1-2 Table of
3-4 Kanye West
7-8 Late
9-10 Graduation
Contents
Registration
5-6 College
Dropout
11-12 808’s And Heartbreak
13-14 15-16 17-18 My Beautiful Watch The Yeezus
Dark Twisted Fantasy
Throne
19-20 21-22 23-24 The Life of Ye Kids See Pablo
Ghosts
25-26 Jesus is King
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Kanye West Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur, and fashion designer. His music has spanned a broad range of styles, incorporating an eclectic range of influences including hip hop, soul, baroque pop, electro, indie rock, synth-pop, industrial, and gospel. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West first became known as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the early 2000s. Intent on pursuing a solo career as a rapper, West released his debut album The College Dropout in 2004 to critical and commercial success and founded the record label GOOD Music. He went on to experiment with a variety of musical genres on subsequent acclaimed studio albums, including Late Registration (2005), Graduation (2007), and the polarizing but influential 808s & Heartbreak (2008). He released his fifth album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy in 2010 to further rave reviews and has since succeeded it with Yeezus (2013), The Life of Pablo (2016), Ye (2018), and Jesus Is King (2019), as well as full-length collaborations, Watch the Throne (2011) and Kids See Ghosts (2018) with Jay-Z and Kid Cudi respectively. West’s outspoken views and life outside of music have received significant media attention. West is a practicing Christian and his religious views have garnered widespread curiosity. He has been a frequent source of controversy for his conduct at award shows, on social media, and in other public settings, as well as his comments on the music and fashion industries, U.S. politics, and race. His marriage to television personality Kim Kardashian has also been a source of substantial media attention. West is among the most critically acclaimed musicians of the 21st century and one of the best-selling music artists of all time with over 140 million records sold worldwide.[5] He has won a total of 21 Grammy Awards, making him one of the most awarded artists of all time and the most Grammy-awarded artist of his generation.
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The College Dropout is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on February 10, 2004, by Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. In the years leading up to release, West had received praise for his production work for rappers such as Jay-Z and Talib Kweli, but faced difficulty being accepted as an artist in his own right by figures in the music industry. Intent on pursuing a solo career, he signed onto a record deal with Roc-A-Fella and recorded the album over a period of four years, beginning in 1999. Kanye developed his own “chipmunk� production style which made use of sped-up, pitch-shifted vocal samples.
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We Dont Care Kanye West 3:59
COLLEGE DROPOUT 2004 6
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LATE REGISTRATION 2005
Late Registration is the second studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on August 30, 2005, through Def Jam Recordings and Roc-AFella Records. The album was recorded for over a year in sessions held across studios in New York City and Hollywood. In the first week of release, Late Registration debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 and sold 860,000 copies. It eventually reached sales of over 3.1 million copies in the United States and has been certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Late Registration was also a widespread critical success, with some music critics noting the development of West’s musical style. The album earned West the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Rap Album and an Album of the Year. Gold Digger Kanye West 3:27
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GRADUATION 2007 Good Morning Kanye West 3:15
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Kanye West released Graduation in 2007. This album is filled with self love, self promotion, self absorption, and Self-awareness. This was also the year Kanye scored h i s t h i r d H o t 1 0 0 C h a r t -To p p e r i n four years with his famous song “Stronger�. Kanyes most popular song from this album is titled Graduation. This was also a rough year for Kanye because his Mother was taken by a heart attack.
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AMAZING Kanye West 3:58
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2008
808’S AND HEARTBREAK
808s & Heartbreak is the fourth studio album by American hip hop producer and vocalist Kanye West. Conceived in the wake of several distressing personal events, 808s & Heartbreak marked a major musical departure from West’s previous rap records, instead featuring a sparse, electronic sound and West singing through an Auto-Tune vocal processor. His lyrics explore themes of loss, alienated fame, and heartache, while the album’s production abandons conventional hip hop sounds in favor of a minimalist sonic palette. 808s & Heartbreak debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 450,145 copies in its first week. Despite varying responses from listeners, the album received positive reviews from most music critics, who generally commented on West’s experimentation, and was named one of 2008’s best records in several year-end lists.
