The feud between Kanye West and Taylor Swift is famous but seems outdated. However, it has suddenly become relevant again, and here is why: both artist have dropped albums in the last year following high media coverage. A formula for success can emerge from their histories: hype from media and hype from the album is equal and independent, but end up building on each other. Let me explain.
Kanye West recently dropped an album—less than a half hour long and following a lot of controversy. Kanye made several headlines, most notably calling slavery "a choice" and revealing his mental health issues.
Taylor Swift also dropped an album last fall, also following the downfall of her good reputation. This tarnished reputation was the result of her feuds with celebrities like Kanye West, Katy Perry and Calvin Harris.
So, here's the genius of it all. Kanye talks about his mental health issues and drops an album talking about them. Yes, his reputation was hurt in the media coverage before, but some it is relevant to his album. Both the media hype and the album hype can stand alone, but together they build on each other to make it a success.
Similarly, Taylor Swift's feuds resulted in a tarnished reputation, which she used to fuel her album. Her hurt reputation is relevant to the album; and again, the media hype can stand alone and the album hype can stand alone. Together, they build on each other to make her so successful.
A formula emerges for industry leaders like Taylor Swift and Kanye West. Make a big media splash. Make a big album splash. Together, they'll make a wave and make you someone everyone talks about.
But some of Kanye's comments were too controversial this time—specifically his comments about slavery. This caused him to pull similar references from his album when fans reacted badly. Some Kanye fans hate his album while others love it.
He just shows that there is a fine line of equating media hype to their album hype. It has to be done in the right place, at the right time, with the right comments. It can be controversial, but not so controversial that fans back away and your lyrics are pulled. It's not easy by any means, but these two celebrities show its possible.
