jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy 1x1

1. Move forward with…

2. with this running for president and all things needed,

3. full steam ahead on that.

4. Also, I have a gentleman, Coodie,

5. that I've been working with basically my whole life.

6. He has a 7.5 hour documentary.

7. I'd like for you to talk with him today about where his contracts are.

8. He's actually with me right now. Those are the two things I want to cover.

9. Don't tweet that?

10. People will understand it, that's for sure.

11. That's it. I just want…

12. Sometimes, it's just…

13. We need that translation. I be needing a translator real bad.

14. Sometimes.

15. Mm-hmm.

16. Over there.

17. One, two, three, go!

18. One, two. Over here.

19. Taylor, I'mma let you finish.

20. I am Shakespeare in the flesh.

21. "The ego is overdone."

22. I just told you who I thought I was. A god.

23. That was really emotional…

24. Embarrassing act of desperation…

25. He knows he's not wrong.

26. That's not what it is.

27. So many sides of Kanye, so many aspects of his life people don't know about.

28. This is Coodie. He shot all the footage.

29. Coodie!

30. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for this man.

31. Kanye.

32. Every great story begins with a vision.

33. Shout-out to JD, man. The name of my show is Channel Zero.

34. You can get buck wild, you can say what you want.

35. You can kick it or do whatever.

36. That's how we do it, you know what I'm saying?

37. Yeah, yeah.

38. What, what? Channel Zero, y'all. Like I said, we back on the scene.

39. JD's birthday party.

40. We got my man, Murda Mase, baby. What's the deal, baby?

41. I'm chillin'.

42. I'm just happy to be here, happy to be a part of it.

43. Happy to still be breathing at 20, you know?

44. For sure. I see you haven't mushed the sass, man.

45. What's next, man?

46. Next is all our records, my label.

47. Harlem World, the group.

48. Harlem World, makin' it happen. What's up?

49. Everybody introduce y'all self.

50. I'm Cardan. Harlem World, all out.

51. Suga J, all out! Harlem World, The Movement.

52. Yeah, Blinky Blink, Harlem World, all out.

53. D. Gritty, all out. The Teamsters, what?

54. Hey, yo, we got my man, Kanye.

55. This motherfucker… tracks man.

56. Man, hold on. This nigga from Chi-Town.

57. He hanging out with Harlem World. They doing they thing.

58. - What's up with you, baby? - Yo, what's up?

59. Yo, I want to send a shout-out to 87th Street outfit,

60. my man John-John, back at the crib,

61. Leonard, Aaron, Timmy.

62. You might say you miss the old Kanye.

63. Well, I first put the camera on him back in 1998

64. when he was just an up-and-coming producer.

65. I had no idea that this short interview would be the beginning of a brotherhood

66. that would last for more than 20 years.

67. Yo! Chi-Town represent. Chi-Town made it down here, boy.

68. Somebody from the crib made it down here, boy.

69. All right.

70. Once they get that drink rolling, we gonna really be able to clown…

71. I bet y'all wondering who the hell I am and what I got to do with this story.

72. Let me take you back to where it all started.

73. Give it up for my boy, Coodie.

74. It was 1995.

75. I had just started doing stand-up comedy on the South Side of Chicago

76. when Danny Sorge, a young filmmaker,

77. approached me about hosting a public-access show

78. called Channel Zero.

79. Channel Zero, baby, in full effect, with my man,

80. Kris Parker, KRS-One, man.

81. Put your hand on the screen.

82. Channel Zero, here with Run-DMC.

83. The legendary group, yo.

84. Hey, what you watch, man?

85. I watch Channel Zero, son.

86. Coodie.

87. My first thought was hosting a TV show

88. would be a great way to showcase my comedy.

89. Oh!

90. Channel Zero with Lil' Bow Wow. How you doing?

91. Look at her, she's so cute.

92. Girl, you so...

93. That's a nigga, man!

94. Are you for… Oh, he is…

95. Back on Channel Zero live.

96. It wouldn't be live without the comedy.

97. It wouldn't be nothing.

98. But as we shot more episodes, I realized we were the only ones

99. documenting the rise of hip-hop in Chicago.

100. Channel Zero, baby.

101. Crucial Conflict, these niggas did snap on the second album.

102. Channel Zero, bringing hip-hop to the Chicago street.

103. Represent with the fleet. They finna blow up like us.

104. It's real hard for us to come out in the Chi

105. 'cause there's no labels here.

106. It's a gang of talent in Chicago and it's fucked up

107. that it's only me, Crucial Conflict, Do or Die,

108. Tung Twista, Common Sense, rapping about the East and West Coasts.

109. It's some Chi-Town shit too.

110. As we were shining the light on artists around the city,

111. one name kept coming up.

112. My man, Kanye. He a young kid, only 19.

113. He did most of my album, raw.

114. Kanye, yeah, we working on the Syndicate stuff together.

115. The Go Getters, what's up with the Go Getters?

116. This is by Kanye West.

117. Kanye West, multi-platinum producer.

118. I'd seen Kanye performin' around town with his rap group,

119. the Go Getters.

120. But after producing for acts like Jermaine Dupri,

121. Foxy Brown and Harlem World, it was his beats

122. that were starting to break through on a national stage.

123. One day, we were shooting an episode with these local rappers,

124. Payroll and Don Ho.

125. Big Payroll represents self-made entertainment.

126. It was one of the first times I stepped behind the camera.

127. My man Coodie on the camera.

128. Coodie on the camera.

129. And while we were filming,

130. they just so happened to take us to Kanye's crib.

131. Down to the… The man behind the beat.

132. Yo, it's Kanye to the Platinum producer.

133. Kon-Man Produc coming at you.

134. Finna start working on this uno project.

135. You know? We finna lay down.

136. Also my Krazy Kat family, Deric Angelettie, Mad Rapper,

137. go get their six joints, and their joint with Eminem on there,

138. Mase, Raekwon, you know, you might've heard of 'em.

139. Couple… You know what I'm saying?

140. - Also I got... - Flex.

141. Come on, get the cameras in there.

142. Okay.

143. Hey, he a selfish little mother fucker. A selfish producer!

144. "These are my beats, my scooter." Shit-faced, smoking his career.

145. We smoke weed.

146. Kanye ain't sharing nothing but beats, man. Nothing.

147. - What's in Kanye's refrigerator? - Let's see.

148. Oh, no.

149. - Damn! - Peas.

150. - Take close notice. - He got peas in that shit.

151. He on a diet.

152. Most people just saw Kanye as a young producer

153. who could hook 'em up with cheap beats.

154. But he told me the only reason why he made beats

155. was so that he can rap over them.

156. We had filmed a lot of artists,

157. but there was just something different about Kanye.

158. Hearing his rhymes…

159. Seeing his confidence…

160. Sometimes you might want your watch to match your gear.

161. There was no doubt in my mind that he was gonna be a star.

162. Inspired by the film Hoop Dreams,

163. I had an idea to do a documentary on Kanye,

164. to see how far his dreams would take him.

165. But before I could even get started,

166. Kanye upped and moved to New York

167. with the hopes of getting a record deal.

