Industry icons from Rolling Stone to Russell Simmons has heaped praise on Kanye West during his dramatic comeback. But not everyone is impressed with the emotionally disturbed rapper.
One of those people who isn’t impressed, the legendary producer Quincy Jones, was rightfully insulted when US magazine tried to compare him — a gifted musician and symphony orchestra conductor — with Kanye West who plays on a drum machine all day.
Us: Kanye West is similar to you in that he’s the producer everybody wants to work with in the last decade….
QJ: How man? No way. Did he write for a symphony orchestra? Does he write for a jazz orchestra? Come on, man. He’s just a rapper. There’s no comparison. I’m not putting him down or making a judgement or anything, but we come from two different sides of the planet. I spent 28 years learning my first skill. I don’t rap. It’s not the same thing. A producer has to have some sort of skills that enable him to be a producer. It’s totally different to know what to do with 16 woodwinds you know from piccolos down to bass clarinet. It’s a whole different mindset. No comparison. None.
When asked what he thought of Kanye, the 77-year-old producer of Michael Jackson’s Epic album Thriller, said, “I don’t think about him much. He’s a great rapper, but there are a lot of good rappers.”
