Dear Mr. West,
Your fans miss you. We need you to bring real hip hop back. We miss the Kanye that was about the music. You were right, we are all self conscious, and you really were the first to admit. You are the Louis Vuitton Don that spoke what was on everyone’s minds but were afraid to say. We first heard about you when you were in the accident that changed your life. Sure you were listed in the credits of several Roc-A-Fella albums, but who really reads the credits? You are the only rapper I know that literally spit your soul through the wire. You made us realize we weren’t the only ones who get tired of the bullshit life hands us. Who doesn’t want to “f*** the manager up” and feel like the “token blackie”? We all related to you on “Family Business”. You reminded fans that family may not always get along, and they all have drama, but at the end of the day, family s all we have. “The College Dropout” deserved to get Best Album of the Year by Rolling Stone.
You kept us going with Late Registration. The three songs that stick out to this fan is “Diamonds (from Sierra Leone)”, “Hey Mama” and, of course “Gold Digger”. You taught us so much on that one. I never knew about Blood Diamonds or gold diggers. There are a lot of young people whose eyes you opened, and I’m one of those people. Oh, and “Graduation”? Graduation was and still is the truth. You still have people walking around singing ‘Wait til I get my money right’. Speaking for myself, that album inspired me to keep doing what I love to do, which is write. When I get discouraged, I put in Graduation and listen to “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” and “Stronger”, and continue my day.
You were the only one to openly say that our president didn’t care about us. You spoke the truth and were shunned for it. Kind of ironic that you spoke about the looters being killed after Hurricane Katrina, and come to find out, you were telling the truth. The police have finally admitted after five years, that they shot and killed blacks for fun after the storm. Of course, there won’t be any public apologies to you, but just remember, your true fans stuck by you.
We felt your pain when you lost Dr. West. We knew how much she means to you and that part of your life will never be replaced. We understood completely when you took a leave of absence from the game. You needed to gather yourself. When you dropped “808’s & Heartbreak”, the critics hated on it, but your fans felt the emotion in every word. I must admit I listened to “Street Lights” about fifteen times on Valentine’s Day.
You felt the wrath of America again after the VMA’s. At first glance, your fans were shocked. Then we realized that at the end of the day, you wouldn’t do that. We figured out it was planned and nobody can tell your fans any different. We loved you from day one and we will continue to be by your side. We may not agree with everything you may say or do, but the love will always be there.
Sincerely,
The REAL Fans
