"SKY CITY" (previously known as "City In The Sky") is a song by ¥$ (Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign), 070 Shake, and Desiigner that was released as the fifteenth track from Ye and Ty's second studio album, VULTURES 2, on August 3, 2024.[1] It features vocals from CyHi.[2] It was later released as a single that same day.[3]
The song was previously unreleased and created in 2018 during the Yandhi sessions. Prior to its release, it became one of Ye's most popular unreleased songs from Yandhi.
Production[]
The song's chorus interpolates Five Stairsteps' 1970 song, "O-O-H Child". During Ye's second verse, the drums are sampled from N.W.A's 1987 song, "Dopeman".[4]
Background[]
The song was created during Yandhi sessions in late September 2018, initially going by the name of "City In The Sky". While it wasn't featured on the infamous SNL track list, it was seen on other leaked Yandhi-era track lists. By October 2018, all of the features in the most recent Yandhi-era version of the song had already recorded their vocals, but Ye's verse was still unfinished. The song was also seen on a leaked track list for JESUS IS KING, but it was scrapped not long after.
In 2021, Ye decided to give the song to his reference writer CyHi, with the song now named "Loyalty".[5] Past that point, the song was left untouched for years.
By 2024, post-rework the song was given back to Kanye from CyHi for VULTURES 2. The song cut Jeremih, The-Dream and Kid Cudi from the final cut and now featured a verse from CyHi and an AI Kanye verse. It was officially released/ruined on the 3rd of August alongside the rest of VULTURES 2.[6] However, vocals from Kid Cudi, Ant Clemons, and The-Dream were removed.
Past release, the song underwent several mixing fixes, though none of the changes ever consisted of Kanye recording a finished verse for the song.[7]
It was later said that Kanye did record for the first verse which featured AI CyHi, but replaced it with an AI voiceover of the CyHi reference verse last minute for unknown reasons.[8] When Kanye had discovered people realized it was AI he was said to have been shocked.[9]
Lyrics[]
[Chorus]
Said it's my year, know it's my year, my year (Oh)
Can we fly, yeah? We can fly, yeah, high yeah (We can fly)
Build a city in the sky, yeah, sky, yeah
In the sky, yeah, in the sky, yeah, sky, yeah (Git! Git!)
We just fly, yeah (Woo!), we just fly yeah, fly yeah (Git, git, fly, yeah)
Build a city, in the sky, yeah, sky, yeah (Oh)
[Verse 1]
Do Heaven got a penthouse that I could rent out?
I could see Rick James with his feet up on Prince couch
Always wanted to know, did Biggie get a big house?
Do Pac got a thug mansion? Is it pimped out?
Is it a place for the Jews and the Gеntiles?
I heard street n***as ain't in the top pеrcentile
Real fast, my wife wanna know, do y'all got a gym now?
She talkin' 'bout she still tryna get her waist to slim down
Anyhow, forgive me for the taxes that I didn't file
I ain't even got back the money that I lent out
Can't even have a Corona, shit is gettin' wild
Runnin' around without a face mask like I'm Jim Brown
Oh, yeah, I heard about your son that you sent down
I wish there was a place that I could send flowers
My OG wrote me from the joint, you know, like a pimp-house
And he asked if you could send a letter to the judge when he begin trial
'Cause we don't know when he gettin' out
[Bridge]
Ooh, child, things are gonna get easier
Ooh, child, things'll get brighter
Ooh, child, things are gonna get easier
Ooh, child, things'll get brighter
[Chorus]
Said it's my year, know it's my year, my year (Oh)
Can we fly, yeah? We can fly, yeah, high yeah (We can fly)
Build a city in the sky, yeah, sky, yeah
In the sky, yeah, in the sky, yeah, sky, yeah (Git! Git!)
We just fly, yeah (Woo!), we just fly yeah, fly yeah (Git, git, fly, yeah)
Build a city, in the sky, yeah, sky, yeah (Oh)
[Verse 2]
Yeah, imagine you could visit your ancestors
And all the people that we lost, and you could dance with 'em
We'd probably be more united than Manchester
'Cause my people still dyin' over hand gestures
Keep your enemy close, that's when your man stretch ya
Damn, I guess karma can catch ya
We gotta forgive our trespassers and transgressors
Mandela said it won't get better if we stand separate
'Cause one hand wash the other, both hands wash the face
Wish they had another place we all could stay
If they don't let us in, then we gon' hop the gate
[Verse 3]
Out of the body, uh, jewelry is gaudy, um
Serious society, my spirit is Godly
I'm buildin' a buildin' where children can lobby
So we can make billions from buildin' a hobby
I bought a facto-o-ry, pickin' up cotton
I bought a facto-o-ry, send 'em to college
He made it already with nothin' to lose
And free attitude with nothin' to prove
We goin' fifty, I got that juice
Playin' them dead to get out the noose
I don't need your point-of-views
I can't hear you at this altitude
And they steady sayin' that I'm brute
I be rude if I don't come beat the shit out you
[Outro]
And if we die, yeah, then we die, yeah, ah, yeah
We can fly, yeah, we can fly, yeah, ah, yeah
In the night, yeah, in the night, yeah, ah, yeah
In the night, in the night
Oh, no (Oh, it's always lovely in your company)
In the night, serenity all in the city (I'll be here)
Oh, it's always lovely in your company
Oh, it's always lovely in your company
Oh, it's always lovely in your company (I'll be here)
Trivia[]
- "SKY CITY" is not the only VULTURES 2 song to feature AI, as the song, "FIELD TRIP" also utilized AI Kanye vocals. "FOREVER", "CAN U BE", and "530" were also later updated to feature AI voiceovers from Kanye.
- These five songs mark the first time Kanye ever used AI in his songs, which would become more prevalent throughout most of his songs after VULTURES 2 released.
References[]
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vultures_2
- ↑ https://genius.com/Kanye-west-and-ty-dolla-sign-sky-city-lyrics
- ↑ https://rateyourmusic.com/release/single/y-070-shake-desiigner/sky-city/
- ↑ https://www.whosampled.com/%C2%A5$/SKY-CITY/
- ↑ https://pillowcase.su/f/0dde279c6be8b9e81136be1bb8b1c441
- ↑ https://open.spotify.com/track/3PejDs8Z2jB24Y5HpnvFDM?si=ee4540a0a1d84951
- ↑ https://pillowcase.su/f/ce0d94391d25ed23c4646a62b5a2b663
- ↑ https://x.com/yeunrlsd/status/1847672802499055931
- ↑ https://x.com/yeunrlsd/status/1847672158581121290
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