On This Day: “808’s & Heartbreak”

On this day 12 years ago, Kanye West released “808’s & Heartbreak”, his 4th studio album. Debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200, 808’s sold 450,000 units first week, by 2013 the album sold 1.7 million units in the U.S. & has become certified platinum. The album featured four singles: “Love Lockdown”, “Heatless”, “Paranoid” & “Amazing” ft. [Young] Jeezy. 808’s & Heartbreak was conceived during a dark time in Kanye’s life, namely the passing of his mother, Donda West, the breakup with longtime girlfriend & then fiancée, Alexis Phifer & the struggles with his newfound fame after the release of “Graduation” all contributed to the creation of this project. A stark change from his usual hip-hop element, Kanye dwelled into a new world, experimenting & mastering electronic sounds like 80’s pop synths & singing through auto-tune ,which still a growing facet at the time. 808’s helped pioneer the sound in hip-hop/rap music today, ushering in “emo rap” & experimenting with R&B in a way not seen before & has influenced many other genres as well following it’s release. While “Graduation” made it acceptable to be your true self, 808’s made acceptable for artist to show vulnerability, the trials of heartbreak & depression, the loneliness at the top of the game, things Kanye has stated that he cannot simply express through just rapping & many other themes that were not explored by rappers then. 808’s & Heartbreak is certainly one of the most groundbreaking albums of our generation, remaining a classic to this day & is my personal favorite Kanye West album.

November 24, 2008