‘Bully’: A Review

Grade: C-

The legendary author and activist Dick Gregory once remarked that Adolph Hitler would’ve killed Foundational Black Americans (FBA) if he could reach them. Ye may not have known this. He might have even gleaned how Hitler reacted to Jesse Owens' gold-medal performance at the 1936 Olympics.

This album Bully is in a sense that ignorance that Ye continues to contribute to the world. He has thrived off of being uneducated from the beginning.

The tone and overall feeling is still dark like most of his previous efforts. This does not signal depth, however. Ye shows up on tracks with more vulnerability than anything else. The ego is as fractured as a mirror. He stares into the shattered image as he barks on tracks, yelps on tracks, and creates a sound that makes a sound that is contrived in certain spots.

The soulfulness of tracks like “PREACHER MAN” coincides with songs like “” that scratch with a staticky throb make the album difficult to listen to at times.

In recent court appearances, Ye’s lawyer recommended that his heinous actions be taken as performance art. No. Denigrating Jews and FBA is not an art which uses a selective recreation of the value judgments of an individual.

So, Bully is chock full of bravado that is quickly struck down by humility. The ego that is so inherent in hip hop is often misguided by saying rappers get their arrogance from God. Ye has been the banner waver for this kind of feeling for over two decades.

Since there is no God, it only complicates the reality that Ye has been touting such incendiary ideals that still will never be forgotten or possibly be forgiven.

Soul samples and industrial acoustics back the braggadocia that is somehow combined with the “spirituality” of his understanding. I’m still waiting for the serious atheist, even Objectivist rapper to come to the fore.

Ye had already shown how “Jesus Walks.” When will we see “Ayn Rand Writes”? Without the pounding beats and the mystical lyrics, this could’ve been an album of great import and taste.

It seems Ye is trying to stamp his way into the unknown and unknowable land called heaven. He’s been trying to do that for about a decade now. With gospel songs and driving bass, he’s made something targeted at the masses, more attuned to his rabid fanbase.

His inability to recognize reality on these songs clashes with humor and a deep sense of what it means to be human.

If he had just brought in his ability to actually rap without being mired down in ugly sonics and then blissful cooing over the track by the gospel tracks he chooses, he is definitely in territory for being a better rapper but not the best.

As an artist, his style selections and specific ideals cover a gamut of different emotions, moods, and sentiments that exhibit a tortured soul who should know better. He’s a man who feels he has to concoct music that has to uproot the notions of the nations and generations. He sings and raps as he has done since his inception. He’s kind of like an elevated Diddy. He’s not the greatest rapper, producer, or dancer, but he’s a strong lyricist (for the portions he wrote).

In reality, there’s a dearth of excellence in this project as it fails to present a cohesive comprehension of what it means to be a FBA. He still has lines like “Life gave me lemons, I made an Arnold Palmer on the rocks.”

When Ye puts in the work to craft his raps, he exposes his active mind that should not step out but stay in course.

Objective Observations

The name drops in rap continue as Ye include Gwenyth Paltrow, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Akon, and Matt Damon

“SISTERS AND BROTHERS” is the most annoying production as it sounds like static or clippers