Kanye West is Perfect for Twitter

A few days ago, Kanye had over 50 tweets regarding public perception of him, his own evaluation of himself, and the VMA/Taylor Swift incident that caused recent (although almost a year ago) criticism.

Before I get too far into this, I should say my opinion about Kanye. I really believe he's one of the most talented and inspired artists out there. I would almost say he's a genius musically. He is always exploring new avenues for music that have not been written before. Every album sounds different. He took a chance on 808s and Heartbreak - and was successful with it - that you wouldn't see most artists dare to attempt. I almost believe he's bored musically, because he's challenging himself to be better and doesn't want more of the same. He's exploring other avenues as well - fashion obviously being one of his other passions. You don't usually see a straight black man adamant about creating new fashion, yet there's Kanye doing his thing. He's got very strong emotions, as you can see in his tantrums, beliefs (like the George Bush Doesn't Care About Black People), and even how upset he got over his mother's untimely passing.

He's cocky. There's no doubt about it. But he usually backs it up. He really believes that he deserves all the credit in the world for his music, and can't believe that U2 could possibly create a better record than him for the 2006 Grammys. Really Kanye? Better than U2? Good luck. Many people hate him for his brashness. I think that's what makes him so great; his belief in himself that he is the best. It's a gift & a curse. You think Taylor Swift really thought she was good enough to win Album of the Year this year? Over GaGa, Beyonce, Dave, and Black Eyed Peas? (I love/have a crush on Taylor and think she's absolutely adorable/amazing/etc but she probably would have bet on all of them but herself. That's part of what makes Taylor great though. I'm rambling.) Kanye believes he's the best. You have to respect his opinion.

There's no way around the Taylor Swift/VMA incident. He came off looking like an asshole. Everyone hated him. He was right though - Beyonce's video was the best. He just had (or created) a platform to share his opinion with the world. And look - Beyonce's video won Video of the Year. (Random tangent - how do you lose Female Video of the Year but win Video of the Year, don't they correlate? MTV is dumb.)


That doesn't make what Yeezy did right. It was Taylor's time to shine. He took that away from her. Asshole move, absolutely. He tweeted how everyone benefited from it though - and yet again, he's right. Taylor was/is clearly a rising star destined for the top, but her hysteria reached a new high following that incident. So did Beyonce's. Jay Leno certainly did for his first night. So did Kanye's. I think he summed it up best in this tweet: "Remember in Anchor Man when Ron Burgandy cursed on air and the entire city turned on him? But this wasn't a joke. This was & is my real life"

So besides 'Ye's spelling problems, it's so true. Ron Burgundy came back from his exile. Which finally (and longer than I had planned) gets back to why Kanye is good for Twitter. Kanye seems to be the rare breed of celebrity that really doesn't censor himself. He doesn't have someone talk for him. Kanye talks from his heart, without thinking rationally or about the implications of his words. At his level of celebrity, society says he can't say things like our President doesn't care about black people. His emotions told him otherwise.

Some celebrities don't speak, and if they're on Twitter, it's automated or fake or just stupid tweets. I'm not saying Kanye's are the most intellectual things out there, and it's not how everyone else (read: probably you) should tweet. But Twitter breaks down the barrier between the fan and the celebrity and Kanye can really speak to us. I saw his UStream from a month ago and was surprised at how normal he is, yet how much of a genius he is. It opens a whole new door that I think is perfect for him.

So Kanye apologized on Twitter. He's done it before. Going through all of his tweets, you can tell he has really thought about this. It's been on his mind for a while. The amount of criticism he got was unreal. I'm real excited to hear his song that he wrote for Taylor, and his new album. I don't really believe Kanye is a "changed man" - you can't change who you are. He may try harder to be a better person, but he is who he is - and that's why we listen to his music.

No one man should have all that power.

MTV's Jersey Shore is NOT My Jersey Shore

On MTV today was a marathon of their unbelievably successful Jersey Shore show. This meant that I struggled to accomplish anything. However a friend of mine the other day asked me about The New Jersey Shore, and I told her it wasn't the show. At least my version isn't.

