New Kanye just celebrated his 42nd birthday. I wonder if old Kanye also celebrated from the sunken place. Or maybe his tethered version had an inverted party hat on inside the tunnels while he ate some rabbit. Either way, I thought about my favorite Kanye West song which was on his debut “The College Dropout”. While Kanye’s debut album had many stand out tracks and various hits; including “Jesus Walks”, “Slow Jamz”, and “The New Workout Plan”, my absolute favorite was and still is; “ Last Call”. Starting with Jay-Z’s welcoming intro of “Yo Fuck You Kanye first and foremost for making me do this shit Muhfucka”; I knew this song was special. This song for me was Kanye’s most vulnerable prior to the onset of his mental health issues. Kanye came into the game as a rapper with a huge chip on his shoulder because people referred to him as a “producer-rapper”. He had a lot to prove with this album, and that he did. “Last Call” chronicles Kanye’s transition from successful producer to an ok rapper. The appeal of Kanye for me was never his lyricism, but always his presentation. Even with his mediocre bars, (prior to his rumored ghost writers), Kanye’s arrogance always preceded him which I guess created some weird balance for him. The moment Kanye began to come off as humble on this song there was a swift follow-up to reassure us of the greatness he was always aware of, we just needed to catch up. Anytime I’ve gone through a trying time, this is one of the songs I tend to have on repeat. Yes, it’s 12 minutes long, and he is talking more than he is rapping, but I’ll never skip any part of it because it is important, and inspiring. Kanye telling his truth about getting evicted, losing a deal, working his ass off and creating beats for DMX that made it into Jay-Z’s hands, music executives not believing in him all for him to come out victorious has always inspired me to tell myself to get my shit together. So for that, thank you Old Kanye for helping me by delivering your truth. Happy Birthday. I am praying for your speedy recovery. “So won’t you raise your glass won’t you…”