Dear Reader,

This is not me stating Kanye’s best albums and worst albums. This is my own personal opinion. I believe that the music someone likes isn’t just based on whether or not the music is objectively good or bad, but it is rather based on the emotional connection that one has to the music in question. I ranked these albums based on the quality, how much I enjoyed them, the variety, and how well the songs link with one another. I also took into account the memories and feelings that I correlate with each album. Again, this isn’t an argument, it’s just my opinion. With that being said, please enjoy my tier list.

10. “JESUS IS KING”

To put it simply, this album is totally mid. There are good parts about it and there are bad parts about it, but overall there’s nothing that special about it. Coming off of “KIDS SEE GHOSTS” and “ye”, this album was a humongous decline in the quality of music that Kanye makes. To build on that, I believe that in order to enjoy an album you have to relate to it in some way. As a Jewish person, I feel like relating to or enjoying an album titled “JESUS IS KING” is not the easiest thing to do.

9. “Yeezus”

I know that this is very controversial but Yeezus is coming in at number 9. It’s a very good album, don’t get me wrong, but it’s just that I don’t enjoy listening to it as much as Kanye’s other albums. It came out between “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” and “The Life Of Pablo” which, in my opinion, are way better than Yeezus.

8. “808s & Heartbreak”

This is a fantastic album to be totally honest. The only reason I rank it so low is the same reason I rank ‘JESUS IS KING’ so low. I simply can’t relate to this. The album is all about getting your heart broken and how his wife cheated on him. Do I think that dropping an album is the best way to deal with your relationship problems? No, not necessarily. But the fact of the matter is that this album will be way better once I’ve got my heartbroken. I almost look forward to that day so that I can listen to this album and appreciate it fully.

7. “Donda”

“Donda” dropping made my year. After “JESUS IS KING”, I was very nervous about Kanye’s next drop. He most definitely did not disappoint. It definitely reminded me of “The Life of Pablo” which I really liked. I also liked how Kanye stuck to the “praise god” message without shoving it down your throat. I didn’t like the album at first just because it was so long, but the more I listened to it, the better it got. I do listen to this album quite regularly and I thoroughly enjoy it every time. (If someone wants to buy me the Donda Stem Player, I will love you forever.)

6. “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy”

Relax, before you go ballistic on me I just want to put this out there. “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” is very overrated in my opinion. I think that pretty much every single song on this album is very good, but put together they just don’t make a lot of sense to me. All the songs in the album are very long, averaging at about 5-6 minutes per song. I think that the music is really good, and I love most of the songs off this album, but each song is like its own individual project with tons of features. I think this album relies heavily on the features and not enough on Kanye, and this definitely takes away from my enjoyment of the album.

5. “The Life of Pablo”

This was the first Kanye album I ever listened to fully. This is a fantastic album and at one point it was definitely in my top 3. I don’t have a ton to say about this album, to be honest. I think it’s very versatile and there are songs that are very slow and songs that are faster but I enjoy all of them the same. I think the songs all work really well together. It came out a few years after “Yeezus”, and in my opinion, it was a big improvement.

4. “Graduation”

There’s not much to say here. “Graduation” is a top 5 album; that’s not even a question. This is such an iconic album and probably one of Kanye’s better-known albums. The same thing with “Life of Pablo”, I feel like all the songs are very different but still work super well together. Fun fact, my alarm noise is “Good Morning”. I think that this album has the best beats out of any Kanye album. It definitely matched up to his previous albums and showed a turn for more serious Kanye songs.

3. “Late Registration”

This is such a good album. I can listen to “Late Registration” over and over again and never get sick of it. I think it’s awesome how the skits in this album are laid out. They really separate the album into different sections and all the songs in each individual section go together super well. Also, I feel like this has to be said: skit Kanye is a good Kanye. If I could ask for one thing in the next Kanye album, I would ask for Kanye to bring back skits. They are placed so perfectly throughout the album, and they are also very entertaining.

2. “Ye”

This is gonna be the one I have to give the most reasoning for, and I am more than prepared. “Ye” is honestly the best new release from Kanye. I feel very strongly about all the songs in this album. I think that this is an album that even Kanye haters can appreciate because it offers a view of Kanye’s inner conflict and thoughts. A lot of people judge Kanye for the stuff he says, and this album shows that he judges himself too. This album is small but powerful. In my opinion, it is the perfect album. There isn’t a bad song on the album and some of the songs are in my top 10 Kanye songs as well. If you haven’t belted “Ghost Town” or “Violent Crimes” in the shower, then you are simply doing something wrong. The songs all compliment each other. I think no one expected this album to be anything special. and that’s what made it so good.

1. “The College Dropout”

Finally, “The College Dropout”. I said it once and I’ll say it again, skit Kanye is a good Kanye. The skits on this album are so funny and they set the tone for the whole album. This album is so fun to listen to, and there are just so many classics. This is Kanye’s first album, and I don’t think anything will ever be better than it. For a first project, it seems like it’s made by someone who has been rapping for years. I don’t think Kanye would be where he is today without “The College Dropout.” It truly is a masterpiece.

Thank you for listening to my opinions. If you are not a Kanye fan, I hope that this list has inspired you to check out some of his best work.

Sincerely,
Levi Hancock