Music Critics Review Their Reviews of Kanye West's "The College Dropout"

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Author: Dan Frosch, reporter for The New York Times. Former editor at The Source and contributing writer at VIBE (@djfroschNYT)
Rating: 4/5 Discs (Exceptional)

"Hard to imagine Kanye West's rhyme skills on par with the soul-heavy sounds he's created for the likes of Jay Z and Talib Kweli. But with the release of his debut album, West not only reaffirms his status as one of today's elite beat crafters, but the Chicago native lets heads know he was rocking mikes long before he started messin' around with soundboards."-VIBE, October 2003

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye? How much has that changed since The College Dropout dropped?
To be honest with you, I knew that he was a really talented producer making beats that I enjoy. I didn’t really have any expectations with him as an emcee and I had seen a lot of producers try to go the MC route and kind of watched it fail so I didn't have expectations when I heard the album. I knew there would be good beats but I really didn't know what I was going to be in for lyrically so I think that's what surprised me the most.

You listened to a demo copy right?
Yeah I did. I remember because every two seconds there was a disclaimer on the album, so you'd be listening to the music and then you'd hear "This is for promotional purposes only," on the album that I heard he sampled Lauryn Hill on "All Falls Down" and I don't think she cleared the sample so they had to use somebody else on the album version. But I was blown away.

I remember listening to it and from the very beginning I was riveted. I was living in New Mexico at the time and the first time I heard it I brought out some DJ friends of mine that I know and we went into my car and listened to it over and over again because we were so, not only impressed with the beats but also lyrically it was obviously just a huge breath of fresh air in terms of its wittiness and intensity.

Looking back, is there anything you would change or add to the review?
In retrospect, it should've gotten a perfect score. I know that he was mad at me afterwards but it was one of those things where it's very difficult to listen to an album and give it a perfect score right away. I grew up with albums that seemed perfect to me, like The Chronic or Midnight Marauders or 3 Feet High And Rising but in all honesty, I don't know if I would've given those albums perfect scores the first time I listened to them also.

Saying that an album is perfect and infinitely declaring it a classic, you're really putting yourself out there. It's difficult to do, at least for me as somebody who's reviewed music because the album has to stay with you for a while. So when you're reviewing something like that, I knew it was fantastic, I knew it was exceptional. In my opinion it's the best album he's ever put out. In my opinion it is a classic but when you're listening to an album for a couple of weeks to declare it a classic is something I guess I didn't feel comfortable doing.

It's funny. I think I still have the demo copy that they gave me somewhere and I love it because it was so... I think there's some other differences from the final version and it was really just something that I listened to over and over and played it for anyone who I could just because I was thinking, "Man this is really remarkable and I wanted to make sure I wasn't crazy."

What's your take on Kanye's career now, were you expecting him to become the artist he is? Do you feel like his music has changed for the better or worse in the last decade?
I was surprised at how good it was because at the time he was such a sought after producer and after listening to that it became clear to me that he was an absolute star and an enormously gifted and talented lyricist.

Author: Chris Ryan, Deputy Editor at Grantland (@chrisryan77)
Rating: 7.0/10

"Most producers who approach the mic do so at their peril, but on Dropout, West turns out to be a full-service hip-hop artiste. As a producer, he shuttles back and forth between stuttering Southern bounce and graceful, elegiac, classic-soul tear-jerking; as a rapper, he's got a sly sense of humor, an appealingly conversational tone, and a big heart."—SPIN, October 8, 2003

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye? How much has that changed since his debut album?
Yeah, I was definitely already a really big fan. I was really into Get Well Soon. I was obsessed with his production (I can't even imagine how many times I listened to "The Truth" back then). We're so obsessed with Kanye's words now, both what he says on record and off (and on and off the record), but back then it was actually his production that spoke to me. "Takeover" and "Truth" were what I wanted hip-hop to sound like (apparently I wanted hip-hop to sound like Stephen Stills and The Doors. My bad.)

So I was a huge fan, and it was a small fanbase. I still am, but the fan base has obviously grown. I think like any artist that you feel really connected to in your early 20s, it's sometimes difficult to share that love with a lot of people. I was possessive of him, I guess. But he had bigger plans.

