Kanye pivoted from streetwear and hip-hop toward high-culture legitimacy

Evidence

With such high barriers, Kanye assumed the role of Trojan horse. His insatiable quest for sophistication became a campaign to win over the cognoscenti. This accelerated after his mother’s tragic death in 2007. Channeling his grief, he recorded 808s & Heartbreak, a minimalist electronic pop album drenched in auto-tuned despair. The album redefined hip-hop as emo, paving the way for a new generation of introspective, singsong rappers like Drake. Kanye’s visual transformation accompanied the sonic shift: The jacket photo featured him in a sharp, light gray glen-check suit and crisp white shirt, having shed his signature hoodies and jeans. — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 360

Categorization

• XREF: This is clearly an example in Marx’s portrait of taste and distinction — connects to Bourdieu-adjacent claims about status passage through high culture; also frames the coming death-of-the-sellout mechanism from the era-defining thesis.