A quick glance might see Kanye West dubbed to be the 50 Cent of 2004, but this comparison falls short as Kanye brings something different to the plate; he's a producer. Over the years, he's spawned the beats behind hits for Jay-Z ('H to the Izzo'), Talib Kweli ('Get By'), Ludacris ('Stand Up') and many more. After being signed to Roc-A-Fella in 2002, this opened the door for Kanye to prove himself as an emcee with his debut solo album The College Dropout.

Kanye West comes through with a solid lineup of impressive beats catering to a large number of hip-hop sub-genres. However it quickly becomes apparent he has unresolved issues with having dropped out of college, and in fact provides a handful of skits ('School Spirit', 'Lil Jimmy') and songs ('Get Em High', 'All Falls Down') play off his unpleasant college experience. His skits paint a slightly disturbing picture implying that college serves little point but to provide you with an expensive piece of paper (diploma). In my eyes, college is what you make it to be and if you want to learn, then it can serve as a great learning tool. At the same time, I agree with Kanye's message that going to college without direction or because you feel obligated is a poor choice. Kanye's popularity will influence the younger generation, and as such his statements that college will lead to drug problems, jobs no better than The Gap, and no sex, are slightly one-sided and disappointing.

Kanye starts off the album with the infectious 'We Don't Care,' as its children-laden chorus of "Drug dealing just to get by / Stack your money til it gets sky high" seems so wrong while stuck in your head. 'The New Workout Plan' is a fun ode to the ladies, with a fresh club workout vibe, which had me seeing visions of 'Baby Got Back.' 'Jesus Walks' is an inspirational song over a hard beat, where Kanye shares his spirituality letting you know he has faith. "So here go my single dawg, radio needs this / They said they could rap about anything except for jesus / That means guns, sex, lies, videotape / But if I talk about God my record wont get played? / Well if this take away from my spinz / Which will prolly take away my endz / Then I hope it take away from my sinz."

'School Spirit' provides a simple beat laced with a nice Aretha Franklin sample, but lacking in lyrical content. 'Through The Wire' was conceived, written and recorded while Kanye's jaw was wired shut following a car accident. This provided him with time to think and as such, makes for a rather personal song. 'Family Business' also brings Kanye down to a personal level while discussing his family experiences.

Kanye West, although still upset with his college experience, portrays himself as a charismatic emcee. He uses his diverse production skills to mold his music to suit upbeat fun songs and then flip it onto a personal / touching level. Ultimately it's his down-to-earth "real" approach to rapping that allows this up-and-coming producer to also establish himself as an emcee.

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