Now that you've taken a second look at the review, would you stand by your assessment of the album? Is there anything you would change and why?
A couple of things. I would probably change the reviewer (there are some bricks in that thing!), and I would probably liked to have heard the actual, retail version of the album. I wrote that review off of the early version, the one with "Keep the Receipt." I think I would have been a lot more gushing in my praise if I had been writing about an album that had "We Don't Care" and "School Spirit" (two of my favorite Kanye songs). I think it would have been a different, far more enthusiastic review if I had known those songs were on the album.

What's your take on Kanye's career now? Were you expecting him to become the artist he is today?
The music isn't that surprising. You can hear all sorts of shades of Yeezus on Dropout. I guess I didn't expect him to get this famous, but I didn't expect a lot of things that have happened over the last 10 years. He's my favorite active recording artist, and he's the most important musician of the decade/century/millennium, whatever. Titles like that don't really matter. I love all his albums other than 808s, which I just like. It's probably a testament to his genius (for lack of a better word), that I'm kind of over thinking about Kanye getting better or worse. This guy is on a 1970-1980 David Bowie run (I can't tell if we're leaving or entering the Berlin period, though). These albums are going to be listened to for a very long time. We're lucky to have him.

Author: Bonsu Thompston, Marketing and Editorial Creative. Former Music Editor at XXL (@DreamzReal)
Rating: XL

"Regardless, the revolution will not guarantee you that new Benz truck. The revolution will put you in the driver's seat. See, it's up to you to decide where hip-hop's headed, to anoint its next leaders. Not only is it your duty to decide, but take a lesson from Kanye West and be proactive in the movement. The revolution will not be televised. But hopefully College Dropout will have a rerun because once in syndication, the revolution will be alive."—XXL, April 2004 Issue

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye's?
Not sure if fan was the label but I certainly was rooting for Kanye when College Dropout dropped. I had the opportunity to interact with an ignored pre-car crash Kanye West, and I had no choice but to admire his pivot—he would not give up. He told you how this story would end. It was similar to T.I. calling himself King of the South when nobody gave a shit, 'Ye just knew his destiny awaited. I'm probably a bigger fan now.

Looking back, is there anything you would change or add to your review?
Not much I would change about the review. Most of the points still stand strong today. While I hate the majority of anything I've written beyond five years ago, I'm a bit impressed by the forecasting. Not that I was the only critic saying this at the time, but there was definitely going to be a shift from the gangsta rap (authentic and inauthentic) that dominated rap at the time (G-Unit, even Roc-A-Fella) and a return of that soul we consistently got in the early '90's. College Dropout was like the rebirth of Midnight Marauders. Still too many fuckin' skits though.

What's your take on Kanye's career now? Were you expecting him to become the artist he is today?
I think Kanye is a proven musical genius. He's not only in-tune enough to create whatever he feels the world needs at the time—whether a clever punchline or sample—but always leads that expression to its maximum potential. I don't think people understand the precision and skill it takes to do that repeatedly.

I can't say I saw Kanye being the rock star that he is today. Wasn't sure if his awkwardness would eclipse his self confidence or vice versa. Before College Dropout had a release date, I personally watched him rap to the entire album in my EIC's office. My desk was right outside his office so I decided to listen from there (the performance was a bit much for me). But I would pop back in every few songs, sometimes just to see if Ye was still rapping, and he didn't miss a syllable. The thing is, his swag grew with each brilliant achievement. Now he's a full grown monster, one of the most polarizing celebs on the planet.

The fact that his best album (My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy) was created in the latter half of his career proves he's only gotten better with time. I sometimes wish I could only hear about Kanye the creative instead of Kanye the celebrity, but hey, this is what happens when you make it to the top of the steepest mountain fighting downhill winds the entire climb. When you reach the top they can't tell you nothing.

