Early in Kanye West’s Storytellers, the eccentric musical mastermind explains that many of the stories behind the songs on 808 & Heartbreak are simply too personal to share—and he apologizes to VH1 for not being more candid. So instead of providing insight into his best-loved songs, West uses the forum to discuss his favorite subject: himself. In an apparent homage to Lauryn Hill’s batshit-crazy installment of Unplugged, West subjects listeners to interminable stream-of-consciousness rants about fame, art, and his career. Ever the iconoclast, an unusually dour West undermines the back-porch, intimate, telling-stories-to-pals vibe of Storytellers ever so slightly by performing in a suit and shades on a bare stage, surrounded by an extravagant light show and a small army of musicians.