Rapper Kanye West ready for ‘Graduation’

By M&C News Aug 14, 2007, 22:29 GMT

Kanye West\'s third in a whimsical trilogy of "scholarly" albums, Graduation wears its predecessors\' badges of success on its sleeve. Matriculation has its rewards, apparently, and it\'s time to take stock. Lyrically, there\'s plenty of self-congratulation to attend to, but the real fun comes in the collabs, and West chooses co-conspirators like a kid in a candy store--John Legend ("Good Life"), Coldplay\'s Chris Martin ("Homecoming"), Mos Def and the Section ...more

Kanye West’s 3rd album, ‘Graduation’ is locked and loaded for a September 11th release on Hip-Hop Since 1978 / Roc-A-Fella Records. One of the most anticipated albums of the year, ‘Graduation’ features the smash singles “Stronger” and “Can’t Tell Me Nothing,” accompanied by the groundbreaking videos co-directed by West and acclaimed director Hype Williams.

As “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” – the DJ Toomp banger featuring a newly remixed verse from Young Jeezy and an unlikely alternate video from comedian Zach Galifianakis – heats up in the streets, the clubs, and urban radio stations across the country, its synth-heavy, Daft Punk-sampling counterpart “Stronger,” is blazing trails at Rhythmic Top 40 and pop radio.

On ‘Graduation,’ West continues to break rules and obliterate boundaries, pushing the music and the genre forward as only he can. Heavy synth patches surface throughout, as the influence of global pop culture and a retro-future aesthetic seeps into Kanye’s signature, soulful, sample-laden sound. Lyrically, West vacillates between the contemplative and the irreverent.

On “Good Life,” the album’s third single, Kanye and T-Pain encourage us to “throw ya hands up in the sky” over a lazy, irresistible, PYT-sampled beat. On “Homecoming,” a sparse, piano-and-drum driven track co-written by and featuring Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Kanye continues to pay homage to his native Chicago as Martin asks “Do you think about me now and then? Well, I’m comin’ home again….maybe we can start again.”

‘Graduation’ is already the #2 album on iTunes, and “Stronger” has reached #2 on the iTunes singles chart. Last week, MTV announced Kanye as a VMA performer and multiple nominee, taking away 5 nods including “Video Of The Year” for “Stronger.” The VMAs air live on September 9th.

Kanye West’s last album, 2005’s ‘Late Registration,’ debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts with over 860,000 copies sold in its week of release, was nominated for the Grammy for Album of The Year, and won the Grammy for Rap Album of The Year.

Stay tuned for more on Kanye West, including developing information on ‘Graduation,’ live performances, television appearances and more.

‘Graduation’ is now available for pre-order at Amazon. Visit the music database for more information.