168. A year went by…

169. And then one night, I was watching the first-ever BET Awards.

170. The Roc-A-Fella family hit the stage.

171. And as fate would have it,

172. Jay-Z premiered a new song called "H to The Izz-O."

173. As soon as I heard the track,

174. I recognized that was the first beat Kanye ever played for me.

175. Right then, I knew my instincts had been right.

176. But if I wanted to make this documentary, it was now or never.

177. So when Kanye said he was down,

178. I left my career behind…

179. Hey, y'all, my name Coodie. I'm out, thank y'all.

180. …took a leap of faith

181. and moved to New York.

182. - Word. - Right here.

183. For sure, let's make it happen.

184. Can I get this?

185. Yeah.

186. Now we need the lyrics.

187. This is my point.

188. We've been doing this shit for a Black Star project.

189. It's going to be crazy.

190. I got to take my retainers out.

191. What?

192. I need my retainers out for TV!

193. Oh, man!

194. Dude is killing.

195. When I touched down in New York,

196. I started filming Kanye the first chance I got.

197. And finally being there, it was dope seeing him in action,

198. working with some of the biggest MCs in the game.

199. What's up, y'all? This is Mos.

200. - This is Talib Kweli, BKMC. - Black Star.

201. Showing love to my man, Kanye West, coming from Chi-Town.

202. Kanye played us some remarkable shit as usual.

203. Kanye was makin' a good livin' producing tracks for other artists,

204. but he was dead set on making his own album.

205. And I couldn't wait to hear the new music that he was cooking up.

206. - J-Bizzle. - What's up, fam?

207. North up here with this nigga, a young gunner,

208. K to the Westside.

209. That camera! You can't be doing that to that man.

210. Have you ever made tapes?

211. - Sex tapes. - I've done a lot of things in my life.

212. Things that I regret now.

213. "If they have a tape of me, I mean, they're saying it's of me…"

214. Now please don't record all his movements, all his body gestures.

215. Look at this mother...

216. Would you see him?

217. - Yo. - Yo.

218. Olskool Ice-Gre, the good doctor,

219. Abstract Mindstate, with my man Consequence.

220. Kon-Man, my man, Kanye West.

221. - JB. - What's the deal?

222. Coodie on the camera, Channel Zero.

223. Oh! Oh!

224. Way to go! What he do?

225. Watch the footwork.

226. - Aah! - What's up?

227. Chilling. Hello!

228. What's the deal, Coodie? Give me some love, baby.

229. Is this Channel Zero?

230. It's Kanye West.

231. Oh, Kanye West? What's up, Kanye?

232. - When you cut your hair? - January 4th.

233. Man, I know the date.

234. Chi-Town, we about to shine, man.

235. We been seeping through the cracks one by one.

236. Truth was, none of us had grown up together back in Chicago.

237. We were all really just getting to know each other.

238. But we bonded over the idea that we were now here in New York,

239. willing to do whatever it took to make our dreams come true.

240. Kanye, how would you, uh, describe your album?

241. Hmm…

242. I feel like it's a breath of fresh air, 'cause…

243. For all the people that I've been around and all the experiences I've been through,

244. I seen a lot of more shit

245. than a lot of people has seen by the time they get a chance to actually rap.

246. I have to bring in those elements… Like, my mother's an English teacher,

247. um, and she used to, like, cultivate me, you know what I'm saying,

248. and instill a lot of shit in me that needs to be brought up.

249. Even when I rap… Like my father is, like, a Christian, um,

250. marriage counselor,

251. so he'll bring up a lot of the issues Black people have today.

252. I feel like I can't sell to you

253. that I'm finna come up and take your life.

254. I'm not gonna rap, "I'm gonna take your life,"

255. 'cause I think that's what's hot or what's industry-ready.

256. I don't give a fuck about the industry, man.

257. What you need to understand is, when I do this album,

258. it's gonna be the realest shit you ever heard because

259. if I fucking brick, I could still eat.

260. I can still make a way for my family.

261. So I'm gonna do my album. I'll do it the way I fucking want to.

262. You know what I'm saying?

263. And with the backing that I get,

264. I don't think there's a way I could…

265. I'm not gonna say there's no way I could fail,

266. but hopefully, with God's blessings…

267. and I got Chicago on my side,

268. it shouldn't be no way for me to lose, really.

269. If the world was ever gonna hear Kanye's music,

270. he needed a record deal.

271. And after producing half of The Blueprint…

272. Kanye West on the track.

273. …his sights were set on getting signed with the number-one rap label,

274. Roc-A-Fella Records.

275. He just needed to convince Jay-Z and his co-founders,

276. Dame Dash and Biggs,

277. that he deserved a spot on the Roc.

278. So one day, we decided to bum-rush their office

279. and I kept my camera rolling.

280. But, basically, the hook is a reinterpretation of the original.

281. Kanye, what's up, man? Oh, still doing your documentary?

282. I thought it was finished, man.

283. - Nah, man, it's the beginning. - It'll never be finished.

284. So, um, do you want the grades or what you want?

285. Right here. Changed my life.

286. Let me play you some stuff.

287. I gotta take these out in order to rap.

288. - Man, I promise… - I'm telling you…

289. I'm doing well, and yourself?

290. I was going to ask you about this, but now I'm asking in a different context.

291. I'll play it for Carline now.

292. Roc-A-Fella Records.

293. Hold on, one second.

294. You heard what she said?

295. You know what I get lately?

296. Hi, baby!

297. - Do you have it on you? - Yeah.

298. Oh, you getting a BlackBerry? That's the thing to have now.

299. 'Cause you get full emails on that.

300. Cut the camera, please. Thank you.

301. - Bye. - Later.

302. - Bye. - Bye.

303. We doing a documentary and shit right here.

304. - This boy's hot right here. - Yeah.

305. He's flaming.

306. Make sure I get my beats, man!

307. Yeah.

308. - That's how it go down, huh? - Yeah.

309. The first time I heard Kanye's music,

310. I thought it would win Grammys.

311. But Roc-A-Fella just wouldn't take him seriously as a rapper.

312. It was like they only looked at him as a producer.

313. Cayenne is here to see you.

314. Here to see Clue.

315. Cayenne?

316. I need some shit for my album, man.

317. Everyone else is getting beats except me.

318. What kind of joints you want?

319. Some hard street shit.

320. Okay. All right.

321. The more time I spent with Kanye, the more I wanted him to win.

322. But I also saw how everyone played him.

323. And I knew it would be an uphill battle

324. for him to earn the industry's respect as a rapper.

325. You know how you say you never knew a nigga that went…

326. That's how Chicago niggas never know nobody that made it in the game.

327. - Yeah. - They don't know nobody that fucking…

328. Chicago, what platinum rapper we got?

329. - None. - R. Kelly, nigga.

330. - No, rapper. - Rapper.

331. We got Common. He finally went gold after five albums.

332. - He's sick. Common's sick. - He better than most rappers.

333. - That's what I'm saying. - Straight-up.

334. We watched that nigga bust his whole shit trying to just get a little notice.

335. He had to move out here before he became a star.

336. - Yeah. - You know, finally he got noticed.

337. I had to move out here.

338. - Yeah, he had to move out here. - I was doing beats for $500.

339. I came into Baseline, now I'm taxing 40, 50 a beat.

340. - I mean, you… - It's insane, man.

341. - Yeah. Overnight, too. - This shit better rock it.

342. You gonna be one of the greats. Trust me, him and Justin are the next greats.

343. And what's fucked up

344. is that when a nigga become great, people get hate.

