Download of the Day 12/24: All of the Lights by Kanye West

What is the recipe for a hip-hop masterpiece?

Hmm, let's see. Of course, you need a bombastic, over the top hook. To sing the hook, you also need a huge pop singer who is famous for her hook deliveries, like Rihanna. You probably should throw in some epic drum beats, with an epic horn-driven melody for good measure. If the big pop star singing the hook isn't enough star power for you, you could always throw in, just off the top of my head, Alicia Keys, Fergie, Elly Jackson of La Roux, John Legend, and Elton John, just to spice things up. The pièce de résistance? Absolutely manic, deliciously egotistical lyrics that only a rapper with a manic ego could pull off with a straight face, paired with an absolutely manic, deliciously egotistical production.

If only there were a song like that out there right now....

...wait a second! This recipe seems to match up quite well with a little ditty called "All of the Lights" by a little known rapper named Kanye.

Kanye turns all of the lights on him,
 and the eleven other artists on this opus of a single

"All of the Lights" is one of the standouts on an astonishing album. Boasting an eclectic group of featured artists, cinematic scale production, an amazing hook sung by an equally amazing Rihanna, and some of the most powerful delivery of his career, Kanye has concocted nothing short of a hip-hop masterclass that all songs in the genre should be judged by. It is his most affecting single since "Jesus Walks", which is pretty astounding when you consider his discography, even in this current era. While it can be argued that the song is a bit overwhelming, anyone who is familiar with Kanye's anything knows that this falls perfectly in line with him, except for one thing.

It exceeds them all.

Rating: 10 out of 10