As we continue to revel in the the season that is Yeezy, it's hard to not consider Kanye West’s body of work as a whole as nothing short of amazing. With TLOP proving to be a formidable project, Kanye's resume remains basically impeccable. While he continues to adjust his mantel filled with Grammys and plaques, his protégé Big Sean has transformed into a full-fledged superstar. After being rejuvenated by a break-up to Naya Rivera and a pedestrian performance on his sophomore endeavor Hall of Fame, Sean dished out his best work to date in Dark Sky Paradise early last year (currently patiently awaiting the next project). As their chemistry continues to grow stronger and stronger as time passes, we decided to pit the Karate Kid against Mr. Miyagi. We take a look back at the collaborations between Big Sean and Kanye West to see who in fact knocked out the other and took home the win. Check it out.
Big Sean Feat. Kanye West & Roscoe Dash - "Marvin Gaye & Chardonnay"
Let's rewind all the way back to 2011 when Big Sean was merely a rookie on the mainstream circuits. He tagged his mentor Kanye West for "Marvin Gaye & Chardonnay" and the two turned this Roscoe Dash hook into an infectious party banger. Sean sprinkled his dose of humor with lines like "But that pussy got me feeling like a kid / With the street lights on, street lights on?" Ye's comedy-laden verse was equally enthralling. Now, Ye might not be the most lyrical dude in the world, but he knows how to grab his listeners with witty one-liners like "Why my pants sag off? Cause I’m rapping my ass off." They both delivered two solid verses, but Kanye took it because he was able to steal the shine from Sean. Point goes to Ye.
Winner: Kanye West
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Kanye West Feat. Big Sean, Pusha T, Kid Cudi, Common, & Charlie Wilson - "G.O.O.D. Friday"
Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. Friday tracks were comprised of records for his artists to feast on. Big Sean devoured “G.O.O.D Friday” with his sparking wordplay. Sean lives for these kinds of instrumentals and he absolutely shattered this track with poignant lines like “I sneak peeked ahead while we headed to the loft / Man, I always thought with the head inside my drawers / I guess that’s why in school, my grades went from A's to B's to C's / All over double D's, I be absent all week.” Ye pretty much orchestrated the track for his marquee artists to destroy, and offered short verses that didn't necessarily keep our attention as much as Sean Don's.
Winner: Big Sean
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Kanye West Feat. Big Sean, Lupe Fiasco, Mos Def - "Don't Look Down"
We can rarely ever undermine Sean and Kanye’s candor. Sean put his feelings on wax with “Don’t Look Down.” He ruminates and reflects on his dwindling love life, in a way we can all relate to. “Standing in the same spot for a couple of weeks / Give me my feelings back, wish love came with a couple receipts.” Kanye kept Sean running on the track like Jesse Owens, and allowed his homie to go beyond 16 bars. While Ye’s verse was also quite meaningful, it was once again short. “We made it from the alley straight up to the valley / We pulled up at the valet, we'll teach our daughter ballet / We'll raise us a Beyonce, maybe she'll be a Halle / You would've been the best mom, I would have been the best 'Ye,” he rapped. While sometimes short and sweet works, we wish we got more from Ye, so we'll give this point to Sean.
Winner: Big Sean
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Kanye West Feat. Big Sean, J. Cole, Pusha T - "Looking For Trouble"
First off, J.Cole bodied everybody on here! That’s a fact. Sadly, this isn’t about Jermaine. Cole world, no blanket. So, with us focusing on solely Kanye and Sean, we gotta say Ye’s verse, especially the last four bars on “Looking For Trouble” were dope. “The devil stay testing, ’cause when you chase the pussy it’s a sin / But if it falls in your lap, it’s a blessin' / Soon as I got salad, I spent it all on dressin'/ French, to be exact, that Balmain was impressive.” It’s not everyday Ye will astound you lyrically, but those bars were close enough. Lyrically, Sean rocked his verse, but his delivery was a bit sloppy. Don’t get it twisted, the man had some A-1 bars. “I’m just a Westside lover /I leave females in my sheets and all my feelings in a rubber,” he rapped. This time, we gotta hand the ‘W’ to Kanye on this one.
Winner: Kanye West
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Kanye West Feat. Big Sean, Pusha T, 2 Chainz - "Mercy"
For the first single of Cruel Summer, Ye tapped the usual suspects in Sean and Pusha, while also calling on 2 Chainz. This song was severely underrated because everybody went off, including 2 Chainz. As for Kanye, his verse was dope, but was overshadowed by Chainz's own blistering verse. His verse sounded like a build-up to Tity Boi’s demolition. Sean’s verse was littered with ad-libs, perhaps too many, it was during the time that he was really pushing for "swerve" to pop off. If we had to pick, we’ll go with Kanye here just because he was able to match the build of the beat with his intense verse.
Winner: Kanye West
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Big Sean Feat. Kanye West & Drake - "Blessings"
Sean’s pen was on that Mark McGuire flow on his resurgent album Dark Sky Paradise. Sean’s raps were on steroids and he proved it on “Blessings.” "Never going under even with anesthetics / At the top of the rap game and progressin' / Check after check, checking off my check list/ Try and blow my cake, just know that's a death wish,” he rapped. Talk about a verse. Kanye was surgical on this track as he knifed his way in on the last verse with precision. “Even though I get slammed with lawsuits like car doors / See three P.O.'s like Star Wars / They want me by the road holding up cardboard.” While this is almost a toss up, Sean’s verses were straight up undeniable here.
Winner: Big Sean
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Big Sean Feat. Kanye West - "All Your Fault"
Big Sean and Kanye teamed up for the lyrical storm that was “All Your Fault.” Once again, they brought their A-games to the table and delivered big time. Kanye maintained his momentum from “Blessings” and obliterated his feature verse. “Young Walt Disney, I'ma tell you truthfully / If you leave Mickey you gon' end up with a Goofy / I imagine that's what Chris told Karrueche / Girls be actin' like it's diamonds in they coochie.” Sean countered back with some hard punches of his own. “I walk off in New York like my name Derek Jeter / Headed home to the D where you know I keep a Gina / I'm the good with the evil, fuck you nice to meet you / You can't have a peace sign man without the middle finger,” Sean dished out. They even had a moment where they did their best Jada and Styles P impressions by going back and forth. This is too hard to choose, so we gotta go with a tie here.
Winner: Tie
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