haynie, a co-producer for ‘Runaway’, tells a story of how Kanye nonchalantly asked Emile if he had any beats. Emile played one and -- well, let’s just hear what he says. “It was pretty amazing to watch. [Kanye] heard the beat once, then asked the guy to play it one more time, and then was just like, ‘Okay, put it in Pro Tools.’ And when he said that, the room was like, ‘Oh s**t.’ He probably had listened to the beat for four minutes, and got in the booth, and almost verbatim to what’s on the song today, just did it.”
That’s dope. Add that in with phenomenal production, raw lyrics, and a sublime feature, and you get a championship-winning track.