Dear Kanye,
Ihave early recollections of Damon Dash calling me and forcing me to putyou on Def Poetry Jam. I knew your record, "Through The Wire," but Ididn't know much more. When you took the stage on Def Poetry Jam thatnight, and spit those genuine, heartfelt words, I witnessed yourspecialness that Damon had emphatically told me about.
Fromthat moment on, you became a poet who has inspired the poets. I haveproudly watched your career since then, and in case someone has missedthe obvious, you are making a historical impact on music. Your lifestory took a tough turn with the passing of your mother. Although wegrieved with you, we never really knew how much pain you were in. Wewitnessed your moment at the MTV Music Awards and many of us dismissedit as, "oh that is just Kanye being Kanye." The hard part of all ofthis, is that we have all had moments in our lives that have beenchallenging, painful and hard to overcome, however most of us just hideour emotions and never deal with that inner-struggle that we face on adaily basis. As an artist, Kanye, you have always looked inside foryour inspiration...always exuding emotions that are in us, but that wenever expose. That is what artistry is about...to look inside for whatis unique. With your journey towards a higher level of consciousness, ajourney that we all are on, you have shown through your art acommitment to greatness.
Thethirty minute film you most recently made was beyond brilliant.Brilliance is not a word that can even begin to describe your abilityto paint vibrant, vivacious, colorful yet muted paintings of poetry,music, costume, art, design and most important, passion. The passionyou put into your new album is why I stayed up all those nights in theearly 80's trying to get DJs and radio stations to play our records. Iknew this day would come. Actually, maybe I didn't know, but I really,really hoped it would. I didn't work this hard when I was your age towatch the culture go the wrong way. And you, my friend, just took us toanother level. I am simply in awe.
Withthis power, as you know, comes great responsibility. I am sayingnothing you haven't heard before. When you spoke about President Bushduring the Katrina telethon, it was not the particulars of your wordsthat mattered, it was the essence of a feeling of the insensitivitytowards our communities that many of us have felt for far too long. Itwas the image of the President, our President, the President of theUnited States Of America, peering out the window of an airplane, as thepeople on the ground were drowning, that hurt us the most. Forcenturies, our people have relentlessly tread water as hard as theycould to stay afloat, and here we were, literally drowning, and it feltlike the President was insensitive. There is no need to apologize,Kanye. You spoke from your heart and that is all we will ever ask fromyou. Don't be afraid of the press, as your art is your blueprint,thanks to Jay-Z, your big brother, we will always carry our destiny inour own hands. You are are an artist whose art is masterful. You are aservant to this world who no matter how hard it gets, keeps on giving.Giving gifts that inspire us, challenge us and motivate us to be betterfamily and friends.
Keep on, Kanye. Keep on. We love you. We cherish you. And we will always have your back.