Author: Hua Hsu, journalist for various websites including Grantland and The Atlantic, also teaches English at Vassar College (@huahsu)
Rating: N/A

"West's witty, self-produced solo debut, College Dropout, frolics in this space between should and can, between playful hyper-awareness and young, willful naïveté. Where many of his Roc-mates puff their chests cartoonishly, West finds philosophy in mundane things. The question once posed was between the ballot and the bullet; now, a hotdogging Kanye touts himself as 'the first nigga with a Benz and a backpack.'"—Village Voice, February 10, 2004

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye and how much of that has changed since his debut album dropped?
Before College Dropout was released, I appreciated Kanye mostly as a producer. I had listened to and liked his mixtapes and freestyles but my attitude about it all was "Why not?" There are so many uninteresting rappers out there, why not let Kanye get on? I still remember getting the advance CD from the label and wondering if it was going to be any good or not. About a minute into "We Don't Care" I felt like this was going to be a special album. Kanye always seemed funny and charismatic but I definitely wasn't expecting something as coherent and thoughtful as College Dropout. Even the way he used his guests seemed provocative, or at least an embodiment of what he was trying to become as an artist—Jay Z along J. Ivy, Mos Def and Freeway, stuff like that.

Now that you've taken a second look at the review, would you stand by your assessment of the album or is there anything you would change and why.
Probably words and phrases and references but overall I think that review is pretty much how I felt at the time. And I still understand Kanye as an artist who always seems to be negotiating extreme, sometimes contradictory positions. At the time, I don't think anyone had any sense of how famous he would become and what kinds of principles or possibilities he would have to square for himself—looking back, the distinction between "the Benz and the backpack" seems so quaint.

What's your take on Kanye's career now? Were you expecting him to become the artist he is today?
I remember right after Kanye's car accident, he said something about how the near-death experience had changed him—not so much in a way where he now appreciated the little things in life but more that he now felt uninhibited about wanting to be the greatest, the flyest, whatever. Maybe I'm misremembering that. But I do find him all the more fascinating as time passes because I remember listening to College Dropout obsessively when it came out and I feel like I still recognize some of the same themes and struggles in his music today.

He puts so much thought into his self-presentation, how we should understand his career arc, how he wants to be received and loved. Even if I don't always agree, I appreciate that sense of scrutiny. It's like even if you don't think he has good taste—he clearly has his own sense of taste. And I'm not sure how many artists you can really say that about.

Author: Nathan Rabin, current staff writer at The Dissolve and author of You Don't Know Me But You Don't Like Me. (@nathanrabin)
Rating: N/A

"The disc boasts enough conceptual ambition to make Mr. Lif jealous, but like a lot of great concept albums before it, The College Dropout is burdened by skits and jibber-jabbering-especially the audio autobiography West delivers on the marathon final track-that add unnecessarily to the disc's running time. That tendency is more than offset, however, by music unafraid of raw emotion and tracks that are both personal and strangely universal." —A.V. Club, February 17, 2004

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye and how much of that has changed since his debut album dropped?
I was a huge fan of Kanye before writing the review and have remained a huge fan of Kanye’s ever since. He’s not only one of my favorite artists of all time, he’s a huge inspiration as well. I remember when I was trying to sell my memoir I would listen to The College Dropoutover and over again for motivation. It moved me on a profound level. I fell in love with the guy and his music and have remained in love ever since. The last music piece I wrote for The A.V Club was a massive Primer on Kanye West, which seemed appropriate, since he’s one of the only rappers I still feel passionately about. God bless Kanye West. The world would be far drabber and less awesome without him. Even when Kanye’s wrong, he’s right.

Now that you've taken a second look at the review, would you stand by your assessment of the album or is there anything you would change and why.
If anything, I underrated it. I love and accept and embrace The College Dropout in its entirety, even the tiny little things I felt obligated to consider flaws because I’m a a critic. That giant monologue at the end? I fucking love that now. To me, The College Dropout is perfect. Timeless. Looking back at this review, however, I’m a little embarrassed by my writing and frame of reference. I was 27 at the time and as an arts writer, nothing I write will ever hold a candle to the genius and the majesty of what I’m writing about, especially something like The College Dropout. I was not worthy, but gave it the old college try all the same.

