From his poorly planned outbursts at events such as the VMA’s or calling the President of the United States a racist, to appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone dressed as Jesus, it’s obviously no secret that hip-hop star Kanye West loves to create controversy. And one look at his Twitter page will tell you all you need to know about what kind of ego he has.

One of the most divisive pop personalities of all time, West has gained more than his share of detractors. Most people have been more than ready to turn their backs on him and his misguided attempts at being loved. But who that have stuck with him through all of his egotism and social blunders have been rewarded with some of the greatest pop music in recent history.

Earlier this year, he released My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Dropping on Monday, Nov.22 after several months of hyping the album from his Twitter and releasing free songs, Fantasy completely blew away any of his prior work, and any other albums released this year. It received numerous perfect scores from music publications and jumped to the Number One spot on the Billboard Top Ten.

The album itself is almost as pretentious as West himself is. The subject matter is entirely self-absorbed. The album version of “Runaway,” his second single from the album is extended to nine minutes long. Even the title of the album is conceited. It is also absolutely gorgeous, it creates an atmosphere like few rap albums before it, and West’s rapping and production has improved leaps and bounds. It is great as a collection of songs and an overall artistic statement. And when the music scene of 2010 is looked back upon, it will undoubtedly be the most recognizable album of the year.

Which brings us to the point; should we not give ourselves the opportunity to appreciate a piece of art, even though the artist is a tremendous jerk?  We absolutely should, when the art in question is some of the finest in recent memory. Should Kanye’s music exempt him from the consequences of his inappropriate behavior? Not necessarily, but it’s hard to say that he should be punished for interrupting Taylor Swift.

Yes, West is egotistical, but what rapper isn’t? And in the bottom line, the music is what matters, and to judge any art, you have to separate the art from the artist.