Watching The Throne: A Lyrical Analysis Of Kanye West

Meet Caleb Smidt and his daughter Clementine. Hear how and why they’ve bonded over Kanye West’s music and what they’ve learned through the journey. If you'd like to support the show, please rate us on iTunes, or help us out on Patreon. You can buy The Yeezus Book—a scholarly, visual-heavy coffee table book that breaks down Yeezus in its entirety, from the album's narrative to the production to the tour—on June 18. Check out our two Kanye West shirts currently on the market (we have a Runaway and a Hold My Liquor shirt). Follow us on Twitter if you also like to constantly talk about how awesome Kanye is (we'll undoubtedly respond to you). And please, as always, stay loopy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was the four seconds heard around the world—the moment Kanye West couldn't answer a question about Donald Trump. Well...couldn't immediately answer. Which in retrospect seems kinda normal. Which makes you wonder why everyone is so mad about it. Which makes you wish someone would talk sensibly about Kanye's appearance on Jimmy Kimmel. Oh, hi! Chris and Travis are here to do just that. They discuss the ins and outs of what is now a classic Kanye West interview. From Trump to bipolarism to Pornhub, it's all here, and it's all wavy af. If you'd like to support the show, please rate us on iTunes, or help us out on Patreon. You can buy The Yeezus Book—a scholarly, visual-heavy coffee table book that breaks down Yeezus in its entirety, from the album's narrative to the production to the tour—on June 18. Check out our two Kanye West shirts currently on the market (we have a Runaway and a Hold My Liquor shirt). Follow us on Twitter if you also like to constantly talk about how awesome Kanye is (we'll undoubtedly re

Director, actor, podcast host, and all-around go-getter Chase Crawford dishes on his relationship with Kanye's music over the years.  Check out his podcast: According to the Internet Follow him on twitter: @chsecrwfrd If you'd like to support the show, please rate us on iTunes, or help us out on Patreon. You can buy The Yeezus Book—a scholarly, visual-heavy coffee table book that breaks down Yeezus in its entirety, from the album's narrative to the production to the tour—on June 18. Check out our two Kanye West shirts currently on the market (we have a Runaway and a Hold My Liquor shirt). Follow us on Twitter if you also like to constantly talk about how awesome Kanye is (we'll undoubtedly respond to you). And please, as always, stay loopy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen in awe as Justin Hunte brings to bear his prodigious knowledge on rap history and culture to speak on his highs and lows with Kanye. Justin Hunte is Head of Video Production & Development for Ambrosia For Heads. A former Editor-in-Chief of HipHopDX and creator of DX's popular series The Breakdown and #DXLive, Hunte has debated at the prestigious Oxford Union and is featured on Shade45's "All Out Show w/ Rude Jude," as well as Revolt TV’s “Revolt Live” Billboard magazine, digital campaigns for Lexus, Honda, Brisk, and Simple Mobile. Prior to joining HipHopDX, Hunte spent 5 years working in investment banking at Banc Of America/Merrill Lynch and has covered music, politics, and culture for numerous publications. He is currently based in Los Angeles, California.  If you'd like to support the show, please rate us on iTunes, or help us out on Patreon. You can buy The Yeezus Book—a scholarly, visual-heavy coffee table book that breaks down Yeezus in its entirety, from the album's narrative to the production