345. That's what makes them so great is because the hate makes you great.

346. - That's why they so great. - Yeah.

347. - They're doing a documentary on me. - Word?

348. People probably don't even know who this is.

349. It's Just Blaze, most loved, most hated.

350. Holla at your boy.

351. This right here is like my best friend/arch enemy.

352. Worst enemies.

353. It's like Professor X and Magneto.

354. If it wasn't for being in this environment,

355. with motherfucking Just Blaze in the studio,

356. I wouldn't be able to have my beats as good as they are.

357. Because this nigga is making three beats a day.

358. A lot of times Chicago mentality is just do a little work

359. and just sit back and talk about how good the work you did in the past was.

360. Even by me doing this documentary right now,

361. it's a little narcissistic or whatever.

362. But fuck it. Know what I'm saying?

363. Last year, boy, that was our breakout year for both of us.

364. We used to be both over at Krazy Kat, man.

365. Broke-as-fuck, hot-ass studio, man.

366. This an average night at Baseline.

367. Scarface and Jay-Z sittin' in the studio, neither one had a beat,

368. Kanye West happened to walk through the door.

369. That's what happens when you walk through the door at Baseline.

370. "Guess Who's Back."

371. And look here, in a super, super, small-as-fuck print right here.

372. "Additional vocals by," as most of y'all know me, "Kanye West."

373. Niggas used to think my name was a typo.

374. And it's, like, an Ethiopian French name.

375. It means "the only one."

376. This right here,

377. I needed this record so bad.

378. I hate when niggas be fronting. I needed this shit, yo.

379. 'Cause I ain't had shit!

380. But I'm attempting to do something else. Something with the rapping shit.

381. Dame, can I get this flick with you real quick?

382. - Yeah. - All right.

383. Are y'all ready?

384. Let's go.

385. Kanye's a good dude, man.

386. He has no bad intention towards anything in the world.

387. Yeah, man.

388. Nigga hit the "he wouldn't kill a fly" shit.

389. Know what I mean?

390. Overall, I think he's a very spiritual individual, very soulful,

391. well-guided individual. Very musical.

392. We're gonna sign him. He makes hot shit.

393. Dame might have said he was gonna sign him,

394. but there was never a deal on the table.

395. It felt like he just wanted to keep Kanye around to make beats for his artists.

396. But at the same time, there were other labels that were checking for him.

397. Since the camera's on…

398. With Kanye, man, we're making a deal, right, baby?

399. - With Capitol? - Oh, shit.

400. Yeah, you're fucking touching.

401. You know they're supposed to sign.

402. I tried to sign him eight years ago.

403. But even though the A&R at Capitol wanted to sign Kanye,

404. the heads of the label held the power to make that decision,

405. and they didn't think a producer-rapper could sell records.

406. Like 3H, Mos Def and Talib Kweli thought that Kanye was next up.

407. So, to me, it made perfect sense to try to get a deal

408. with the same label that they were signed to, Rawkus Records.

409. And their A&R, Ali, saw Kanye as a great fit for their roster.

410. Mr. West.

411. Super star, what's cracking?

412. You're that next nigga, man, because what you got…

413. You got a combination of street, high fashion…

414. You got a combination, you dig what I'm saying?

415. And it's a spirit.

416. Naturally, you're not a Roc-A-Fella nigga, you know what I mean?

417. There's a certain energy that goes and I'm not saying it's good or bad,

418. but it is what it is.

419. It's a better written record than what Tribe was doing.

420. And they was doing the best shit. To me, you got the same energy.

421. Where niggas are bumping in they cars all day, all night long.

422. And it's street enough to catch the hardcore niggas

423. it's hip-hop enough to catch the hip-hop niggas.

424. You different.

425. Guys, I'm telling you.

426. Ali saw Kanye's potential,

427. but he still needed to convince his bosses at Rawkus Records

428. to take a chance on him.

429. With no clear answers on where he might end up,

430. Kanye continued to live beat to beat.

431. I gotta stop by my assistant's crib.

432. He's my assistant/cousin.

433. To get a CD I gotta send out to DMX.

434. Don't hold his hairstyle against him though, y'all.

435. - What's up? - On Candid Camera?

436. What's going on?

437. - Clark Kent, the artist, man... - Yeah.

438. He wants to come through. I guess he wants a few beats.

439. He wants to come through and rhyme for you and whatnot.

440. So I don't know what you want to do as far as that.

441. Man, fuck, if I'm in…

442. He wants to see if it's possible to get these tracks,

443. I guess, without putting any money down.

444. What?

445. That's what it seems like.

446. That's impossible.

447. It's impossible.

448. Okay.

449. Like, niggas be killing me thinking they gonna rhyme for me.

450. - The demo shit. - I'm not gonna share my beat.

451. It's like, this is the…

452. This is like, you go into a TV store and you be telling a nigga,

453. "Dawg, I watch TV the best."

454. "So, motherfucker? I still sell TVs."

455. They won't give you a TV for free 'cause you watch TV the best.

456. - Like, you know what I'm saying? - All right.

457. If this nigga don't get this beat, I'm grabbing this shit.

458. - What up, dawg? Twenty premium. - Give 'em that?

459. - Who, DMX? - Yeah.

460. - It's DMX though. - Right.

461. - He got priority over me. - How...

462. So is that how you look at it when you do your tracks?

463. Say, if you want something for yourself…

464. Do you even make tracks for yourself?

465. I just have ideas.

466. And sometimes I'll just write to sample ideas and shit.

467. I'mma start making up new beats, like with my guitar player and my singer

468. that sings exactly what I want to say.

469. People gonna be like, "Where did you get that sample?"

470. It's gonna be saying real exact shit. It's gonna sound just like a '70s record.

471. Okay.

472. That's the next level, where I'm gonna push the game.

473. Okay.

474. Damn, I shouldn't say that in an interview.

475. You should have.

476. Niggas gonna be like, "Yo, I'mma do that too."

477. Don't worry. I won't…

478. I won't give out no secrets.

479. You've been in New York for how long?

480. For a year.

481. In this year's time that I come out here,

482. I did a lot of good things. It's really been a blessing.

483. God's really opened up the gates.

484. I had the hustle in me so much, it was so cooped up,

485. but I got the opportunity out here.

486. I was running, man.

487. I was the type of nigga, I'd be out here broke.

488. One time, I was in the studio with Lil' Kim.

489. I was out here broke.

490. I couldn't afford to get in a cab.

491. They told me Sean wanted me to play some beats.

492. This shit was, like, 20 blocks away.

493. I ran to the studio, 'cause I ain't want 'em to leave

494. before I got a chance to play 'em some beats.

495. I was hungry, man. I am hungry, dawg.

496. Motherfuckers always talk about,

497. "What I got. This nigga, he got this, he got that."

498. Niggas don't realize I ain't nowhere near.

499. I might be living y'all American dream,

500. but I'm nowhere near where my dream is, dawg.

501. Man, I got aspirations. I got big dreams, motherfucker.

502. All this shit is remarkable to me.

503. So it's like the Roc and Rawkus.

504. That's exactly what I am.

505. I'm, like, definitely the gap between both of that.

506. I'm just as much Roc-A-Fella as I am Rawkus.

507. - You know? - Right.

