Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
Right now, Kanye is experiencing both the limitations of cancel culture and impact of it. His new album, “Vultures 1,” debuted at No. 1 on Apple Music and iTunes. (What cancel culture? Lots of fans still want to hear his music!) Then Apple Music and iTunes dropped the album. (Oh, you mean that cancel culture.) But then Spotify began streaming it, and he became the most streamed artist of the moment on Spotify. That said, the album is on pace to sell about 140,000 units this week making it one of the worst opening weeks Kanye has ever had.
Kanye has become even more polarizing than he was before. One former Spotify employee told Billboard, “There’s going to be a difference of opinion within those places [streaming companies] on how to handle it. Some people in leadership positions will want to be harsh on Kanye for the nasty antisemitic things he has said. There will also be another side, the hip-hop teams who will say… We don’t care.”
I’ve asked if it’s even OK to listen to a new Kanye album and that sentiment is spreading. Recently, the internet’s favorite music reviewer Anthony Fantano said “Vultures 1” was “unreviewable trash” — but at least he listened to it and didn’t just dismiss it because of Kanye’s comments, right? Nope. In Fantano’s “review,” he started with a long discussion of how Kanye’s antisemitism makes it impossible to deal with him purely as a musician. “What am I supposed to do?” Fantano said. “Tell the Jews in my audience, ‘Aw c’mon man, he didn’t mean it. It’s not so bad. He’s just a little crazy. Especially since he’s not doing anything to gain forgiveness?” It’s true that his apology was superlame. (That’s the part that makes it unreviewable, but Fantano does get around to actually reviewing the music and declares it…
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