“Live Fast, Die Young”- Rick Ross and Kanye West by Owen Beecher

What a good time to be a Kanye West fan. After wearing a dunce cap for almost the whole winter and spring, he has made a ferocious comeback. A month ago he hit us with the boisterous as ever “Power”, then the performance at the BET awards in which he donned Egyptian artifacts around his neck and fingers, and now this absolutely spectacular collaboration with Rick Ross. I can confidently say it is as good or better than anything on “Graduation”. He turned a trite saying into an addicting chorus, and the beat is as sophisticated as anything he’s ever produced. Frantic clapping carries everything, while the beat switches between a glistening synth melody (live fast) and a foreboding bass line (die young). Kanye gives us an energetic, all over the place verse in which he does his best fan boy impression (Yeezy I always knew you’d be on top again!), while Ross supplies the standard lifestyle raps. Some say Ross’s lack of rapping ability takes away from the song. Whatever. His booming voice and grand presence accompany the song very well, and really, that is all you need against this beat. This is a truly complex and nuanced piece of music that shouldn’t need virtuoso rapping. If Kanye is giving out beats like this to his friends, then one has to be very intrigued by what he has saved for his much-anticipated “Good Ass Job”, which is due out in September.