Author: Andy Kellman, current Assistant Editor, AllMusic Guide/Rovi (@andykellman)
Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

"All of this momentum keeps rolling through The College Dropout, an album that's nearly as phenomenal as the boastful West has led everyone to believe. From a production standpoint, nothing here tops recent conquests like Alicia Keys' "You Don't Know My Name" or Talib Kweli's "Get By," but he's consistently potent and tempers his familiar characteristics-high-pitched soul samples, gospel elements-by tweaking them and not using them as a crutch." —All Music.Com

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye's?
I was pretty late to him—didn't take notice until Beanie Sigel's "The Truth," I think. From that point, he went on some kind of run. I was completely on board at some point between The Blueprint and The Fix. With his own albums, the enjoyment level has bounced around but I've never respected him as an artist as much as I do now.

Looking back, is there anything you would change or add to your review?
The review was written within 24 hours of first hearing the album,but no, I wouldn't change anything. We don't grant five stars to albums upon release—we wait a few years—and I recall being convinced that the album would eventually get the bump from four and a half.

What's your take on Kanye's career now? Were you expecting him to become the artist he is today?
It was obvious from "Through the Wire" and its video that he was fearless. He deserved all the creative leeway he was given. I don't know whether his music has changed for the better or worse. That he has changed—while remaining inspired and unpredictable—has been enough to keep me fascinated. It's unfortunate that he hasn't produced more for singers.

Author: Rob Mitchum, currently a music and science writer published in Pitchfork, MTV Hive, and The Chicago Tribune. (@robmitchum)
Rating: 8.2/10

"Bloated tracklist, guest star overload, lyrical paradoxes: It all might sound a bit critical for an 8+ album, but College Dropout's flaws tend to only help make Kanye West all the more personable as an artist. With the fat playlist trimmed, the album lays down a sky-high standard for hip-hop challengers in '04, featuring enough singles in reserve to fill out the calendar year." —Pitchfork, February 20, 2004

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye and how much of that has changed since his debut album dropped?

I was definitely a Kanye fan before it came out. Re-reading the review reminded me of just how much mixtape and leak-fueled excitement there was building up before College Dropout finally, finally came out. I remember going with a couple Pitchfork guys to a College Dropout release party at the House of Blues in Chicago that is really funny to think about in light of Kanye's current persona. He pretty much spent the whole set having his DJ play songs by other people that he had produced and yelling "I PRODUCED THAT!" Common and Ghostface were there, and a pre-famous John Legend was his keyboardist, but it felt very...local. There was no psychic premonition that he'd become a global mega-star.

I'm definitely still a huge fan and I'd call him the most important musical artist of the last decade without flinching. Every album has expanded his sound and challenged his audience and himself and been hugely successful at the same time.

Looking back, is there anything you would change or add to your review?
Well, the review is much less embarrassing than I feared. I think subsequent albums supported my argument that he didn't need all the guests and skits...it seems like my main criticism was that he was being too humble, which again, is pretty hilarious given 2014 Kanye. Some of the context in the review (backpacker vs. mainstream, producers crossing over as artists) is pretty dated, but no more so than Kanye's references to the same things on the album. In retrospect, a lot of the production feels kind of thin. But that's all hindsight, and it's still a really fun album.

Author: Jon Caramanica, then freelance writer, now pop music critic for The New York Times (@joncaramanica)
Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

"West isn't quite MC enough to hold down the entire disc; carefully sprinkled A-list guests such as Jay-Z and Mos Def help. His ace in the hole is his signature cozy sound-dusty soul samples, gospel hymns, drums that pop as if hit for the very first time. He has also succeeded in showing some vulnerability behind a glossy mainstream hip-hop sheen." —Rolling Stone, March 4, 2004

Before writing the review were you a fan of Kanye's?
I was extremely aware of him as a producer. He seemed really important at the time, not just for being a good producer—there are plenty of good producers—but for being a producer that changed the sound of radio and of artists who are more established than him. Obviously he was a very significant figure in evolving how Jay Z was presented to the world and you have to admire someone who has enough chutzpah and enough vision and confidence in his vision to not just be a guy alone in a room starting an idea, but going into room with far more successful people and having them buying his idea.