Donna-Claire discusses her relationship with Kanye's music, music in general, and writing about Ye's Wyoming projects. Listen for some insight and compassion.  Donna-Claire Chesman is an East Coast-based music writer, who loves Big L and The Fugees as much as jazz and her pet parrot. She is a senior writer for DJBooth and content strategist for Audiomack. Her past bylines include: Pigeons and Planes, Mass Appeal, XXL, Vinyl Me, Please, and others. Find her on Twitter, if you're so inclined. https://djbooth.net/author/donna-claire-chesman https://djbooth.net Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leon Laing is a Jamaican-American and founder of Vigor Online, an award-winning website that posts online stories about urban music, culture, and the arts in mainly the Harrisburg and Philadelphia areas.  Chris and Leon discuss Leon’s journey with Kanye’s music and Leon’s collection of Kanye magazine interviews. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before Chris and Travis dive headfirst into dissecting every nook and cranny of Kanye West's new album, ye, they're here to give some knee-jerk reactions to the days leading up to the album, their expectations, the live stream, and how they generally feel about the album about 12 hours in. On Tuesday, they'll start their full-on track-by-track analysis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yeezy Super-stan Robin Petering dishes on her experience with Kanye West concerts and more in this week's StorYe! Robin is a community inclusive researcher who specializes in homelessness advocacy. She runs a research consulting firm called Lens (the name for which was inspired by Frank Ocean). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Artist LaTosha Maddox shares how Kanye helped fuel her creative journey.  She is a 23 year old African American Visual Artist who takes strong influence in Pro Black themes and Pop Culture. After beginning her Art Education at The Delaplaine Visual Arts Center and Academy of Arts in Frederick Maryland she pursued a Fine Arts Degree at Louisiana State University. Currently residing in the DMV area, taking time off to focus on an array of creative pursuits. Visit contact for any personal inquiries or requests.  https://www.tinytosha.com You can commission works or buy her Kanye-inspired prints through her website! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Poopy-di scoop Scoop-diddy-whoop Whoop-di-scoop-di-poop Poop-di-scoopty Scoopty-whoop Whoopity-scoop, whoop-poop Poop-diddy, whoop-scoop Poop, poop Scoop-diddy-whoop Whoop-diddy-scoop Whoop-diddy-scoop, poop Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Spencer Wolff, aka @Snowcone965 on Twitter, is the man who helped popularize the theory that Ye’s recent controversies—Candace Owens, Trump, TMZ—are part of a larger performance art. Dive further into the concept with this discussion! If you want to read more about the theory to have some context heading into the episode, check out these two posts: https://twitter.com/Snowcone965/status/991695769714479104 https://pigeonsandplanes.com/in-depth/2018/05/kanye-west-prestige-theory  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A true lover of hip-hop, Daniel Pultz shares with us the reasons why he’s been a fan of Kanye since day 1. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deezie Brown’s album “Judith” is the closest thing Chris has felt to listening to Kanye. It makes sense that Deezie drew incredible inspiration from My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Enjoy the perspective an artist brings to talking about Kanye as Deezie shares his StorYe. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Watching the Throne is happy to host a conversation between DeMario Jackson and friends Amaron and Nate about the most dramatic week in Kanye history. Real people, real fans, real reactions. These are the real conversations Kanye is creating. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the first time, Chris and Travis have a Kanye West song that exists outside any album narrative. However, Ye vs. the People fits PERFECTLY into the Kanye West narrative on a broader scale, as he's now once again controlling the conversation, challenging conventional thought and shifting the zeitgeist. But is that good or bad? Is there a danger and naïveté to Kanye's rhetoric? Or should we think more constructively about Kanye's core message and reconsider how we talk about politics? Only time will tell. But for now, we've got Ye vs. the People. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Carrington Harrison is known for being a radio host on 610Sports in Kansas City. More relevant to Kanye fans, Carrington and his friends are the ones behind the Kanye Madness bracket challenge that swept the nation this March. On this episode you can find out more about how Kanye Madness got started and Carrington's own Kanye fandom.        Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zack specializes in the intersection of hip-hop and business (evidenced by his new book, 3 Kings: Diddy, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z and Hip-Hop’s Multibillion-Dollar Rise). This gives him quite the unique perspective on Kanye. Be prepared for what is one of our most fascinating StorYe’s to date!    ——————- Purchase 3 Kings: https://www.amazon.com/Kings-Diddy-Jay-Z-Hip-Hops-Multibillion-Dollar/dp/0316316539 ——————- Zack O'Malley Greenburg is the senior editor of media & entertainment at Forbes and author of three books: 3 Kings: Diddy, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z and Hip-Hop's Multibillion-Dollar Rise (Little, Brown, 2018); Michael Jackson, Inc. (Simon & Schuster / Atria, 2014) and the Jay-Z biography Empire State of Mind (Penguin / Portfolio, 2011). In a decade at Forbes, Zack has investigated topics from pension fund scandals to Katy Perry's touring business to the Wu-Tang Clan's secret album. His work has also appeared in the Washington Post, Sports Illustrated, Billboard, Complex, Vibe and McSweeney's; he's served as an expert sou

Robert Ruggerio is you. He's me. He's all of us who have followed Kanye since Through the Wire and had Ye not only be a soundtrack for life (from those teenage years, to the early twenties, now into the thirties), but this ethereal friend who has been there through the best and worst times. This is his/our StorYe.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Miranda Feneberger dishes on her history with Kanye's music, developing a love and understanding of hip hop, and more things Kanye West.  ------- Miranda's work has been published or is forthcoming on sites such as HelloGiggles, NYLON, HuffPo, Rookie, BuzzFeed, Bustle, Thought Catalog, andPaste Magazine. She has also been published in print in Shiny People Zine, and on indie sites like The Inkport and Vinyl Mag. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy Anne Burnside brings her expert opinion on African American history and culture to bear on Kanye as a musician, his influences, and his legacy.  ------ Timothy Anne Burnside works closely with object donors and museum colleagues to build collections and develop exhibitions and programs that offer complex representations of history and cultural expression. Her background includes curatorial research and collecting, archival work, collections management, and program production. Timothy began her career with the Smithsonian at the National Museum of American History in 2003, where she worked in the Archives Center and Division of Cultural History, then launched that museum’s hip-hop collecting initiative in 2006. She has since worked on many Smithsonian exhibitions and projects, including the NMAAHC’s preview exhibition about the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York that toured the country in 2010-2012. Timothy most recently contributed to multiple NMAAHC inaugural exhibitions, including Musical Crossroads