The College Dropout is the debut album released by rapperKanye West in 2004. It was nominated for Grammy Award for Album of the Year and won Best Rap Album and Best Rap Song for "Jesus Walks" in 2005. It was voted as the best album of the year in The Village VoicePazz & Jop critics poll, was ranked #1 in Spin Magazine's "40 Best Albums of the Year", and received a near perfect 4.5 mic rating from The Source. The album has received great acclaim from critics and mainstream fans alike, for its balance of mainstream commercial appeal and its innovative subject matter. Comedian Chris Rock has attested to listening to The College Dropout while writing his material [1]. In 2005 Pitchfork Media named it #50 in their best albums of 2000-2004.
The College Dropout reached #1 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart, and reached #2 on the Billboard 200. In the UK, it peaked at #12 on the album chart and spent several months in the top 20.
The first single from the album, "Through The Wire", which features a Chaka Khan sample, peaked at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart while its successor "All Falls Down", which features R&B singer Syleena Johnson, peaked at #7. The third single, "Jesus Walks", peaked at #11 while a fourth extract, "The New Workout Plan", made a minor impression on the R&B/Hip-Hop charts (see list of US Billboard chart positions below). In the UK, "Through The Wire" peaked at #9 on the singles sales chart, "All Falls Down" peaked at #10, and "Jesus Walks" peaked at #16.
"Through the Wire" was mumbled by West while his mouth was wired shut after his near-fatal car accident in October 2002. The song describes his feelings at the time as well as the rehabilitation process following the accident, notable in the lyrics, "I drink a Boost for breakfast, and Ensure for dessert / Somebody ordered pancakes; I just sip the sizzurp..."
Management: John Monopoly, Don C., Benny MEdina, Andrei McQuillan
Art Direction & Design: Eric Duvauchelle, Mike Godshall, Jim Morris, Stephanie Reynolds, Lauri Rowe
Dropout Bear Logo Design: Bobby Naugle, Sam Hansen
Costumes: O Share Stylez, Kanye West
Legal Counsel: Alison K. Finley
Business Affairs: Randy McMillan, Antoinette Trotman, Ian Allen
Sample Clearance Agent: Eric Weissman
Miscellaneous
Kanye West was unable to get permission from Lauryn Hill to use a vocal sample from her track "Mystery Of Iniquity" on her MTV Unplugged album. Instead, Syleena Johnson re-sang the lyric, for the song "All Falls Down." The song later appeared with the original sample on the compilation CD "Freshmen Adjustment", which also contained the song "Wow" which Kanye mentioned in the song "Last Call"
Fellow Chicago rapper Rhymefest co-wrote some of the lyrics on "Jesus Walks"
Evidence of Dilated Peoples co-produced "Last Call" and claims that he co-produced "a lot of [other] songs" on The College Dropout, although is credited for no others. [2]
At the end of "Breathe In Breathe Out," one can hear a sample of a man repeating the phrase "Chi-City." This sample was later used as the chorus of Common's 2005 Kanye-produced song "Chi-City."
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