In a defiant episode of Kanye West pulling the ultimate Kanye West, the megastar musician has announced his plan to run for president in 2020. How else would one conclude a 13-minute acceptance speech for the Vanguard Award at this year’s MTV Video Music Awards? While there seems to be a truly dichotomized opinion of West’s eccentric VMA ramble, resonating as incoherent to some and ingenious to others, there is no dispute as to why I think West would actually make a great President of the United States.

Full disclosure: it is possible that I have been listening to West since fourth grade, when I found the Grammy-winning “Late Registration” CD (remember those?) in my brother’s car. It is equally possible that I am listening to West as I write this, but let me tell you why.  

Lyric after lyric, West’s music stems from the base themes of perseverance, inspiration and motivation. Without “Touch the Sky,” “Power,” “Stronger,” “Champion” or “Run This Town,” would there ever even have been a Katy Perry “Firework”? West “ain’t play the hand [he] was dealt, [he] changed [his] cards, prayed to the skies and changed [his] stars,” (Power.) Unless you’re Taylor Swift and it’s the 2009 VMA’s, West’s presidency would be one that encourages United States citizens to fulfill their maximum potential and chase their dreams. 

West focuses on the theme of perseverance, because it is what he knows best. The Chicago native’s journey to stardom was both figuratively and literally a wreck of a journey. In 2002, West was in a severe car accident in which he fractured his face and had his jaw wired shut for six weeks. Did this stop him? 

Absolutely not. Jaw still wired, West managed to record the acclaimed hit “Through The Wire.” That level of dedication is truly presidential. If my jaw were wired shut, it would be months before I stepped near a microphone, and my first concern would probably just be trying to get the best campus parking pass possible. He might not have a diploma (even though “College Dropout” was worthy of a Ph.D), but passion and resilience are something you can’t learn from a textbook.

The day that West cares about what people say about him is the day Nickelback wins a Grammy. I admire this because the president cannot be distracted by the opinions of naysayers. Spelled out his hit “Last Call,” West sings, “Now I could let these dream killers kill my self-esteem, or use my arrogance as the steam to power my dreams.” Catering to every person with a criticism only dilutes a vision and hinders achievement of your goals. Sure, he’s over the top, but one thing he isn’t is fake, and that is a quality that needs to make a comeback in the capital. 

West places the same precedent for authenticity on others as he does himself and this is something our generation, addicted to filters, Facetune and Facebook, needs. West has said it himself: “I will spark a generation of thinkers who will question traditional thought until they find the absolute truth.” 

West is definitely not the status quo, but that might be the one thing our country needs right now. The United States has a $16 trillion debt. Thirty-six million American adults cannot read better than the average third grader. In 2014, 45.3 million people were in poverty. I’ll take a break in tradition if it means taking a chance at breaking those statistics. 

However, if West is still too much of an atypical candidate for you, just remember that as we saw at this year’s VMA’s, West can ramble for 13 minutes without making any coherent sense and still get the crowd on their feet–is that not the paragon of an American politician?

With West as president, I would fully expect an overall increase of interest in American government and law. Who wouldn’t mind actually learning, let alone understanding, thousand-page tax laws if they were condensed and spit into absurdly relevant rhymes? 

Think about the holidays, too. Leave it to West to implement monthly (at least) Kanye appreciation days, and I really need that extra time off to catch up with friends (as in Jennifer Aniston and Matt LeBlanc on Netflix). 

For as much debate there is about a West candidacy, the rapper might have already won. West announced his running for specifically the 2020 election. 20/20 is also description for perfect vision. Perfect vision is directly related to the “All Seeing Eye.” Illuminati.