Circa 2003: Eminem's creative peak is behind him, 50 Cent drops predictable tracks for the clubs and pop charts, and the hip hop community in general seems devoid of any true creativity after having blazed the trail for it since the late 90's. When The College Dropout was released upon an unsuspecting public, nobody knew what was in store. People had heard of Kanye West, but only in a production capacity, lacing up the best tracks on Jay-Z's last few albums, as well as tracks for Alicia Keys and Brandy. The only note-worthy event outside his production duties was a near-fatal car crash that almost ended the dream prematurely. Using the time spent in a hospital bed to write, West was back in the studio as soon as he was out of the hospital bed, and that's where things got really interesting.

West already had a reputation for being a big-noting artist with intentions of taking over the rap game (but then most rappers do don't they?). Bringing his production skills to the table however meant he could craft the album single-handedly, start to finish, and not rely on someone else's creative input to achieve his vision for The College Dropout. Indeed the album is at times an exercise in self-indulgence, but then popular music in any form has never been about subtlety and sneaking through a side-entrance - unless your popularity decrees that you won't make it through the front door alive.

The thing that stands out most on West's debut, beyond the flawless production or the array of guests, was the honesty he filled his lyrics with. One verse spent bragging about his array of shiny things, the next acknowledging it's all driven by low self-esteem. Rap and hip hop has curiously been for a long time about how much wealth one manages to accumulate and how they go about showing it off. When West says "I'm so self-conscious, that's why you always see me with at least one of my watches", it signals a change in direction for modern hip hop. A step away from thuggery and bragging and instead penning a verse that could actually mean something to the guy in the street? Heaven forbid. West's true strength seems to come from being happy to acknowledge he is nothing if not human, secure in the belief that he's just an extraordinarily talented one.

At the end of the day, The College Dropout made it OK for rap music to be fun again, without giving up any of it's credibility. West seems to acknowledge that everyone has enough of their own problems without hearing all of his, so instead he speaks in ways everybody can understand, dragging a wry sense of humour and a keen eye for observations through each one of his lyrics. A flawed relationship with God, the struggle to balance discipline and being a leader while wanting to enjoy himself, appreciating the role family plays in his life and contrasting that with a picture of Thanksgiving dinner where cousins are incarcerated rather than at the dinner table. It's the contradiction in perceptions that makes Kanye West so compelling. Not a soldier, not a lover, not a prophet, not a millionaire, but parts of each that keep his feet firmly on the ground while having no qualms about reaching for the sky.

There are plenty of rappers out there who can do nothing but speak in an aggrandising fashion about every aspect of their lifestyle, but West lays his flaws out on the table and asks you to love him anyway - which you can't help but do, regardless of arrogant rhetoric or his penchant for writing off other MC's. I'd pose the question but I'm sure he'd do it himself given the opportunity: What do you mean you don't own The College Dropout?