At What Point Did Kanye Go From Being A Good Rapper/Producer to an Icon/legend?

[DoubleClutch]

Just seeing the reaction online to kanyes 2 songs and swish release date has me . So I was wondering when he took the step to being an icon?

Was it Jesus walks, all falls down, or maybe flashing lights.

Probably too early.

Was it 808s and heartbreaks then?

I remember the first kanye song that really set him apart from the rest to me was

 

[The_King_of_Everything]

When he bounced back after taylor swift.

 

[BrothaZay]

He hasnt

 

[big_controversy]

Graduation made him an icon in rap

The Dubya Katrina comments made him a pop icon

 

[DoubleClutch]

When he bounced back after taylor swift.

Yea and the whole Amber Rose situation too.

I'm gonna say somewhere between that, his mom dying and runaway.

But yea now that I think about it performing hey mama at the Grammys might be the moment.

 

[NoHalfWay]

Graduation made him icon/legend status.

Of course as a rapper you gotta put an asterisk next to his name cause his pen ain't working, but I see him in the same light as Dre.

 

[malbaker86]

I dont think he is but to give an answer...when hipsters started sucking him off left and right

 

[Calmye]

Calling out George Bush

 

[reserved_one]

For me it was Graduation, around the same time where he surpassed 50 Cent and became the biggest rapper in the world.

 

[Spiritual Stratocaster]

When he started getting washed up Brit rockers aggy ,while headling Rock festivals

 

[nairdas]

After Stronger dropped. His first and only number 1 hit right?

 

[Insensitive]

I don't think he's become an icon or legend yet.
He's changed pretty drastically from his earlier material and has ego
has grown/risen to astronomical levels.

I mean his "big brother" is if anything is more in line for an artist of legendary stature.
A "legend" shouldn't be struggling to outdo his protege's, for example, I've heard records
where Kanye is rapping with Travis $cott or Big Sean and he's failing to completely separate
their levels of skill.
While on the other hand when Jay-Z and Kanye rap together, it's almost always immediately
apparent who is the nicer of the two.


I think he's got a very strong discography but when I start to look at his music, his ghost writers,
his weak lyrical output (at times) then I start to wonder where exactly is this man "legendary" ?
I mean Dj Quik with probably 1/3 of Kanye's budget manages to put together straight masterpieces
THAT'S legendary to me.

 

[AyBrehHam Linkin]

the entertainment world literally stops to look when he does even the slightest thing. there is a whole instagram account of pictures of him doing random things and it has hundreds of thousands of followers. His tweets stop twitter. He invokes so many ranges of emotions from millions of people. Dude has to be among the most polarizing music figures in hip hop and pop history easily.


If you arent convinced hes a legend from his discography alone, you're retarded and your hip hop knowledge is not respectable in the slightest.

 

[frush11]

When he and the white music media told your.

 

[DoubleClutch]

I dont think he is but to give an answer...when hipsters started sucking him off left and right

Yea but that was supposed to be trend with most things hipsters like.

But now those same hipsters worship him