It’s hard to believe it now, but Kanye West used to be one of the most experimental and talented figures in modern hip-hop. From the fierce ambition of his game-altering debut The College Drop-Out twenty years ago, to 2010’s mangled and grandiose rap masterpiece My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, he’s been responsible for some truly trailblazing work, but more recently, he’s struggled to match his past heights. Back in 2015, he declared himself “the greatest living rock star on the planet” as he headlined Glastonbury, a strangely remote figure under glaring white spotlights on the Pyramid stage. The claim was short-lived: it has now been eight years since his last great record, the contrary, audacious, and whip-smart The Life Of Pablo.
