Kanye West sends us on a seizure-inducing trip with “All of the Lights”
Kanye West in "All of the Lights"
All of the Lights is Kanye West’s third single from his latest album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. The Hype Williams-directed music video has a strong similarity to the film “Enter the Void” by French director Gaspar Noe. The effect is almost seizure-inducing. All of the lights indeed. Not to mention the lyrics mention “cop lights, flash lights, spot lights, strobe lights, street lights”.
All of the Lights is an example of a good rap song someone not really into rap can enjoy. The rap verses and the hook do not overpower each other and instead balance each other. Even the extra vocals give a certain dynamism to the song.
The song in itself is like an A-list of sorts. Sure, we have Rihanna and Kid Cudi earning featured artist credits, but we also see a whole lot more talent in the list of who have contributed extra vocals: Tony Williams, The-Dream, Charlie Wilson, John Legend, Elly Jackson (La Roux), Alicia Keys, Elton John, Fergie, Ryan Leslie, Drake, Alvin Fields, and Ken Lewis. Were you able to hear them?
Kid Cudi in "All of the Lights"
A few side notes, I love Kid Cudi‘s voice. Whenever he does his part, it’s like he’s preparing me to get high (not that I am encouraging people to do so). There’s just something about the way he delivers his verses that makes me think of marijuana.
Rihanna in "All of the Lights"
Also, I gotta give props to Rihanna here. She can actually use her voice to sing songs that are less raunchy than her very recent and controversial song S&M. Although that “costume” she’s wearing is just not working for me. It makes her look dirty, and I don’t mean dirty in a sexy way. It looks rather something between bland and tasteless.
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[...] West also went home with three trophies for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for All of the Lights, and Best Rap Performance (with Jay-Z) for Otis, and Best Rap Album for My Beautiful Dark Twisted [...]