Hard as it is to now imagine, there was a time when Kanye West was an unproven commodity in the hip hop world. Lauded as a producer for his work on Jay Z's 'The Blueprint', among other successful albums, his rapping chops were yet to be showcased. He proved doubters wrong with a stellar debut LP, incorporating various genres and themes into one cohesive whole. Kanye's wide range of influences is legendary now, peaking with 2010's 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy', and was a key component of his technique six years earlier. The difference between tracks such as the seductive 'Slow Jamz' and sprawling, threatening gospel of 'Jesus Walks' prove that versatility was always a strength of Kanye's work - not something picked up through trial and error. Decade Defining Track: Jesus Walks
