Music

Pink Floyd producer Bob Ezrin calls Kanye West 'sophomoric at best'

by Jesse Locke

Famed Canadian record producer Bob Ezrin (whose credits include Pink Floyd’s The Wall, KISS’s Destroyer, Lou Reed’s Berlin, and Alice Cooper’s 1970s albums) has sounded off with some negative opinions about Kanye West.

Ezrin penned a rant about the rapper for the online newsletter of music industry analyst/annoyance Bob Lefsetz. Alongside Lefsetz’s rightfully criticized victim-blaming post about Kesha and Dr. Luke (which caused a surge of outrage clicks to crash his site), here’s what Ezrin had to say about Kanye:

“Sure, he made some great music for himself and others. But in spite of what the aspirationally-cool media keeps saying about him, unlike other creators in his genre like Jay-Z, Tupac, Biggie or even M.C. Hammer for that matter, it’s unlikely that we’ll be quoting too many of Kanye’s songs 20 years from now. He didn’t open up new avenues of public discourse like NWA, or introduce the world to a new art form like Grandmaster Flash, or even meaningfully and memorably address social issues through his music like Marshall, Macklemore and Kendrick.”

Ezrin continued to describe Kanye’s songwriting as “sophomoric at best” with production skills far below the skill level of chart-toppers Timbaland and Rick Rubin.

“Instead Kanye’s greatest achievements have been in the form of excessive behavior, egomaniacal tantrums and tasteless grandstanding. What he is a true artist at is living his life out loud – and shoving it down the throats of the rest of us whether we give a shit or not. He’s like that flasher who interrupts a critical game by running naked across the field. Is that art???”

Kanye pulled no punches in his responses, calling Ezrin “everything that is wrong with the old guard” before telling the producer to “do something relevant” and promising to mail his kids “some free Yeezys to make up for the embarrassment that you have caused your family.”

Ezrin’s Wikipedia page also received a swift edit.

Finally, Kanye premiered a new song called “Closest Thing to Einstein” at a private party in Los Angeles. Tackling his recent controversies and speculations over his mental health, he raps the following lines:

“The media said it was outlandish / The media said he’s way out of control / I just feel like I’m the only one that compares / I’m not out of control just not in their control / I know I’m the most influential / That TIME cover was just confirmation / This generation’s closest thing to Einstein / So don’t worry about me, I’m fine.”

Hear the song below: