A Few Words About Kanye West's "Flashing Lights"

Kanye West's video for "Flashing Lights" is one of my favorites videos of the last twelve months or so. It is a compelling piece of cinematography that puts you on the edge of your seat while you're looking for clues about what's going on and trying to figure out what the hell just happened.

L Magazine's Mike Dougherty put the video under a lens and gets a little academic to come up with some clues about what this mini flick might really be all about. After discussing some plausible notions about what might have been the thinking behind the video, Dougherty goes on to speculate how West might have intended to use this video as a way to kill off his public persona and go back to the role of the underdog.

"His mom died in November, hence all the tributes at the Grammys and in the tabloids, and it’s clear he’s been a little more vulnerable lately than he usually puts on," Dougherty writes. "Could throwing a death wish out there just be a pity play, a way to affect the underdog role again, ridiculous as that might be? After all, he started out as a producer with friends in high places but a questionable level of sheer talent. Three albums later, devout hip-hop heads still question whether he’s that good a writer."

He also claims that West's "scattered visual distractions" in his videos and album art "have rightfully taken the attention off his writing and his rapping."

I frankly think that West simply made a great and memorable video that marries his knack for a strong aesthetic with his incredible media-savvy. And even though it seems that West gets very little airtime in his video (he's merely an extra), the rapper is still the focal point of discussion with viewers asking "What happened to Kanye?" in their effort to make sense of it all.

No need to worry. Kanye West's ego is alive and kicking, making him one of those most colorful personalities in music today.