That rapper

I won't rehash what happened at the MTV Video Music Awards with Kanye West vs. Taylor Swift. The point of this post is that every other media outlet - talk shows, blogs, magazines, newspapers, etc. - has rehashed what happened over and over and over again, and it's only feeding the madness that is Kanye's ego.

I'm less surprised Kanye stormed the stage and stole the spotlight and more disappointed in how big of a deal the press has made it today. It's not that I expect anybody to ignore it. It's definitely news when, during a live broadcast, one of the most famous rappers steals the spotlight from a 17-year-old country music singer who is genuinely excited to be winning that award. But I'm just sick of the media giving into Kanye's consistant pleas for attention.

He's done this before and will do it again. George Bush doesn't like black people, he said during the Hurricane Katrina telethon. He claimed he'd never be on MTV again after Britney Spears was selected to open the 2007 Video Music Awards instead of him. Kanye grabbed the microphone at the MTV Europe Music Awards when he didn't win some award. (Apparently getting a Moon Man is high on Kanye's Bucket List).

I'm convinced arrogance is rooted in insecurity, and he is the poster child for that. For some reason, I think Kanye doesn't think his music or his talent will gain him the publicity or accolades he feels he deserves, so he resorts to publicity stunts and mouthing off in the press to gain attention. And it works!

His name is on everybody's lips today. But the mistake Kanye made this time is not only is his name on everybody's lips, but Taylor Swift's is too. I couldn't have named a song by her prior to Sunday night. But after that spectacle, I was really impressed she was able to perform about 10 minutes later. And now I like that little song she sings. I heard it in the car today and rocked out like it was Hall & Oates (well, maybe not that hard). My point is, if I'm that succeptible to teen pop music, others probably are too.

In my opinion, this is really good publicity for Kanye. I'm pretty sure his album is dying out (I can't think of a current song on the radio) and it's a good way to get his name out. Numerous media outlets reference the apology he made on his blog and I'll bet that blog gets thousands more hits today because of that. That leads to people surfing around on the blog, reading other stuff about him and his music.

I wish there was a way for the media to take a stand and only minimally cover his future outbursts.