Alexandra A. Beaton. #kanyeshrug: Kanye West‟s Tweets as an Example of Twitter as a Performative Text. A Master‟s Paper for the M.S. in L.S. degree. July, 2011. 45 pages. Advisor: Ryan Shaw Kanye West‟s adoption of Twitter exemplifies the microblogging social networking site as a performative text. The site‟s public nature interactive functions allow a user‟s words to serve as more than a statement. West‟s account shows that Twitter functions as an effective public relations tool, as well as a virtual performance stage, creating a greater difference between public figures and non-famous users. Successive stream-of- consciousness tweets allow the user to transcend the limiting space of a single tweet. Finally, tweets become source for entertainment and parody, emphasizing that a user creates a distinct voice with Twitter that is part of a curated digital extension of self. Headings: Twitter (Web site) Content analysis Celebrities Internet marketing Use studies---social networks #KANYESHRUG: KANYE WEST‟S TWEETS AS AN EXAMPLE OF TWITTER AS A PERFORMATIVE TEXT by Alexandra A. Beaton A Master‟s paper submitted to the faculty of the School of Information and Library Science of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Library Science. Chapel Hill, North Carolina July 2011 Approved by _______________________________________ Ryan Shaw 1 Table of Contents List of Screengrabs 2 Introduction 4 West‟s Adoption of Twitter as a Public Relations Tool 8 Digital Performance and the Creation of a Celebrity Twitter Culture 17 Tweeting a Soliloquy: When 140 Characters is Not Enough for West 25 West Performed by Others: Parodying the Digital Presence 27 Conclusion 33 Notes 34 References 35 Appendix A: Taylor Swift Incident Rant 37 2 List of Screengrabs Screengrab # Page # Retrieved from URL Screengrab 1 4 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19848965511 Screengrab 2 6 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/20810133566 Screengrab 3 11 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19778133819 Screengrab 4 13 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19759524965 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19759480559 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19759346114 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19759297309 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19758939940 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19758633594 Screengrab 5 14 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19849916450 Screengrab 6 15 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/27685422810 Screengrab 7 19 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21237814628 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21237723530 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21237585481 https://twitter.com/#!/justinbieber/status/21234657689 https://twitter.com/#!/justinbieber/status/21234630993 Screengrab 8 20 https://twitter.com/#!/knixfan3/status/27993575922 https://twitter.com/#!/DamanDash/status/27993585235 https://twitter.com/#!/missolivialynn/status/27993587085 https://twitter.com/#!/Janismia/status/27993616792 Screengrab 9 21 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19778175644 Screengrab 10 22 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19836564808 Screengrab 11 23 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19946736889 Screengrab 12 23 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19843053048 http://twitpic.com/29rqdt Screengrab 13 23 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/25331015913 Screengrab 14 23 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/26375015641 Screengrab 15 24 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/41186753318494208 http://twitpic.com/43n7wd Screengrab 16 25 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/20290665146 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/20290253291 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/20290146729 Screengrab 17 26 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/22973683925 Screengrab 18 27 https://twitter.com/#!/azizansari/status/19841299453 Screengrab 19 27 https://twitter.com/#!/azizansari/status/20009003456 Screengrab 20 28 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/19799769116 Screengrab 21 28 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/20006584231 3 Screengrab 22 29 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21057143230697472 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21056870491881472 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21056298334298112 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21056056532672512 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21055112222871554 Screengrab 23 30 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21062435762872320 Screengrab 24 30 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/22382324396 Screengrab 25 31 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/20071050693 Screengrab 26 31 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/24073318417 Screengrab 27 31 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/24897144116 Screengrab 28 31 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/21715744067 Screengrab 29 31 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/16374990232358913 Screengrab 30 31 https://twitter.com/#!