From one king to another, yesterday Kanye West followed in the famous footsteps of music legend Michael Jackson, as he spoke (read preached) to 350 lucky students at Oxford’s prestigious Museum of Natural History. However, unlike HRH MJ, Kanye didn’t get the call up from the Oxford Union, but was, in fact, invited as a guest of the Oxford Guild Business Society, the university’s largest and oldest student careers society, which set the motivational tone for Ye’s speech. Here’s what three Oxford students learned from Yeezus himself.
Samuel Gebreselassie
“Ye stepped on stage, waiting bemusedly for the cheering to subside. He was introduced as ‘a man that needs no introduction’ then he just recalibrated — removing tables, chairs, mics, etc. — impediments that didn’t fit with his ‘aesthetic’; constraints that messed with his flow.
This desire to be free became a bit of a recurring theme, with Kanye warning the crowd that if they wanted the ‘illest quotes’, even a whisper would throw him off his ‘stream of consciousness.’ What then followed was a 30-minute lecture on art, family, music, fashion and philosophy.
Compared to his usual media portrayal, Yeezy came across as funny, charming and seemingly self-aware — an appearance of humility interspersed with casual strokes of the ego. Amongst the amusing anecdotal gas (which, let’s be honest, we all engage in), he actually had something to say: criticizing the ‘smoke and mirrors of others’ opinions,’ encouraging the sharing of ideas, promoting the ‘will of inspiration’ over the ‘will to sell,’ reminding us of the emptiness of materialism, the luxury of time and the class divide which, though no longer a considerable cleavage, is so much more evident in the UK than in the States.
The PPE [philosophy, politics, economics] student in me wanted to challenge his many ridiculous claims (the Matrix is like the Bible — say what?) but, leaving cynicism at the door and manuvring the dubious chit-chat, I was not left disappointed. The consistency and practicality of his ideas aside, Kanye’s aspirations inspired: ‘My goal, if I was going to do art, fine art, would have been to become Picasso or greater.’ Kanye’s mantra motivated: chase your dream, and don’t let the ‘mentality that suppresses humanity’ hinder your progress.”
Richard McIntosh
“Basically the main theme of Kanye’s lecture focussed on how he’s misunderstood and a lot of things are contradictory to larger aspects of his life.
It was very inspiring and put the idea of looking after each other so simply. It did really make me think about whether the BMW and big house would be worth it, instead of helping bring joy to others by doing things not for the sake of my own greed and money. It seemed sincere and honest. Ironically, he was hitting out at elitism and classism at an event held by the guild, which is very much associated with personal game and elitism.
Some of the quotes I’ve already seen have been taken out of context such as the one about white people saying n***a [‘white people that listen to rap say n***a. In the privacy of their own home’]. He said that that’s how little it’s used nowadays, and no longer derogatorily. He would come out with classic Kanye quotes but explain them, showing not some lack of mental health or arrogance but a different way of thinking. It was brilliant. Kanye is amazing and you really feel he had to suppress some of his thoughts to progress his rap career in the past, but doesn’t need to do that anymore.
My perception of him was this outrageous ego who made good music and married the Kardashian brand. But his ego now seems just to be self-belief, and the way he spoke about how empty lives can be if they are self-interested I think I was wrong on his marriage as well.
He didn’t stop for photos after, just got in the car. It was interesting because in his talk he didn’t want us to really think about who he was, but just about the message he had. The lack of PR photos afterwards showed that he had something he wanted to say to a possibly more forgiving and reasonable audience than he normally has, and he inspired us to work for ‘the people’ and not for money.”
Niamh McIntyre, 19, studying English Literature
“At an event run by The Oxford Guild Business Society, known on campus for putting on champagne-and-chinos socials for future Goldman Sachs interns, Kanye’s message to Oxford climaxed with biting social commentary.
He might have claimed Steve Jobs, archetypal big-data capitalist, as his ‘favourite person’, but his impassioned assertion that ‘beauty has been stolen from the people and is being sold back to them under the concept of luxury’ was a lucid way to capture the way in which brands and ad agencies manipulate our deepest fears and desires.
He continued to rage in a typically hyper-earnest way: ‘All the best talent in the world needs to work for the people. And I am so fucking serious about this concept that I will stand in front of anyone and fight for it.’
Possibly the most surprising moment of the talk was when this social commentary seemed to lead to a rare moment of self-awareness. ‘One of my biggest Achilles heels has been my ego. And if I can remove my ego, I think there’s hope for everyone.’
Some were quick to claim ‘Komrade Kanye’ as a revolutionary. The jury’s out on that count. But the Kanye we saw yesterday was undoubtedly the Kanye who wrote New Slaves: socially aware, angry at the system, able to incite rebellion with his words.”
Credits
Photography Fabien Montique
Styling Rushka Bergman