508. Dame Dash, man, Dame Dash ain't no wack nigga, man.

509. And then Jay-Z is not just a rapper.

510. Jay-Z is an icon. He's a mogul.

511. You could be under Jay-Z and still be big as hell.

512. People don't wanna be under a rapper

513. when they feel like they really are a star,

514. which I feel like I am,

515. but I'mma take advantage of my opportunities, man.

516. I'mma meet people.

517. Man, if people serious about doing what it is I do…

518. It's a lot of people, man,

519. be asking for handouts.

520. It's like they point fingers.

521. I know people that's mad at me

522. 'cause I wouldn't give 'em a beat for free.

523. Think about it, the mentality.

524. Niggas got a 40 acres and a mule complex, feel like the world owe 'em something

525. 'cause they never had nothing.

526. Just go out and work for your shit.

527. I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth.

528. Motherfuckers be like, "That nigga grew up in the suburbs."

529. Nigga, I stayed on 79th Street till I was in high school, nigga,

530. then I moved to 119th.

531. And I was never in the suburbs,

532. I was on 87th Street, you know what I'm saying?

533. I wasn't in the street shooting motherfuckers

534. 'cause I was determined.

535. I wanted to fucking make it in music.

536. You gonna hold that against me 'cause I ain't kill nobody?

537. Nigga, I'm a rapper. I'm a motherfucking MC, dawg.

538. I'm a storyteller, man. I'm a songmaker.

539. I create it, man.

540. The music, dawg, is me, man.

541. It ain't representation or nothing else

542. but what I live every day, you know?

543. I'm a motherfucking rapper, dawg.

544. Like, I'm…

545. Man, like, I'll be out…

546. Before I had my car, I used to be walking to the train,

547. practicing my Grammy speech.

548. Yo, can I use the word "fruition" in the, um… In the article?

549. I forgot to use it. That's my new word, fruition.

550. Some dreams coming to fruition.

551. Yeah, I'll put it in there. I got it.

552. As bad as Kanye wanted to be in the spotlight,

553. the music industry was looking for the next Jay-Z.

554. The next DMX.

555. At times, it felt like he was just another face in the crowd.

556. Even though he was standing so close to his dreams…

557. it still felt so far away.

558. But Kanye, he wouldn't take no for an answer.

559. What up?

560. What up, Kanye? You all right?

561. Five, four, three…

562. Right now, I hear Jay-Z's…

563. - "Izzo." - "…Izzo."

564. We didn't even cue it like that.

565. Oh, my goodness!

566. This man right here, Kanye West. He produced the track.

567. Kanye was interviewed on MTV about his production.

568. "H to The Izz-O", this is the song that saved my life

569. It was dope seeing him get on TV,

570. but I knew what he really wanted

571. was a feature on their show, You Hear It First.

572. Because for an up-and-coming artist,

573. that kind of shine could change everything.

574. - Kanye West. - Hi. Lisa.

575. I like your necklace.

576. Uh, I'm trying to get a You Hear It First. It's a couple people.

577. Are you in touch with Sway at all?

578. Uh, yeah. I did a couple for his artists.

579. Okay, cool, yeah.

580. Yeah, 'cause Sway, I mean, he's got an in there at MTV News.

581. - Yeah. - I could talk to some people too, man.

582. Yeah.

583. That was a nice track you played the other day, uh…

584. That was you rapping on it.

585. I was surprised. I was like, "Who's that?"

586. You're like, "That's me." I'm like, "What?"

587. - Kweli said I can get up and rock tonight. - Nice, nice.

588. Kweli! Kweli! Kweli! Kweli! Kweli! Kweli! Kweli! Kweli! Kweli!

589. You ready?

590. Kweli!

591. Kweli!

592. In case y'all don't know, he did "H to The Izz-O."

593. He did "Takeover."

594. He did "Guess Who's Back." He did "Good to You."

595. He did Mos Def's album.

596. Give it up for my nigga Kanye West.

597. Yo.

598. Now, Kanye, y'all also don't know my man got skills.

599. He's a rapper, he's on my new project.

600. Can we let my man bust a verse?

601. What's up, Kanye?

602. Live and in person, we're here choking this nigga.

603. Scream, nigga. Put this on the Internet.

604. I don't like Chicago. It's cold.

605. - What? - Beautiful. It's cold in Chicago.

606. Don't ever say you don't like the Chi.

607. I don't like the weather in the Chi.

608. Mos, you can spit a piece of that "Two Words"?

609. Boy!

610. Oh, that's… That's me and K West.

611. Oh, shit.

612. Despite the support of Mos and Kweli,

613. the heads at Rawkus Records ultimately decided not to sign Kanye.

614. You know how bad I wanted you, boy.

615. I wanted you over there with us.

616. With Kanye's talent,

617. I thought the move to New York would make it easier for him to get a deal.

618. But now the only hope he had left was back at Roc-A-Fella Records.

619. I don't know if y'all realize

620. how long I been spittin' or the fact that I'm actually talking about something.

621. I'm not just sitting on a beat

622. trying to emulate what other rappers is hot out.

623. But y'all gonna understand it in a minute.

624. Things started looking up again

625. when MTV agreed to give Kanye that feature on You Hear It First.

626. His name is SpongeBob SquarePants.

627. That's his whole thing.

628. We live at MTV, man.

629. Not only did they want to cover Kanye,

630. but the producers wanted to use my footage for the segment.

631. Coodie working shit on the MTV.

632. It was the first time I realized that my camera could help Kanye's career.

633. Beautiful.

634. I don't like Chicago. It's cold.

635. - What? - Beautiful. It's cold in Chicago.

636. So when Chicago's top radio station, WGCI,

637. invited Kanye to their music conference,

638. it was the perfect opportunity to get more footage for MTV

639. and show the world where we come from.

640. Where we at?

641. We at the Hyatt Regency in my hometown, um…

642. You know, it feels good to be home, man.

643. Damn! Them rooms ain't really shit, huh?

644. I'mma show y'all some shit, man.

645. Look.

646. They got all these different names. They got Hip-Hop, P Diddy,

647. Um, Dave Mays.

648. But then, this is what killed me.

649. It say producers, right? They got Jermaine Dupri.

650. That's my dawg right there, Steve "Silk" Hurley.

651. Kanye. Now, who the fuck is Kanye?

652. I specifically told them.

653. They said, "What's your stage name? Your professional name?"

654. Kanye West.

655. Then I heard the commercial. They was like,

656. "Featuring Chicago's very own Kanye."

657. So I call 'em, I was like, um…

658. "Why does it say Kanye and not Kanye West?"

659. It's like if you was in Atlanta like, "At the party, Jermaine."

660. Like… My name is Kanye West.

661. And they told me, it's like, um…

662. "Well, everybody call you Kanye."

663. That's when you at the crib, yo. That's the crib.

664. That's how you know me at the crib.

665. "Nigga, you ain't Kanye West to me."

666. "Your name Kanye, your name Ye." This should've been like, "Ye."

667. "Chicago's very own Ye."

668. They don't even recognize me.

669. "Nigga, you came from the fucking crib and…"

670. I'm just complaining in the midst of some good shit.

671. It's a good thing that I'm at the GCI seminar and I'm finally on the panel.

672. I used to sneak into the panels…

673. This is the most beautiful city in the world right here.

674. I mean, niggas don't even know how I wish I could've just…

675. stayed here my entire life and somehow…

676. Somehow made something happen, you know what I'm saying?

677. I been trying to produce since 7th grade, dawg.

678. You know what I'm saying, I put my time in.

679. This my, um, MTV You Hear It First.

680. Big Coodie.

681. What's up, y'all?

682. I used to do my own fades and shit.

683. And that is something you can't beat.

684. I feel like we're merchants.

685. And the aspiration to do your own art,

686. expound on your own was something we didn't have. We have it now.