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My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is the fifth studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on November 22, 2010, through Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. Following a period of public and legal controversy, West retreated to a selfimposed exile in Hawaii in 2009. Music journalists have noted the album features a maximalist aesthetic and opulent production quality with elements of West’s previous works, including soul, baroque, electro, and symphonic styles, as well as progressive rock influences. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was an immediate and widespread critical success and was named the best album of 2010 in many publications’ year-end lists. POWER Kanye West 3:58
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MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY 2010
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WATCH THE THRONE 2011 Watch the Throne is a collaborative studio album by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West, released on August 8, 2011, by Roc-A-Fella Records, Roc Nation, and Def Jam Recordings. Expanding on the dense production style of West’s 2010 album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Watch the Throne incorporates orchestral and progressive rock influences, unconventional samples, and dramatic melodies in its sound. Its braggadocio lyrics exhibit themes of opulence, fame, materialism, power, and the burdens of success, as well as political and socioeconomic context. Watch the Throne debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling 436,000 copies in the first week. While a few music critics found its lyrical content uninspiring, the rappers’ performances and the productions were generally praised. Many critics and publications placed the album in their yearend best-of lists. It also earned Jay-Z and West seven Grammy Award nominations and was certified platinum in the US.
Gotta Have It JAY-Z 2:20
SCAN ME
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In J u n e o f 2 0 13 , K a n y e ’s a lb u m “ Y E E Z U S ” is r e le a s e d . 13 ’ w a s a p r e t t y c a lm y e a r in t e r m s o f t h e p a st a n d fu tu re e v e n ts th a t o ccu r in K a n y e ’s lif e . K a n y e w a s s p e a k in g o n a r a d io s h o w w h e n h e in f o r m e d t h e w o r ld t h a t h e h a s a n o t h e r a lb u m d r o p p in g t h e n e x t y e a r. K a n y e is n o w s t a r t in g t o d e v e lo p a s u p e r io r it y c o m p le x a s h e ’s g a in in g a ll t h is f a m e a n d w e a lt h . K a n y e g o e s o n t o u r in c e le b r a t io n o f h is n e w a lb u m . H e w a s jo in in g o t h e r g r o w in g a r t is t s s u c h a s K e n d r ic k L a m a r a n d T r a v is S c o t t . O t h e r h e a d lin e s in c lu d e K a n y e d is s in g o n J u s t in T im b e r la k e p u b lic ly . 17
YEEZUS
2013 I Am a G od
Kanye West 3:52
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THE LIFE OF PABLO
2016
The Life of Pablo is the seventh studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on February 14, 2016, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. West explained prior to release that the music is both hip hop and gospel. A nomination was received by The Life of Pablo for Grammy Award for Best Rap Album at the 2017 Grammy Awards. West also enlisted a wide array of guest vocalists for the album, including Ty Dolla Sign, Desiigner, Kid Cudi, Rihanna, and Post Malone. Facts
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YE
2018
Ye is the eighth studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on June 1, 2018, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. Following the controversy surrounding an interview with TMZ, West re-recorded all the work on the album, completing it over the course of just two weeks at his ranch. The album received generally positive reviews from music critics, with a number of them drawing comparisons to West’s previous works, while some critics commented on the lyrical content. It was named as one of the best albums of 2018 by multiple publications, including Pitchfork and The Edge. Ye became West’s record-equalling eighth consecutive album to debut at number one on the US Billboard 200. It was also a chart-topper in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand, while reaching the top five in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. YIKES KANYE WEST 3:08
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Kids See Ghosts
Kids See Ghosts is the eponymous debut studio album by American hip hop duo Kids See Ghosts, composed of Kanye West and Kid Cudi. It was released on June 8, 2018, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. Prior to the release, West and Cudi enjoyed a strong relationship as close friends and musical allies since meeting in 2008 and expressed a desire to record a collaborative album.
Kids See Ghosts
Kanye West & JAY-Z 4:05
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The lyrical content includes references to mental health issues, which both members had suffered from and mentioned previously in their respective music. On the Billboard 200, Kids See Ghosts debuted at number two, standing as West’s tenth top-five album and Cudi’s sixth top-five albums in the United States.
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2019 Jesus Is King is the ninth studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on October 25, 2019, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam. The album follows a Christian theme, with West describing it as “an expression of the gospel.” West had formed his Sunday Service group in January 2019, performing gospel songs and covers of songs from his discography. West quit taking medication for his bipolar disorder and began recording in August 2018, originally announcing the album as Yandhi. Jesus Is King stood as West’s recordequaling ninth consecutive album to debut atop the US Billboard 200. With the release, West became the first artist to take all top ten spots on both the US Christian Songs and Gospel Songs charts, respectively. West broke another record by being the first artist to simultaneously top five separate charts in the United States: the Billboard 200, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, Top Rap Albums, Top Christian Albums, and Top Gospel Albums. The album was also a chart-topper in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, New Zealand, and Norway.
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