I'm A MuthaF*cking Monster

  By now, I'm sure all of you true Hip-Hop heads have heard about the New Kanye West, Rick Ross, Jay-Z, and Nikki Minaj video "Monster" set to be released any day now. "Monster", said to be a genius collaborative effort from a few of Rap's heavy hitters, brings colorful lyrics to light with a crazy, addictive beat, but with the video, does West bite off more than he can chew by presenting such a controversial representation for the song?

  With a catchy beat, infused with killer lyrics made for an awesome head banger we can all relate to- as well all dominate in one area or another in life, hence, we all are a 'Monster' every now and again. With this ego boosting hit, music lovers gushed at the idea that a video was in the works. Thankfully for the fans, they released a sneak peek of the video which is posted on HipHopConnection.com & NecoleBitchie.com, which is about 45 seconds, and a few snapshots of the set as well.

  Not to quote HBO, but there was definitely reason to curb your enthusiasm. The song thought to announce rap skill superiority took a turn for the worst; The video:  instead of 'going hard', they are going macabre? Instead of enhancing the lyrics of the song, video producers and the "Dark, Twisted, and Beautiful" mind of Kanye West decided to go for a more literal depiction. The set, darkened not only in terms of lighting, but in tone as well. These pictures showed disturbing images of possession, death, suicide, cannibalism, and murder. Each rapper in his or her own visually, (for some spiritually) distasteful scene, which are bound to conjure up nightmares in the faint of heart.

   "Why?" one might ask, "Why so gruesome?", and others just faithfully jump on the bandwagon, calling all objectors to West's creative genius, 'heretics'. Am I the only one that finds this increasingly alarming? Instead of killing the track, are they killing themselves symbolically? or those who admire them? Too many questions to be answered from a simple 45 second video, and yet too much can be inferred from that short sample of what could possibly the best or most detrimental project West has taken on.

  Personally, I did not watch the "Power" video, and after seeing the stills of the 'Monster' video, I'll probably avoid that one as well. That is just my spiritual choice to do so, but I do encourage those interested to see for themselves- don't die of suspense. For those Anti-Conspiracy theorists out there, I know what you are thinking "Its just a video", and who knows, you may be right. But as soon as I saw the opening scene for 'Power', something in my body (I’m reluctant to say spirit) did not feel right, I had a sudden urge to turn the channel and I did. I am a very open-minded individual, and coming from Spencer, Oklahoma (hometown of Donda West), I've always supported Kanye since his mixtapes, so this is not a 'hater' movement speech.

  Something is broken in urban music- Individuality and opinion. Its a crime to speak out against the so-called 'genius' of a beloved music figure? If you dislike the Nikkis, Waynes, and Kanyes of the day, you are crazy or 'hating'. I am a Christian first, and an intellectual second, and both of these innate mental processes sense a problem with the current state of urban music and its depiction to the public. How will music evolve and refine if no one offers constructive criticisms of the craft? Groupthink (in context of the sociological concept) is a dangerous mental process and manifestation, and if we don't wake up from this spell, we will be cursed with much more than just mediocre mainstream music and low-brow, sarcastic representations of 'art', we will lose the ability to make up our own minds- slavery. And isn't that the real Mutherf*cking monster?