687. Our chokehold on American culture should allow us to move everywhere.

688. How are you doing?

689. Go Getters coming through.

690. It's Kanye West, y'all.

691. This is the hottest new producer.

692. Did, uh, half of Jay-Z's album, like five joints on The Blueprint.

693. Much love to my man.

694. My man Kanye West's documentary doing the damn thing,

695. opening up for Chicago producers. Letting niggas know.

696. I wouldn't be where I'm at if it weren't for these people.

697. I might have to pay a little money.

698. Now, Dug…

699. Now let me share my love…

700. We got to share the story. I had to save them for last though.

701. - Go over there, Ye. - Um…

702. Hold on.

703. We gonna bring it back to when I used to come over to Jay-Chill.

704. - Back when I was 14 years old. - Thirteen.

705. Oh, shit.

706. Your mom was my English teacher at Chicago State. Donda West.

707. Big up.

708. She told me she got her son some equipment

709. and he needed to be in the mix.

710. That's how it went.

711. You got to be around some good people. Who was you around?

712. We was around, um…

713. Um…

714. Man, you know we ain't had no bunch of rappers in Chicago.

715. We were around a bunch of niggas that were finna get signed…

716. They still finna get signed!

717. I'm one of 'em.

718. I own the joint and I'm one of 'em.

719. I'm Dug Infinite.

720. My man Kanye West documentary,

721. got a lot of love for him, one of the best producers in Chicago.

722. I've been knowing him since he 13, doing his thing.

723. He opened it up. He opened it up.

724. We're gonna make some good records and we're gonna have some fun.

725. No matter what happens after this date and no matter what's said after this date,

726. you see the root of everything we're doing here

727. is based and founded on business and love.

728. So believe that, all the time.

729. Home is where you learn how to love.

730. Early on, it was Dug Infinite

731. and one of Chicago's most recognized producers, No ID,

732. who taught Kanye how to make beats.

733. No ID,

734. he got the beats. He got the phat tracks.

735. Dug Infinite, working on something.

736. I'm chilling out in Chi-Town.

737. But as I watched Kanye blow up,

738. we both soon learned that that love can sometimes turn into hate.

739. You on the B-side with Teefa.

740. We just had a… historic moment…

741. Turn it up.

742. Dug, man.

743. We want to clear some things. We want to know who that was directed to.

744. Kanye came up with us, and I was responding to an article in XXL.

745. I didn't like some things he said.

746. I felt it was disrespectful to me,

747. and I made a record to tell the truth. I want people to know the truth.

748. Family got to keep it real with family sometimes.

749. And Kanye might be through to speak on what he want to speak on.

750. Uh-oh.

751. GCI.

752. Dawg.

753. Why nigga's got a diss record on me already? What the fuck?

754. Dug Infinite!

755. One of the niggas that taught me how to make beats.

756. I saw him today.

757. The nigga's talking on the documentary,

758. "Yeah, I came up with the nigga…"

759. I be talking to the nigga all the time. Hold on one second.

760. Now he gotta song talk about…

761. Niggas only fuckin' with me 'cause Jay-Z rapping on my beats.

762. Like my beats wasn't cold before.

763. They in the studio right now.

764. Two blocks away from where you at.

765. - That's them niggas there. - Y'all want to confront 'em?

766. - This is hip-hop, man. - It come with the territory.

767. This won't be easy.

768. When you say certain shit, you held accountable for it, man.

769. If I say something out my mouth,

770. niggas gonna hold me accountable on the block.

771. I said that "Dug Infinite put me on" in a magazine

772. and they didn't print it.

773. And you make a song dissing me because XXL didn't print it?

774. And I told you?

775. The magazine you said No ID helped you with your style, man.

776. You know I was there.

777. Nigga, I told the magazine.

778. I don't want to be x-ed out of the history or the city.

779. Dawg, you was history in this city, man.

780. And I felt like for years, man, I always took your side.

781. When No ID was being funny with you, when niggas was not talking to you.

782. - I always... - You need a hug, man.

783. - I always went... - You need a hug.

784. Nigga need a hug. You need a hug too, Coodie, man?

785. Hello.

786. Yo.

787. No, I know them niggas. It ain't like on the streets.

788. No street shit, man. I said that.

789. - Nah, dawg. - I'm real.

790. I ain't on that, dawg.

791. I ain't gonna cut you, man.

792. You in a position, man.

793. You know what I'm saying? Let me… Let me…

794. King of the hill. When you on top, everybody wanna knock you down.

795. Or get up there with you.

796. Ain't about to run up on a nigga. I ain't talkin'.

797. Not me.

798. That's the love, start with the game.

799. We just got through talking about this in his living room in Jersey.

800. Like, dawg, it finna come.

801. Get ready.

802. With all the rejection Kanye went through in New York,

803. it was crazy to come home and see him get dissed in front of the whole city.

804. Especially by somebody he looked up to.

805. Every time I get out, they drag me back in.

806. In spite of it all,

807. Kanye had the chance to tell his side of the story.

808. Go ahead.

809. Here we go.

810. Come down to this mic.

811. I see you peeved, man.

812. You on my bad side, Coodie, man. Come over here, man.

813. 1075, WGCI, number one for hip-hop and R&B.

814. You on the B-side with your girl Teefa.

815. I got my man Kanye West in the studio right now.

816. Say "what's up" to the people.

817. What up? What up, Chi-Town?

818. Me and Just,

819. as far as on the beats,

820. we the producers that everybody try to mimic or copy.

821. And what's so crazy about that is I originally got that style…

822. I went over to No ID's crib when I was like… 14.

823. He was like, "You could sample records sped up."

824. He did that for Common Sense's first album, so it was a Chicago style.

825. Then when No ID thought I was too much of a pest,

826. I end up going over Dug Infinite crib.

827. You know what I'm saying?

828. He end up showing me how to make beats.

829. Everything that you hear,

830. it comes with the turf, with the territory.

831. It's, uh… It's like…

832. I'm not gonna touch on that that much,

833. but I'mma tell Chi-Town like this.

834. Me and Dug is a lot closer than what y'all think.

835. So if y'all looking at the record, that's just a record.

836. I feel like I'm just breaking down the barriers for everybody.

837. I'm up here still doing beats for dudes that I knew since I was, like,

838. sixteen years old and 15 years old.

839. At the end of the day, man,

840. I don't owe nobody nothing except for my mother, you know?

841. Well, you definitely clarifyin'.

842. - What's been floatin' around. - It's a lot I gotta clarify.

843. Y'all got me wrapping up, man?

844. How you gonna wrap me, dawg? You can't wrap me up.

845. We'll come back to you.

846. Check it out, we gonna get you a chance to clarify…

847. After the love Kanye got at the seminar,

848. we never thought the trip would take the turn it did.

849. Leaving the station, I thought he handled it well.

850. But still, I knew it had to hurt.

851. Kanye?

852. Yeah, Mom. There's company with me too.

853. Why you don't start bringing your key with you home?

854. I forgot it.

855. - How you been? - Okay, how you doing?

