Gosh, writing this blog post is like the ultimate trip down memory lane. I remember telling people that after the whole experience of essentially introducing a then “sort of” unknown star to the world by the name of Kanye West that if this is the beginning of my career, I can’t wait to see what happens next!
So let me share with you the story of how I befriended one of the world’s biggest superstars and subsequently helped jump-start my career. I began working as a PA with MTV News in June 2001. A lot of crazy stuff would go down that year. My first of many MTV Movie Awards, MTV’s 20th-anniversary celebration, Aaliyah passing away, the VMAs and, of course, the tragedy of September 11. But within my first month of working at MTV, one of our interns, his name was Nick (a.k.a. Aqua) caught me leaving control room A at 1515 and was super-eager for me to meet his friend … some music producer. So, he walked me to his friend, who was sitting in a chair in the studio lobby and introduced him. “Hey, Yas. This is my friend Kanye. He did the beat for Jay-Z’s ‘H to the Izzo.’ ”
OK, now before I go on, I have a bad habit of sharing my feelings, thoughts, etc., no matter how brutal they might be. One can never accuse me of holding my feelings inside. That being said, when Nick told me Kanye produced “Izzo,” I kind of made an “ouch” face. And Kanye asked what that was about. I, in all my Capricornian honesty, told him that I don’t really like the song that much. He asked why. I explained, and pretty much from then on, I think I won Kanye’s friendship.
One thing I can share about Mr. West is — well, it’s not a secret that he loves music, but if you know your stuff and are willing to share your thoughts, he totally digs it. After that initial meeting, we would just kind of hang. He had sessions just up the street at the legendary Quad Studios. So in between his sessions, he would come to 1515 and kill time. Hardly anyone outside the hip-hop folks in the department knew who he was. He would come up to the 29th floor, home of MTV News, and sit on the tape-filled boxes that were next to my desk and just, well, hang.
I remember one time, we were leaving the building, and he saw Carson Daly in the lobby and asked if it was cool to go introduce himself to him, and I was like, “Yeah, go for it.” And he did! Walked straight up to Carson and introduced himself. I wonder if Carson remembers that?
Sway would also hang and chat with Kanye and me. It was crazy. I mean, I’m just this PA, a year out of college, and I’m hanging out with this guy, going to clubs and getting denied entry! Ha! Oh, those were the days. And there was cool stuff like going to the studio and meeting Dead Prez, Jay-Z and Scarface! One of the craziest times was when me and my friend Capricorn Clark — yes, Capricorn from Diddy’s show “I want to work for Diddy” — went to the studio with Kanye, who had an upcoming session with Scarface. Cap and I were sitting on the couch chatting, Kanye was prepping his CDs, and ‘Face walked in! Kanye whipped out one CD, put it in the player and started playing a track. One after the other was played to no physical reaction from Scarface. But then, this one song came on. Scarface damn near jumped out of the seat and was like “Woooo! That’s it!” He immediately started writing. And that, my friends, was how Scarface’s “Guess Who’s Back” came to be. Till this day, it’s one of my favorite Kanye songs.
So as time passed, I began meeting several members of the G.O.O.D. Music crew. Folks like Don C, John Monopoly, GLC, 88 Keys and Consequence, to name a few. I also met J. Ivy, John Legend and Kanye’s friend and videographer Coodie. Coodie had been with Kanye for some time and had been documenting his life for a while. See, Kanye and his friends knew he was gonna be star one day. As time passed, Kanye, who was constantly in the studio, would play tracks for me when we were hanging out — tunes like “Jesus Walks,” “All Falls Down,” “Breathe In, Breathe Out,” “Arguments” and “Hey Mama,” the song he would say was his “Grammy song.” I think he thought “Hey Mama” was going to win him his first Grammy, so that day he performed it at the Grammys after the passing of his wonderful mother, Donda, whom I got to meet a few times, had to be so surreal for him. He loved his mom so much.
I told him to give me a heads-up when he got signed, because I was interested in pitching him as a You Hear It First artist. As time passed, the ‘01 VMAs rolled around. Jay-Z was performing “Izzo” during the show, and one would think Kanye would be front and center, ticket in hand during the show. Nope! He had even asked me for tickets. Hell, I didn’t even know how to get my hands on them, not even who to ask! Later, the world would hear about Kanye being unable to get access to the show on his song “Big Brother.”
About a year goes by, and finally some movement! Kanye tells me he’s been signed to the Roc. I set up a meeting with him at 1515 to discuss the details for what I would need to pitch him for YHIF. He and his friend JB showed up a few days later and handed me the CD, which included the aforementioned songs.
That following Tuesday, with the help of my “big brother” Sway, I pitched Kanye to my colleagues. They loved all the songs. But by far, their favorite was “Hey Mama.” So, I called Kanye and gave him the great news. The interview was set up and shot at Baseline Studios, and shortly after, I prepared to edit my very first and what is probably my favorite piece of video. But before I could do that, I needed some video, so I called Coodie. He and J. Ivy came to the office with a bunch of tapes, and I took them down to get dubbed and consequently introduced them to my friend Chike, who worked in graphics. Chike and Coodie would go on to direct Kanye’s “Through the Wire” video. While I edited the piece, I wanted to make sure everything was as accurate as possible — even down to what Kanye was playing for Beanie Sigel when he met Jay-Z (the song “This Can’t Be Life”).
I want to say it was June 2002 when Kanye’s You Hear It First aired. It was, I think, the first TV piece aired about Kanye. Months later, in October after his car accident, would be quite possibly the second. I heard about the car accident through MTV News online producer Rahman Dukes. Rahman knew Kanye and I were buddies, so when I got into the office that morning, Rahman came straight to me and asked if I’d heard what happened. And literally five seconds later, my cell phone rang. It was Kanye. With his mouth all busted up, he called and basically gave us the scoop on what happened. A few months later, the entire planet would see and hear what happened, thanks to “Through the Wire.”
Well, there you have it — how Kanye became one of many hot YHIF acts and even some behind-the-scenes details about “Through the Wire.” Hope you enjoyed it! I know I did.
Full Story Via MTV.com
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