Jersey's got the reputation. Dirty Jerz. It's really whatever you want to call it, but there's rarely ever any positive connotations. I'm in South Jersey/Cherry Hill a decent amount when I'm home, and it's a decent enough area. The shore though is a totally different animal.

When you're from Philadelphia, your typical concept of the Shore is anything south of Atlantic City. Sometimes you go to LBI. Most of the time, I would be in Ocean City, the island south of AC. It's very vacation friendly, although a little too family-friendly - it's an entirely dry island. This isn't too big of a deal, as alcohol is readily available across the bridge. Ocean City's home of Mack and Manco, the best pizza I've ever had. It's been listed by Philadelphia Magazine as best pizza multiple times.


The past few years though I've ventured further south to Stone Harbor, which is much more relaxed of a shore town. It features really only one street of shops and restaurants, and everything else is just a residential area. Very nice and really just a fun quiet shore town.



My point is, what you see on Jersey Shore isn't the only thing about NJ. In fact, the people on the show aren't even from Jersey. I've never been to Seaside, but I've always been told it was scummy and trashy (hence what you see on TV.) To me, the Jersey Shore is a great summer vacation spot. Sometimes a bit overcrowded, but a spot I always enjoy my time there. I don't think of it as trashy or Guido city. It's a great summer spot.

Reality Television has Ruined Quality TV

Reality television has been an ever growing genre of TV over the past decade. Blame it on The Real World or Big Brother whatever you want, but the reality (pun intended) is that it is here to stay. It's much more cost effective than paying for a scripted show, and can provide entertainment that people have come to crave. Wheather it is just normal reality or contest-specific, people cannot get enough.

I just finished watching another episode of Jersey Shore, and while I find it extremely entertaining, the show has been cause for alot of controversy. First, there was the sponsors pulling out. Then there was the Snooki-Punch that was blacked out . Many Italian American groups are asking MTV to pull the show. It won't get pulled. In fact it would be hard to believe it wouldn't get renewed for another season. This stuff is here to stay.

Is this really the kind of television we should stoop ourselves to though? It really breaks down to a psychological, almost 1984 Big Brother-like mentality, where we love to observe what other people are doing. Whether it's about people's love lives or just living their lives, people love to watch.

What the hell was the point of Jon and Kate Plus 8? There was no plot, it was literally just following the family through raising these children. So what? I never watched enough of the show to know more than that, but look at what celebrities Jon and Kate have become. While their drama has cooled down, they're still everywhere. It's unbelievable and sometimes pathetic. I'm picking on the TLC shows, because in general, they don't even provide any entertainment. It's literally, reality, just following. And that's what sparked the Ballon Boy drama. The Henne family wanted their own reality show and hoped by faking their son's disappearance was a ticket to the television. I'm sure that family would have been so boring it would of been painful.

At least the VH1 "celeb-reality" "love" shows are edited a thousand times with intent to provide entertainment and hooks to get people's attention. They cast actors and put them in a pro-drinking environment. Its a formula for disaster, which equals high ratings. The shows are cut copied and pasted into an entertaining format. They can cut down a week into a hour. Alot of details get cut out. Stuff gets edited into making things seem different than they are. Whatever The Hills actually is, they edit the hell out of that show, and it looks totally different than how it happened. The "stares" and "awkward looks" are all out of context. We're supposed to believe otherwise.

I'm starting to ramble, so I want to summarize. Reality television -- People love them. I love them. If you read this and are friends with me, you probably love them too. While not every show is for every person, it's wide enough to appeal to almost everyone. The television is such trash, but this is what we've dug ourselves into. And now we can't turn away. Networks caught on and there's 7 spinoffs to every show. We're stuck. We lose good shows like Arrested Development in favor of The Real Housewives of North Dakota. That's not really a show, it's to prove a point. It's a shame, but networks are greedy, and all the viewer asks is to be entertained.

Now if you'll excuse me, the latest season of The Real World just started, I'll see you later.