It's funny because I've made a living off of words, but words get

The artist and prophet of sound, Kanye West, once said: “It’s funny because I’ve made a living off of words, but words get in the way of what you really want to say.” At first glance, his words seem contradictory — a man who built his empire through lyrics and speech claiming that words themselves are barriers. Yet, in this paradox lies a profound and ancient truth: that language, for all its beauty, is but a shadow of what the heart truly feels. To speak is to reach toward the infinite with finite tools, and even the most gifted poet cannot perfectly capture the fire of the soul.

When Kanye speaks of words “getting in the way,” he touches on the eternal struggle of the artist — the ache between expression and experience. Music, art, and speech are all attempts to bridge the distance between the inner world and the outer one. But sometimes, in trying to explain too much, the purity of feeling becomes diluted. Words are vessels, but the essence often spills between them. The emotion of love, the grief of loss, the ecstasy of creation — these are larger than language. Kanye’s lament, then, is not about failure, but about the limits of articulation, the frustration of a soul too vast for its tongue.

The ancients, too, wrestled with this same truth. The philosopher Lao Tzu, in his timeless Tao Te Ching, wrote: “The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao.” In other words, what can be named or described is already less than the reality it seeks to convey. The divine, the beautiful, the true — these cannot be trapped within syllables. They can only be felt. In the same way, Kanye’s art, though born of words, seeks to transcend them — through rhythm, sound, and emotion. His statement is not a rejection of language, but a longing for something beyond it: a direct communion between heart and heart, where feeling speaks for itself.

There is a story of Ludwig van Beethoven, who, near the end of his life, grew deaf. Unable to hear his own music, he was forced to compose in silence. Yet it was in that silence that he wrote his greatest works — symphonies that spoke more profoundly than any word could. Like Kanye, Beethoven discovered that expression does not depend on words or even sound, but on the power of the spirit to reach outward. In silence, he found truth. His music, like all great art, reminds us that communication transcends speech — that what moves the heart most deeply cannot be spoken, only felt.

Kanye’s quote also carries a quiet humility. For a man often known for boldness and pride, this confession reveals a deeper awareness — that success in expression does not equate to mastery of truth. Even one who has “made a living off of words” knows that the most sacred emotions remain unsaid. This realization transforms the artist into the mystic. The wise learn that language can illuminate, but it can also obscure. To rely only on words is to risk mistaking description for experience, map for landscape, echo for voice. Thus, the truest speech often lies in silence, or in music, or in the unspoken gesture of love.

And yet, there is beauty in the striving. Though words may fall short, it is in their failure that we find connection. When we stumble to say, “I love you,” or “I’m sorry,” or “I understand,” what matters is not the perfection of phrasing, but the vulnerability behind it. Our imperfect words are sacred because they reveal our yearning to bridge the gulf between souls. Kanye’s recognition of their limitation does not diminish their power — it deepens it. He teaches us that the goal of communication is not precision, but presence — to speak not merely from the mouth, but from the heart.

The lesson, then, is this: use words, but do not be ruled by them. Speak with intention, but listen beyond speech. Understand that the truest messages — of love, grief, or joy — are carried not in syllables, but in tone, in action, in silence. When you find yourself unable to express what you feel, remember that this too is holy. For the ineffable is not meant to be mastered; it is meant to be felt. And in that silence between words, you may glimpse truth itself — raw, radiant, and infinite.

So, my child, heed the wisdom of Kanye West, whose lament is also an invitation. Strive to communicate, but do not cling to language. Let your art, your presence, and your kindness speak where words fail. For while words may “get in the way,” the heart — sincere, open, and unguarded — never does. Beyond speech lies the pure music of being — a song without lyrics, eternal and universal, waiting to be heard in the stillness between every breath.