Throughout much of his rap career, Kanye West has been a divisive figure; his College Dropout days were mired in skepticism, as the industry was unsure if a semi-successful producer could spit his own bars; 808s & Heartbreak was, at the time of its release, considered a major flop, due to the melancholic direction that West decided to take with the record; even today, many still consider his marriage to Kim Kardashian to be nothing more than a publicity stunt. Despite these numerous scandals, though, the artist’s biggest gaffe came at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.

The events that transpired that tragic September night don’t need much retelling: after Taylor Swift won the award for Best Female Video, West drunkenly stormed the stage during her acceptance speech to let everyone know that Beyoncé had been cheated out of the honor. After this moment — and a few internet memes about it — Kanye West was public enemy number one, and he knew it.

Just one year after his VMA “performance,” Kanye announced that he was going to put out his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. This news sent the public into a frenzy, because everyone wanted to know if he would mention the now-infamous Swift incident. The world didn’t exactly get an answer, but on October 23rd, 2010, it did get something else, a single — “Monster.” With the album version clocking in at over six minutes long, this song was enough to appease any existing Kanye fans, and features from Rick Ross, Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, and Bon Iver were sure to make “Monster” the talk of the town. While this single did draw a lot of attention, its true impact is truly being felt over half a decade after its release.

Certain parts of “Monster,” such as the eerie introduction from Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon and the few forgettable bars from Rick Ross, aren’t too critical to the song’s overall importance. Other parts of “Monster” (i.e. Jay Z’s verse) probably shouldn’t exist in the first place. Regardless of these sour spots, the song does carry a lot of significance for the other two artists on the track: West himself, and Nicki Minaj.

To many, Kanye’s verse can be considered a breath of fresh air, because it’s the first time since Graduation that the rapper wasn’t afraid to show his braggadocious side, with the line, “Chick came up to me and said / ‘This the number to dial / If you wanna make your number 1 your number 2 now’,” exemplifying the return of the Kanye we saw alongside Taylor Swift on that VMAs stage. It also has some pretty sick wordplay.

Moreover, this verse serves as a great supplement to the song’s hook, in which West addresses the “gossip” that is around him and admits that he is, as the name of the song implies, a monster. However, he isn’t ashamed of this status — if anything, he embraces it. “Monster” is Kanye’s open letter to the rest of the world that he doesn’t mind he messes up sometimes, because after the dust settles, he will still be on top.

While this song definitely meant a lot of Kanye and his career, it arguably is even more significant for Nicki Minaj. 2010 was a defining year for the burgeoning artist, and her spot alongside Jay and ‘Ye on this track is the proverbial icing on the cake; indeed, she has said that appearing on this song was her “breakthrough moment,” and critics almost unanimously agree that this verse is one of her best ever.

From the beginning of her contribution, Minaj goes hard. One of the first lines — “You can be the king, but watch the queen conquer” — even serves as a threat to other, already-established rappers, and it was a challenge that she was able to actualize with time. Ultimately, throughout a total of 32 bars, Minaj produces amazing one-liners and disses that help her prove that being a “monster” isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

“Monster” may not be Kanye West’s most well-known or successful song, but for him, none of that matters. Nearly seven years after its release, this single continues to wow listeners and fulfill the prophecies it wrote for itself. In his verse, West argued that he was “about to take it to another level,” and this song did just that.

If you would like to listen to “Monster,” a link can be found here.

Bradley Wascher is currently a student at Western Kentucky University. His first ever published piece was about a dang pop song.