The College Dropout is the debut studio album by Kanye West, which was released on February 10, 2004, through Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records.[1] The album was recorded over a period of four years, beginning in 1999.[2] Several big artists of the time were featured in the album, including Jay-Z, Syleena Johnson, Freeway, Mos Def, Consequence, Jamie Foxx, Twista, and others.
Unlike many rappers at the time who rapped about being a "gangster", Kanye's songs were much more down-to-Earth, featuring themes of religion, family, materialism, and racism. His introspective and witty lyrics caused Ye to finally gain recognition and respect as a rapper.
Background[]
In the early 1990s, Kanye West began his career in producing hip-hop songs. His style was unlike most producers, as he sampled old soul songs and often pitched them up to create a "chipmunk" sound.[3] Kanye's talents wouldn't be very well-known until Jay-Z's album, The Blueprint (2001), which Kanye produced several songs for. The Blueprint would become an instant hit, and because of it, many people were interested in Kanye's producing talents. However, Kanye was also an aspiring rapper, but he was just seen as a producer then. Labels also disliked Kanye's more softer themes in his songs during a time when gangsta rap was very popular. On August 18, 2002, Damon Dash signed Kanye to Roc-A-Fella Records out of fear that he may move to another label.[4]
On October 23, 2002, Kanye was driving home after a long day at the studio when he fell asleep at the wheel. His car crashed head-on into another car, causing Kanye's jaw to break in several pieces. Despite the severe injuries, it wouldn't deter Kanye, as he went on to record a rap song just two weeks later. That song was "Through The Wire", which released in September of 2003 to immense acclaim from critics. The success of the single finally convinced Roc-A-Fella to allow Kanye to make a rap album. Kanye was initially set to release The College Dropout in August 2003, but it was delayed to October, then January 2004.[5] The album finally released on February 10.
Reception[]
The album debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling 441,000 copies in its first week. It was a massive commercial success, producing five singles that achieved chart success. Upon its release, The College Dropout received general acclaim from music critics and earned West several accolades, including a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album at the 47th Grammy Awards. It is West's best-selling album in the United States, with domestic sales of over 3.1 million copies and worldwide sales of over four million copies. Rolling Stone named it the tenth-best album of the 2000s decade. In 2010, the album was named by Time as one of the 100 best albums of all time. In 2020, the album was certified 4x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.[1]
Track list[]
| No. | Title | Length | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Intro” | 0:19 | |||
| 2. | “We Don't Care” | 3:59 | |||
| 3. | “Graduation Day” | 1:21 | |||
| 4. | “All Falls Down” (feat. Syleena Johnson) | 3:43 | |||
| 5. | “I'll Fly Away” | 1:09 | |||
| 6. | “Spaceship” (feat. GLC & Consequence) | 5:24 | |||
| 7. | “Jesus Walks” | 3:13 | |||
| 8. | “Never Let Me Down” (feat. Jay-Z & J. Ivy) | 5:24 | |||
| 9. | “Get Em High” (feat. Talib Kweli & Common) | 4:49 | |||
| 10. | “Workout Plan” | 0:46 | |||
| 11. | “The New Workout Plan” | 5:22 | |||
| 12. | “Slow Jamz” (with Twista & Jamie Foxx) | 5:16 | |||
| 13. | “Breathe In Breathe Out” (feat. Ludacris) | 4:06 | |||
| 14. | “School Spirit Skit 1” | 1:18 | |||
| 15. | “School Spirit” | 3:02 | |||
| 16. | “School Spirit Skit 2” | 0:43 | |||
| 17. | “Lil Jimmy Skit” | 0:53 | |||
| 18. | “Two Words” (feat. Mos Def, Freeway, & The Boys Choir Of Harlem) | 4:26 | |||
| 19. | “Through The Wire” | 3:41 | |||
| 20. | “Family Business” | 4:38 | |||
| 21. | “Last Call” | 12:40 | |||
| Total length: | 1:16:13 | ||||
| 2005 Japanese special edition | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length | ||||||||
| 22. | “Heavy Hitters” (feat. GLC) | 3:57 | ||||||||
| Total length: | 1:20:08 | |||||||||
Trivia[]
- The College Dropout is Ye's only album that did not debut at #1 on the Billboard 200.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_College_Dropout
- ↑ https://thesource.com/2015/02/10/today-in-hip-hop-history-kanye-west-drops-his-college-dropout-lp-11-years-ago/
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipmunk_soul
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20150125003250/http://www.blackcollegian.com/kanye-west-the-man-the-music-and-the-message/
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20130621015704/http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/westkanye-getwellsoon/