NEWS
EVENTS
World Wide Premier of Kanye's 'New Slaves' Video
RnB/Hip Hop | Friday 24th May 2013 | Jake
It started at about 12.45 right outside of the Tate, a small, cold, but definitely buzzing crowd had formed round a few guys setting up a projecter and some camera equipment. This was to be the location Kanye would bless us with the premier of his new video for 'New Slaves', a track from his upcoming album 'Yeezus' set for release on June 18. After a brief bit of technical difficulty on Yeezy's teams part it was underway, the projector forming a surprisingly clear image on the Thames facing side of the Tate.
Kanye's never been known as a 'political' or 'conscious' rapper, although that's not to say he's not 'been there' before. See 'Who Will Survive In America' featuring Gil Scott Heron off his 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy' LP and 'Crack Music' from 'Late Registration' for times where Kanye's more concious side has come through.
'New Slaves' is 100% political commentary and its great. The video itself is just a shot of Kanye's face rapping, simple but effective as not only does it make Kanye's message appear more personal and genuine but it also puts more focus on the lyrics and the message itself. The message he's trying to get across can be summed up in in these lines: 'Fuck you and your corporation, Y'all niggas can't control me, I know that we the new slaves'. Along with the title of the tune 'New Slaves', we're seeing Yeezy imply the new slave system is more an economic one than a racial one. With some statistics saying CEOs' wages are 400x that of the janitors in the same corporation, who's to argue with him?
Back to the music itself, Kanye spits over a very stripped down, tense synth riff with a distinct lack of drums. This again, puts Kanye's rapping and lyrics at the forefront of the tune. Kanye's voice gets noticeably more intense and forceful as the song goes on, ending his rapping section with "I'm bout to tear shit down, I'm bout to air shit out, Now what the fuck they gon' say now?' before breaking into a sweet, catchy outro section sung by Frank Ocean.
If 'New Slaves' and the other tune from the upcoming 'Yeezus', 'Black Skinhead' are anything to go by, Kanye seems to be headed in a much more conscious direction with his lyricism, whilst still retaining his quality production and accessebility. Catch a recording of the song here:
Jake Pearce @LoopBe1 Pictures by @JesseOlu
