November 24th marks the ten-year anniversary of an album that plays a central role in my life and my debut novel.

808s came before most of us were ready. Until then, Kanye was (believe it or not) the pinnacle of stability in hip hop. His first three albums were each critically acclaimed and fit a neat and tidy theme. The expectation was for that trend to continue with Good Ass Job.

Then this happened (sadly, the original performance from 2008 VMAs has been taken down):

Of course, a lot happe...