856. Yeah.

857. It's cold in here.

858. You all cold?

859. Well, no...

860. Welcome, I mean.

861. Um, what's your name?

862. - Coodie. - Coodie?

863. Oh, okay. I'm Donda. What's your...

864. - I've met you before. - Yeah.

865. - This is my mom. - Yeah.

866. Kanye, you look good. Oh, I haven't seen this.

867. This is really… Now, Kanye, I like this.

868. - You like it? - This is nice!

869. Ooh.

870. Oh, I really like this, Kanye.

871. Look, y'all.

872. Now this is a true bachelorette pad right here.

873. This is reduced fat milk, man.

874. Got the Zinfandel, White Zinfandel.

875. Oh, don't film in the refrigerator,

876. ain't nothing in it.

877. Kanye, that's really… I'm so glad you got that one.

878. Because when I was in New York you know what I was thinking?

879. It was like, "Oh, Kanye, you went and got another piece of jewelry."

880. "You haven't even bought a house."

881. - This is worth not getting a house? - Yeah.

882. There'll be houses out there. This is nice.

883. There'll be houses…

884. Isn't it?

885. - That is nice. That is beautiful. - Very unique.

886. And you know what? You need an angel to watch over you, so it's all good.

887. You the man.

888. We ain't always used to have this view.

889. No, no.

890. It wasn't like this on 79th.

891. When I was three years old.

892. I like the way you, uh, explained everything about how long

893. it takes people to… What was that, like, uh…

894. Jay-Z to write a rap. And Scarface too, wasn't it?

895. Yeah, and how they do.

896. All Jay does is basically record songs in five minutes,

897. and then he makes rappers come to the studio

898. and just play the songs and is like, "Look what I did this week."

899. - Eighteen songs." - All of his songs?

900. Yeah, he'll play his songs over and over, loud, like ear-piercing volumes.

901. Then he started going in the other room. I said, "Yo, hold."

902. I gotta play you one more beat."

903. And the way it was, it was awkward.

904. If I played him a wack beat at this time,

905. it would have been too awkward.

906. 'Cause he was like… this is the last song he gonna play.

907. Like, "Dawg, I'll play you one more beat."

908. So I put it on.

909. He start bobbing his head.

910. Then he looked over, he tapped me.

911. That's what he said? He knew...

912. He knew he had a hit right then.

913. He got up.

914. Ooh!

915. "Ooh, that's it!"

916. - "That's why you get the big bucks." - Right.

917. We had to figure out what to say in between, so it's…

918. And then he said…

919. He looked at me and said…

920. I was like…

921. "Mom, we about to blow up. We finna blow up."

922. You know the one I used to always try to get you to do.

923. - You never did it. What's that? - What?

924. Something about reward, remember?

925. I rhymed "hard" with "reward"?

926. - Yeah. - That's a good rhyme.

927. You did. I said, "Keep on going. It's a million dollars."

928. Everything you'd do, I'd say, "That's a million dollars."

929. Yeah, and we still haven't made a million.

930. I like this… But you could…

931. But that first line was really good.

932. Um…

933. Uh… Ahh!

934. - I forget the… - Once I had the words too.

935. But now, you not walking down the halls.

936. You talking about College Dropout.

937. I don't know if that's going to be the title.

938. I told you that they doing a You Hear It First

939. on me on MTV, right?

940. You told me you were gonna try.

941. - They said they doing it. - They are?

942. They're gonna use this footage.

943. All right. That's good, Kanye.

944. This is so exciting hearing it. I love it.

945. Yeah, can you believe it?

946. I can believe it, the way you are.

947. Somebody gotta agree.

948. You play tracks like Michael Jordan shoots free throws.

949. Anybody that does something that much and that long and is that good…

950. It's gotta pay off.

951. You can't go over there and do nothing but blow up.

952. - Yeah. Yeah. - Isn't that so?

953. The main thing is you gotta do something that you really love to do.

954. I was thinking about something

955. I was gonna say to you that I thought was important.

956. How you were down-to-earth and everything, but you have a lot of confidence

957. that come off a little arrogant even though you're humble,

958. but it be important to remember that

959. the giant looks in the mirror and sees nothing.

960. You know what I mean?

961. So you think I come off too arrogant?

962. No. Come off just right 'cause of what's inside

963. because you can't be a star and not be a star.

964. You've got to have some oomph about you.

965. Don't wanna just go say,

966. "Oh, I'm just really not all that, but thank you anyway."

967. Nothing like that. I'm not saying come off like that.

968. I think the way you are, handle yourself, is really just…

969. Perfect.

970. But at the same time that you remember…

971. Like, to stay on the ground,

972. you could be in the air at the same time.

973. That's what I think it means when it says,

974. "The giant looks in the mirror and sees nothing."

975. Everybody else sees the giant, you know?

976. - Right. - Mm-hmm.

977. I know… I feel like…

978. Kanye bringing us to his mom's house,

979. that felt like the real reason we came to Chicago.

980. She had this special way of lifting his spirit,

981. of giving him the love and guidance he needed.

982. It was easy to see the confidence Kanye had in himself…

983. was because of the confidence Donda had in him.

984. She even made me feel like family.

985. - Toast the cameraman. - Toast. All right.

986. Salud.

987. We went back to New York inspired.

988. And Kanye,

989. he was more determined than ever to lock down that deal with Roc-A-Fella.

990. Hook me up with a little something back there.

991. This is Kanye, right? This you, right?

992. He got the second verse on it.

993. I like this.

994. Back in Jersey, Rhymefest, an artist out of Chicago,

995. was collaborating with Kanye on a song called "Jesus Walks."

996. I remember thinking I never heard a rap song like this before in my life.

997. And Kanye thought, if he could get a legendary rapper like Scarface

998. to do the hook on it,

999. that can help seal the deal with Roc-A-Fella.

1000. Don't step out front of that car.

1001. - I'll be right back. - Aight.

1002. - All right, G. - Is this The Making of Kanye?

1003. They got a You Hear It First on me on MTV.

1004. - They got who? - You Hear It First on MTV.

1005. For you?

1006. That goddamn Kanye be pulling rabbits out the hat, man.

1007. That beat right there? That song right there? Man.

1008. What's going on now?

1009. Chi Town. Chi Town.

1010. Thank you for coming through. I know you were busy.

1011. - Huh? - I know you was busy.

1012. - Appreciate you coming and grabbing me. - For sure.

1013. Find something else.

1014. Can you stop it real quick?

1015. That's hard, man.

1016. - But you can do that chorus though? - Yeah, I can...

1017. That's a hard one for me.

1018. Let me try to get a hands-free.

1019. Try that one.

1020. This song right here called "Family Business."

1021. Wait, you got a rhyme on this already?

1022. I wanna hear you rhyme.

1023. The concept of the song is "Family Business."

1024. So, you got…

1025. Incredible. You got all three verses on that?

1026. I only got one verse.

1027. Go to the next one.

1028. I like "Family Business." This came out good.

1029. Man, what the fuck is this right here?

1030. Um, my retainers.

1031. Man, that shit don't go out there, man.

1032. That shit been all in your mouth and shit.

1033. Them the only two I got on there, "Jesus Walks" and this.

1034. Yeah, that was the shit, man.

1035. Yeah, that shit is mean.

1036. Which joints you want me to put on a CD?

1037. It don't matter.

1038. Even though Scarface never made it back to record,

1039. getting validation from one of the best rappers alive

1040. was more encouragement for Kanye to keep moving forward.

