Kanye Says No to Shampoo Endorsements, Yes to Semi-Insane Rants Posted by Nathan S. on 02/25/13 | Filed under Top Stories, Opinion, Kanye West

You've got to give it to Kanye West, the man's nothing if not entertaining. Case in point, over the weekend he launched into a rant/freestyle/etc. at a London show primarily aimed at the dangers of "selling out" that should provide fuel for a pretty wide-ranging discussion. Thanks Mr. West.

“Creativity fuels everything. I hate business people. People get on the phone with me, tell me, oh you know like, ‘what kind of business can it do, though? What type of business are you doing? What’s the numbers? How much did you sell? What’s the radio spins? How much shampoo can you sell with your face on it and shit?”



First and foremost, I need to point out that Kanye's not being entirely upfront here. Either that or he's developed convenient amnesia and forgotten about that time he grabbed a magical Pepsi from a phone booth:



That shit's hilariously ironic after this rant, but it's pretty old, back when Yeezy was still the only rapper with a Benz and a backpack. But it's not like there aren't more recent examples. I highly doubt he's been doing these commercials for Nike out of the kindness of his heart:




Plus it's not like he's appearing on Kardashian reality shows because he really admires their artistic direction. But you do have to give the man credit, given how many sponsorships and commercials he could be doing, Ye's remarkably unconnected to corporate America. Part of that is his choice, and part of it is because companies aren't exactly lining up to put millions of dollars behind someone prone to snatching awards from white girls unpredictable moments. That's why Jay's doing deals with the NBA, because at this point in his career Jay's predictable, safe and always puts business first.

But that's also why Jay-Z' making music that's solid and often dope, but predictably dope, while Kanye's doing shit that's changing the course of hip-hop. The same borderline insanity that scares off companies is the same borderline insanity that creates such incredible music, and as always with Yeezy, you can't have one without the other. If you want "MBDTF", you have to put up with the outfits and occasional rants.

Ultimately we haven't learned anything from this rant that we didn't already know. For all his faults, Kanye deserves credit for maintaining a remarkable level of artistic integrity, he always speaks his mind, and his life is an ongoing rap soap opera.

Shots Fired?: On a side note, since this is rap we have to dig into the subliminal shots fired. The "shampoo" line - shots first at Memphis Bleek? And the "I got love for Hov but I ain’t f*king with that suit and tie" is so un-subliminal it's not really worth much discussion.

UPDATE: This video popped up while I was writing this. To cap things off, the following night he ended his show by screaming incoherently for a minute straight, then throwing his mic and walking off stage. So yeah, there's that. *This Kanye meltdown brought to you by Quiznos. Quiznos, if you like melty, you'll love us."*



UPDATE 2: He also said, "“I’ve never won a Grammy against a white person.” Is that true? Who wants to do some research for me?

See Also:  How Hilarious Is It Seeing A Young & Enthusiastic Kanye West In This Video Interview With Mase?
See Also:  The Funniest Kanye West Lines of All-Time