/kanyewest/status/20005811255 4 Introduction “DON’T HAVE A F****** TWITTER… WHY WOULD I USE TWITTER??? I ONLY BLOG 5 PERCENT OF WHAT I’M UP TO IN THE FIRST PLACE. I’M ACTUALLY SLOW DELIVERING CONTENT BECAUSE I’M TOO BUSY ACTUALLY BUSY BEING CREATIVE MOST OF THE TIME AND IF I’M NOT AND I’M JUST LAYING ON A BEACH I WOULDN’T TELL THE WORLD. EVERYTHING THAT TWITTER OFFERS I NEED LESS OF. THE PEOPLE AT TWITTER KNOW I DON’T HAVE A F****** TWITTER SO FOR THEM TO ALLOW SOMEONE TO POSE AS ME AND ACCUMULATE OVER A MILLION NAMES IS IRRESPONSIBLE AND DECEITFUL TO THERE FAITHFUL USERS. REPEAT… THE HEADS OF TWITTER KNEW I DIDN’T HAVE A TWITTER AND THEY HAVE TO KNOW WHICH ACCOUNTS HAVE HIGH ACTIVITY ON THEM. IT’S A F****** FARCE AND IT MAKES ME QUESTION WHAT OTHER SO CALLED CELEBRITY TWITTERS ARE ACTUALLY REAL OR FAKE. HEY TWITTER, TAKE THE SO CALLED KANYE WEST TWITTER DOWN NOW …. WHY? … BECAUSE MY CAPS LOCK KEY IS LOUD!!!!!!!!!” From the May 13th, 2009 Sunday Times Online Arts & Entertainment Blog, quoting West’s KanyeUniversecity blog (Schmidt, 2009). Screengrab 1 Kanye West‟s attitude towards Twitter changed as drastically as his style from 2008‟s 808s and Heartbreak to 2010‟s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. He is a controversial public figure with an over-the-top personality as much as he is a rapper and producer. It is this persona, performed via his eventual adoption of Twitter, not his body of work, which is my subject of study. 5 Twitter has become a social networking medium that, in a sense, knows no boundaries. It has the power to create virtual connections and interactions when tangible, real-life ones are unrealistic or impossible. Though it has many uses, it is largely a public platform for expression, 140 characters at a time. Used by individuals and organizations alike for countless reasons, it creates the potential for any person to connect to or interact with otherwise untouchable public figures. Even within the Twitter platform, celebrities‟ or organizations‟ Twitter accounts can be vetted by Twitter administration and become Verified Accounts, noted by a blue checkmark on their Twitter feed profile, letting the unverified general Twitter users know that the celebrity account they follow or engage with (reply, Retweet, mention, or list) is the person who they say they are (or that person‟s assistant, in some cases). Any user‟s Twitter timeline, along with these features unique to the site, becomes a text. To say something on Twitter is to say it before an incalculable and untraceable number of users, and as is sometimes the case with celebrity tweeters, consumers of mainstream media. Therefore, to say something on Twitter does not just make a statement; saying something does something, as tweets can be interpreted in countless ways and shared by all who see them. The idea that to say something is to do something is the basic concept of J.L. Austin‟s (1975) performative utterances. Any tweet that has followers is no longer a statement. It has a presence in the context of its author‟s timeline that is (or is part of) their curated, digital extension of self. In this sense, any Twitter account, a combination of content and interactive features, is a performative text. Kanye West‟s account serves as a text that showcases the performative qualities of Twitter. 6 Screengrab 2 “Curate your life” is something Kanye West tweets relatively early in his days of prolific tweeting. This is exactly what he has accomplished through Twitter; he has microblogged in real time his thoughts, feelings, actions, and tastes via an unedited outlet, presenting a digital extension of himself to the public for them to consume and share. The timing of Kanye West‟s adoption of the medium, combined with the way he uses it and performs his public persona, makes his account a prime example of Twitter‟s capabilities as a performative text. What makes West‟s Twitter account unique is the context and timing of his adoption of the medium. In the year leading up to his first tweet, he had practically gone into hiding to work on his then-forthcoming album after notoriously interrupting Taylor Swift‟s acceptance speech at the MTV Video Music Awards in September of 2009. He received great public criticism and backlash, even after making public apologies. Afterward, he practically went into exile for months, which was unusual behavior for a recording artist with such a simultaneously popular and polarizing celebrity status. Part 7 of his persona both as a celebrity and a recording artist is his larger-than-life sense of self and ego. He is the kind of celebrity who seems to live a paradox: as a person, he is completely inaccessible to the average person, yet his celebrity and work is relatively accessible via paparazzi shots, coverage of events, and his music. This is part of his artistry and brand, so his absence from the public eye only seemed to increase the buzz surrounding his future work. West‟s adoption of Twitter enabled him to somewhat dissolve the line between the person and the celebrity. West‟s role in the public eye, or, out of the public eye in his case, made the fact that he even joined Twitter and started tweeting its own news event. It was as though he had dropped a public relations bomb.