So certainly as a producer, I was absolutely very aware but being a great producer is no guarantee of being a great rapper or being a great artist. There was always a bit of ingrained skepticism about something like this that’s probably softened over time and that had a lot to do with Kanye’s success. Anybody who tells you there wasn’t a little bit of a groan about a producer becoming a rapper is lying.

Looking back, is there anything you would change or add to your review?
No because all a review is—all any piece of criticism is—is a snapshot of a moment. Of course my experience with The College Dropout is different in 2014 than it was in 2004 but I wouldn’t want to revise the reaction I had when I first heard it. I may feel different things about it. I may have evolved in terms of my perspective on it. But anyone who takes criticism seriously would stand behind the things they wrote even if they ultimately end up disagreeing to some degree.

You’ve got to trust your ear in the moment, that’s the nature of the work, and re-reading it, it’s a very level review of an album that ultimately ended up being much more than a level album. Some of this is just not journalism stuff. This is a 250-word review—a tiny, small review of an album in a magazine that doesn’t have room for 2,000 word reviews of rap albums. And even if they did, wouldn’t have been inclined to give this album 2,000 words. These are the constraints of the space and of the medium and of the politics. Right now, Kanye seems to get a default five stars from Rolling Stone, but that’s how it was going on in 2004.

This was a debut artist who had a name as a producer. Just looking at the length of it, this is a little longer than the standard review I was writing at the time. This is not a lead review, it wasn’t being treated with that importance, but you know it’s maybe 50 or 75 words longer than the other rap records I was writing about at the time. It’s not like anybody said, “Let’s put this guy on the cover.” Even the star rating, rap records weren’t getting 4 or 5 stars, even at the time. I remember [Kanye] would be real aggy about that in interviews for many years, but the thing that I’m sure he can never understand is that at the time 3 and a half was about as good as a rap record was getting at Rolling Stone.

Obviously he’s been able to break through that and get 5 stars almost by force of will, but broadly speaking if you look at the issues from that era, you may have a four stars sprinkled in here and there for Jay Z or whatever, but "regular" rap records—as good as they were—were not getting that. Three and a half was basically the max. They’ll probably kill me for saying that, and I think it’s evolved a little bit since then, but on a basic level that’s what was going on.

What's your take on Kanye's career now? Were you expecting him to become the artist he is today?
It’s interesting because everyone wants the benefit of hindsight to say they knew all along—and 99% of the time that’s a fallacy. It was very clear that he was transformative but I don’t think you could’ve articulated the manner in which he became transformative. I think the manner in which he became transformative didn’t get cemented for another three or four years after Dropout. Late Registration is obviously a great record on its own terms, but I really think it took Graduation and then obviously 808s. The Kanye of today I think you trace back to that moment. Obviously that moment relies on Dropout, but I think the jagged moves and turns and unexpected twists that he’s taken feel more dependent on Graduation than on Dropout. 

Dropout you can trace as part of a clear legacy. It dates back to the Native Tongues, it dates back to conscious rap, it’s East Coast boom-bap and soul samples. The thing about Kanye in 2014 is, he’s post-history, he’s post-legacy. He’s not aiming to extend the tradition, he’s aiming to create a new tradition or survive tradition and that couldn’t be seen on Dropout. Which is no slight on Dropout—it just means he’s gotten better at a faster pace over time.

When you read your words “West isn’t quite emcee enough to hold down the entire disc” today, do you feel that’s still the right assessment?
I think there’s no argument that Kanye West in 2014 is a far better rapper than Kanye West in 2004. On a fundamental level, he’s not as good then, and he wasn’t as good then as he is now. Does that mean I don’t enjoy the record? Of course not. Obviously this record remains fundamentally indelible. But part of what’s indelible about it is its slight awkwardness. There’s a slight discomfort in the record in terms of him growing into being the guy who can deliver that stuff. Do I think that's still there? Yeah, I do think that's still there. It’s like the ultimate “no shots.” It’s just a reality. Anybody who looks back at his oeuvre would say the same thing in a very honest way. Whether people want to be honest or not, that’s on their soul. I only have mine to worry about [Laughs].