1041. That's some dope-ass footage.

1042. When we spin "Family Business" for 'Face, that nigga say, "Incredible."

1043. And with MTV ready to do his interview for You Hear It First,

1044. we knew that kind of publicity could get everybody talking.

1045. I look big on TV.

1046. Okay.

1047. America, y'all had to see me.

1048. Gonna have to get used to this face.

1049. Ain't that what everybody say? Delete that.

1050. "Get used to me,"

1051. and you don't see him next year.

1052. Do you feel like you being from Chicago,

1053. is that like, do you think that's to your advantage?

1054. There's very few MCs coming out of Chicago.

1055. Man, I feel like

1056. coming from Chicago is definitely an advantage.

1057. I feel like everything

1058. that anybody ever said in life would be a disadvantage to me,

1059. I'mma make it my advantage.

1060. When I was playing basketball, everybody said I was too short.

1061. I'm killing 'em with the scoops.

1062. Everybody say, "You can't rap 'cause you a producer."

1063. Okay.

1064. "Oh, I ain't hear that beat." "Yeah, I produced it."

1065. I rapped on it before you got a chance to hear it.

1066. Like, I'mma use everything that everybody says that I can't do,

1067. and I'mma flip it to the positive.

1068. Like, I look at everything as a glass half-full than half-empty.

1069. I'mma stand for everything I seen in my life,

1070. and I'mma try to express that to y'all the best I can.

1071. And I feel like I'm creative enough

1072. that I'mma make it work, you know?

1073. I know nobody has ever stood up and said, "Yo, man,

1074. let me actually show you that there's more than one side to me."

1075. I don't know if I really believe in that Gemini stuff,

1076. and the constellations and all that.

1077. Like, I really believe in God, like…

1078. But I know that there's more than one side to me.

1079. I know on one end,

1080. when I get a check-in, sometimes I'm like,

1081. "Yo, man, I'm finna go and get this

1082. chain off layaway from Jacob's right now."

1083. I know that I'll go to church with my grandparents

1084. and really try to hear what the Word is,

1085. or what they trying to tell me or really try to understand

1086. about religion or what do I want to pick, so I'm confused as a Black man.

1087. A lot of times, artists come into the aspect that they not confused

1088. about who they are, and you always hear about,

1089. "Man, I loved the album, but she a hypocrite or he's a hypocrite."

1090. Well, I guess that's like anti-hip-hop, right?

1091. Because hip-hop was always about frontin', always acting like…

1092. I feel like that's the Black mentality because

1093. since we ain't had nothing, then we get a little something,

1094. we've got to show it to prove something.

1095. It's like the concept of walking in the store,

1096. you look like a shoplifter unless you got something on.

1097. You feel like you gotta wear jewelry to get the same service.

1098. I say in a rap, "Getting green make you almost white."

1099. I feel like my album,

1100. the perspective that I'mma speak from,

1101. I feel like I'mma bridge the gap.

1102. I'mma be one that helps bridge the gap with hip-hop.

1103. I'm trying to get where I could drop my last name off my name, you know?

1104. Seriously. Like…

1105. I don't wanna jinx myself, but I'mma take this opportunity.

1106. Like, I got some songs, I got some stuff in my heart

1107. that the world need to hear.

1108. If I do what I'm supposed to do, people gonna look back like, "Man…"

1109. "Dude, remember, you used to just make beats for people?"

1110. Ever since I moved to New York,

1111. the thing that struck me most about Kanye was how much he believed in himself.

1112. He fought every day to get others to believe, too.

1113. And now, with You Hear It First,

1114. it felt like the world was gonna have to listen.

1115. I'm feeling a little bit overwhelmed by this whole shit.

1116. Even just standing here.

1117. They don't know.

1118. I bet you he don't know me either then.

1119. They all listen to Flex.

1120. They're gonna do a You Hear It First on your boy, wack-ass me.

1121. You know what I'm saying?

1122. Kanye, you in one of those magazines they selling?

1123. That XXL you in, I think!

1124. Ooh.

1125. I'mma let a secret about me, dawg.

1126. I'm, um…

1127. I got a little addiction, man.

1128. You might have to cut this off.

1129. Let me get that Black Tail, right there.

1130. - Eight dollars, man. - How much?

1131. - Eight dollars. - Eight dollars? God damn, bro!

1132. That right there?

1133. When I came out here, I came to Newark,

1134. I hadn't even seen my apartment or nothing.

1135. I just knew I had to be where niggas was making it happen.

1136. See that? You got to get the act to look good.

1137. You gotta have the dramatic music for that.

1138. I'll never forget the night

1139. when Kanye told me he got the call that was going to change his life.

1140. Because of his drive, his persistence,

1141. Dame Dash was finally ready to make his record deal official.

1142. I can't believe I got a fucking deal though.

1143. That we even sitting here right now.

1144. Ain't gonna be like this next month.

1145. We ain't gonna be sittin' here like this next month.

1146. That shit is fucking amazing.

1147. Coming from Chicago,

1148. we knew that nothing in life was given to you.

1149. You can get in where you fit in, or you can make room.

1150. After all this hard work,

1151. it felt like our stars were finally beginning to align.

1152. - It's a good day. - Beautiful day.

1153. So, I'm Allison.

1154. Nice to meet you.

1155. Good to meet you.

1156. - JB. - Hey. Nice to meet ya.

1157. - The man with the camera. - Coodie.

1158. - And I'm Kanye, good to meet you. - Good to meet you.

1159. You read everything? You understand it?

1160. And you agree to be bound by the terms of the agreement?

1161. Sign there.

1162. Man, dawg. This is a beautiful thing right now.

1163. Man, I see a lot of people in this room, like,

1164. that I couldn't have made it to this point without.

1165. And, uh, I just signed with Roc-A-Fella Records as an artist.

1166. And Dame said the joint coming out this year,

1167. and my first single got Mos Def, Freeway and Harlem Boys Choir on it.

1168. Kanye was now officially a part of the Roc-A-Fella family.

1169. And with Jay-Z and The Dynasty tour heading to Chicago,

1170. we knew we had to be there.

1171. I signed with Roc-A-Fella Records.

1172. - Huh? - I just signed with Roc-A-Fella.

1173. You ever heard of Roc-A-Fella?

1174. With Damon Dash?

1175. Yeah.

1176. - You know Dame Dash? You know Dame Dash? - Huh?

1177. Me and my crew, we just got finished making a movie.

1178. Pray you got all of that.

1179. - Yeah. - 'Bout two weeks ago.

1180. This look like Coodie.

1181. Everybody, this look like Coodie, look.

1182. Damn, that is him.

1183. - That is Coodie. - Look at you.

1184. Let me see it.

1185. Better get something to eat, please.

1186. Yeah, I do like…

1187. Go again.

1188. Something like that.

1189. Okay.

1190. Yeah, I do like that.

1191. - Scoot your feet, like he, uh… - You should be in the video.

1192. That was Jay-Z and the other stuff.

1193. You know, that video already made.

1194. You know, it's old. We workin' on a new video.

1195. What's the new video?

1196. It's yours, it's Kanye West's video.

1197. - Okay. - Okay, can I get some change?

