Let's try to remember Kanye West before he became half of 'Kimye' or even before that Taylor Swift situation, he was still the egotistical rapper he is today but was also known as the 'Louis Vuitton Don' who produced great songs like
You Don't Know My Name,
Jesus Walks,
Used to Love U,
Overnight Celebrity,
'03 Bonnie & Clyde and who made controversy but necessary commentary on
Hurricane Katrina.
But for know lets talk about the positive of Kanye West and what better way is to talk about his
old music. Kanye West hails from the South Side of Chicago where he became deeply involved in the hip-hop scene. As a teenage, Kanye met producer No I.D. who taught Kanye 'how to sample and program beats after he received his first sampler at age 15'. By the age of 20, Kanye dropped out of Chicago State University (where his mother was a professor also) to pursue his musical dreams where he became the main producer for Roc-A-Fella Records and then later signed by the label.
(If you want to hear more about how he got started you should listen to Last Call off of the College Dropout)This list will be songs
to me that are either underrated or songs most have slept on. This list will be second in a series where I'll highlight very known producers and their underrated/less popular songs.
I Want You (2004) –
Janet JacksonThis 2004 song was produced by West along with Janet's long time producers Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis and Janet herself. Music critics were very positive on song saying the song 'complimented Jackson's vocals and its fusion of nostalgic and modern qualities'. But the song was basically blacklisted on the radio due to the infamous halftime show at that years Super Bowl. Critics and fans alike think that the song would've been an "across-the-board smash" if the situation at the Super Bowl hadn't happened.
But on the positive side, the single was certified Platinum and earned a Grammy nomination.
FYI – John Legend played piano and co-wrote the single
The Corner (2005) –
CommonAfter signing with West's label Good Music and releasing his 6th album Be (2005), Common put out one of his hardest tracks with The Corner. It was a moderate success hitting #42 on Hip-Hop single charts but it remains one of Common's classic tracks
I Changed My Mind (2004) –
Keyshia ColeHer first single from her debut album, the Oakland, CA native released 'I Changed My Mind' it being moderate successful song with it peaking at #71 on the Billboard 100. This song would be the first in the many hits (
I Should Have Cheated,
I Just Want to be Over, and
Love) off of The Way It Is (2005)
This Way (2004) –
Dilated PeoplesDilated Peoples, a underground hip-hop group who hail from Los Angeles, had their only mainstream hit with This Way that charted on the Billboard 100 at #78.
Brown Sugar (2002) –
Mos Def featuring Faith EvansThis song was featured on the Brown Sugar soundtrack and (in my opinion) was overshadowed by the smash jam
Love of My Life (An Ode to Hip-Hop) from Erykah Badu (which I also love). Not much to say is that I love this song and love the soundtrack.
Honorable MentionsSelfish– Slum Village,
Down & Out– Cam'ron,
Lucifer– Jay-Z,
Family Business– Kanye West,
Brand New– Rhymefest,
Comfortable– Lil' Wayne,
Make Me Say– Kid Cudi,
Stay the Night– Mariah Carey,
Talk About Our Love– Brandy,
Higher– Do or Die, and
Celebration– Kanye West
SourcesPicture -
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6ONTD, what's your favorite underrated Kanye produced track?or even your favorite Kanye track?