Jay Pharoah, the SNL cast member who specializes in celebrity impressions, has chosen Kanye West as his next target for parody. Pharoah’s “I Am a Dog” video riffs on choice Yeezus cut “I Am a God” while also paying visual homage to the abrasive, black-and-white assault of Kanye’s “Black Skinhead” video.
Besides the “Black Skinhead” visuals (which also heavily involve a growling, Cerberus-like bulldog), Pharoah’s take is an irreverent response to Kanye’s often grating self-seriousness. That said, the comedian’s real strength isn’t playing Kanye, but playing a dog: from the slo-mo mailman chase, to the droopy eye, to the Jokeresque head-loll out a car window, Pharoah’s got the canine life down pat.