1198. Come see it. Give me something to eat.

1199. God bless you, baby. Thank you. For real.

1200. Yeah, okay. For real. Yeah.

1201. - Hey. - Hey!

1202. - How you doin'? - I'm all right.

1203. - Kinda chilly out here today. - Oh, yeah, Windy City.

1204. Yeah.

1205. Mama West said

1206. you could stay on the ground and be in the air all at the same time.

1207. Maybe that's why she took us back to where everything started.

1208. Boy, this brings back some memories.

1209. It's crazy. We must've been so little.

1210. We used to play football right here.

1211. We'd throw the ball up and whoever get the ball,

1212. you tried your best to kill him.

1213. I'll show you the bounds that kill a man.

1214. You ain't wanna hit this right here…

1215. or this right here.

1216. Well, I've definitely cracked my head on it a couple of times.

1217. It's crazy how different it looks 'cause it looks…

1218. It seemed so much bigger than me

1219. when I used to picture it, you know?

1220. This right here is, um…

1221. It used to have that mirror and I used to just practice, like, in front of it.

1222. Just doing whatever I wanted to do.

1223. Yo, our dog, we called him Genius 'cause he could get out of anything.

1224. We built a pen back there, but he used to figure how to get out.

1225. You couldn't just leave him in the pen.

1226. You gotta pen him up, put a chain around him.

1227. - Yeah. - He's so smart.

1228. Everybody in our family was smart, even the dog.

1229. That's right.

1230. So you got a bedroom in here?

1231. Yeah, this is your bedroom.

1232. Yeah, I could almost… I think I could touch both of the walls with my hand.

1233. Do I got some lint on my hair?

1234. What? Where?

1235. Oh, yeah, right here.

1236. How was Kanye coming up?

1237. You know, Kanye was always self-absorbed in a way.

1238. You went to kindergarten from here.

1239. They picked you up right across the street.

1240. And I came to kindergarten one day, and you looked out in the hall and saw me,

1241. and you were on the top of the sliding board, and you said,

1242. "I don't need you!"

1243. Do you remember that?

1244. You did, Kanye.

1245. You were on every talent show, remember?

1246. Every talent show, and Kanye would win all the talent shows.

1247. But that's why you was so disappointed when you didn't win that year.

1248. You got second place doing a Stevie Wonder.

1249. - I got no place doing a Steve Wonder. - You did!

1250. - Yeah. - You practiced.

1251. Yeah, and the thing was, I just…

1252. Yo, how you gonna do Stevie Wonder at a talent show?

1253. You know, Stevie Wonder only sits at the keyboard.

1254. So how you gonna lip sync Stevie Wonder?

1255. That mean for three minutes, I'm up there like…

1256. I thought it was good.

1257. That was good. You even had the braids.

1258. - I had… It was about… - And some sunglasses.

1259. I was just about to…

1260. I was just about to stand up. You know how Stevie stand up and…

1261. I was about to stand up,

1262. and right when I was about to stand up, they closed the curtains on me.

1263. It got to a point where I knew I was gonna get first place.

1264. I had to help other people with they stuff.

1265. - That's right. - That's the way it seem right now.

1266. Like, I know my album is going to be right.

1267. Now I got to help other people with they albums.

1268. That's good, Kanye.

1269. Did you think of a name for it yet?

1270. I should call it, uh…

1271. I'mma be straight. I don't know what I'mma call it.

1272. It's all good.

1273. Mom, that term is so old.

1274. Well, you said, "I'm good."

1275. I'm good, yeah.

1276. - I'm good. - Right.

1277. I don't know. I just wanna say, like, I appreciate…

1278. I would like to congratulate you on the good job you did with me.

1279. I might take a bit of credit.

1280. Yeah, it's good. You get, Mom, a little bit of credit.

1281. Most of the… You see, I raised myself, basically.

1282. Oh, well, Kanye!

1283. That's how we… That's how we moved away from here, Kanye.

1284. - Do you remember? - I think I was ten.

1285. Every day, I set up a ramp right there.

1286. That day, when Donda took us to their old house,

1287. I saw first-hand the strong foundation she built while raising Kanye.

1288. How much she sacrificed to provide for him.

1289. And now, he was living out his dreams.

1290. Seeing how Kanye came up

1291. got me reflecting on my own life.

1292. So before the concert, I went back to where my journey started.

1293. I see him.

1294. Like Donda,

1295. my parents influenced me in so many ways that I was just beginning to see.

1296. I'll never forget when my father came home with a VHS camera.

1297. Can you see it good? Do you need light?

1298. How my mother filmed the birth of all my nieces and nephews.

1299. When I look back,

1300. at all the signs…

1301. That is a cut though. Happy Birthday, Ma!

1302. We outta here. Peace.

1303. …there was no doubt.

1304. This was always my purpose.

1305. I might have left home to document Kanye…

1306. I'm just getting some shots of Daddy playing his game.

1307. Oh, really?

1308. …but home is where I learned the power of capturing timeless moments…

1309. like these.

1310. You have to be fresh on this, nigga

1311. Your own kind of fresh.

1312. He got the Canada.

1313. The Canada track, huh?

1314. This is Kanye West.

1315. What up?

1316. - What up with you? - You all right?

1317. What up, dawg? I'm Kanye West, man.

1318. Yo, dope track.

1319. Yo, bro. Say something to my documentary right here.

1320. - Yo, nigga... - One of the sickest niggas…

1321. One of the sickest niggas that do what he do. Ridiculous.

1322. Okay. Mm-hmm.

1323. Hey, Kanye.

1324. I'll see ya.

1325. Here you go.

1326. Kanye bringing the swag. You gotta step it up.

1327. How many people here tonight got that Blueprint album?

1328. Oh, come on, shout-out to the rest of the family.

1329. Watch out.

1330. Uh-oh.

1331. Kanye.

1332. Got some big news for Chi. You want to tell them?

1333. You tell 'em.

1334. Aight.

1335. I want y'all niggas to know that I'm the newest member of the Roc-A-Fella team.

1336. Uh-oh.

1337. Oh, shit.

1338. All the Chicago niggas, I'm putting it down for y'all niggas.

1339. We're gonna be up here in a minute.

1340. Come on, y'all. Give it up for y'all niggas.

1341. Kanye did it, from Chicago, motherfuckers.

1342. People used to always ask me,

1343. why would I stop everything to start filming Kanye?

1344. Well, watching his dreams become reality showed me,

1345. it showed everyone,

1346. that when you move in faith, all things are possible.

1347. And to think, this was just the beginning.

1348. You'll be one of the greats.

1349. Trust, nigga. Next greats.

1350. Ye West. Hot.

1351. You need an angel to watch over you…

1352. I live and I breathe this shit.

1353. Kanye West was injured.

1354. I'm interested in why you believe all this is happening.

1355. He was involved in a car accident

1356. that left him with a fractured jaw.

1357. It was like God saying, "I'm about to hand you the world."

1358. "Just know, at any time, I could take it away from you."

1359. Hi, I'm Gideon Yago with MTV News,

1360. and a little showcase we like to call, drumroll please, You Hear It First.

1361. Our look at an up-and-coming artist you'll be hearing more from in the future.

1362. Is there room for a self-proclaimed backpack rapper

1363. in Roc-A-Fella's Bentley hit parade? Meet Kanye West.