garetare

5y

Graduation is the third studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West, released on September 11, 2007, through Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. Recording sessions took place between 2005 and 2007 at several studios in New York and Los Angeles. It was primarily produced by West himself, with contributions from various other producers. The album also features guest appearances from recording artists such as Dwele, T-Pain, Lil Wayne, Mos Def, DJ Premier, and Chris Martin of Coldplay. The cover art and its interior artwork were designed by Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami.

Inspired by stadium tours, house-music and indie rock, Graduation marked a departure from the ornate, soul-based sound of West's previous releases as he musically progressed to more anthemic compositions. West incorporated layered synthesizers and dabbled with electronics while sampling from various music genres and altering his approach to rapping. He conveys an ambivalent outlook on his newfound fame and media scrutiny alongside providing inspirational messages of triumph directed at listeners. The album concludes the education theme of West's first two studio albums, The College Dropout (2004) and Late Registration (2005).

Graduation debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling over 957,000 copies in the first week of sales. It has since sold over 5 million copies in the United States and been certified quintuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Five accompanying singles were released, including the international hits "Stronger", "Good Life" and "Homecoming", with the former of the three topping the US Billboard Hot 100. The album received widely positive reviews from music critics, with several of them praising the production, and earned West his third Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, as well as his third nomination for Album of the Year. It was named as one of the best albums of 2007 by multiple publications, including Rolling Stone and USA Today, while also listed among numerous decade-end lists and later named to the lists of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and NME's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

The coinciding release dates between Graduation and fellow American rapper 50 Cent's Curtis generated much publicity over the idea of a sales competition, resulting in record-breaking sales performances by both albums. The success of the former and the outcome of its competition with the latter marked the end of the dominance of gangsta rap in mainstream hip-hop. This is credited with paving the way for other hip-hop artists who did not conform to gangster conventions to find commercial acceptance.

questions?

16g

5y

ppl really take che seriously to this day its crazy

che_guevara

5y

Keep dreaming man if ye outsells drake ill film myself stabbing a homeless guy

16g

5y

ppl really take che seriously to this day its crazy

TYDOLLAMAN

5y

Homecoming is a goat song Fr

Might have to throw on Graduation rn

che_guevara

5y

Bottom page

Magenta

5y

it is over as they say

Mmm Hmm

5y

Don't need all that bruh

Wtf

TYDOLLAMAN

5y

Justin he a H…. Giraffe?

Kr0niic

5y

How tf do cruise ships park in their ports how do they even know where they are going…. Wild to think about

HoneyBunny

5y

Whats up guys I’m Kanye West I am in chicgao

HoneyBunny

5y

Whats up guys I’m Kanye West I am in chicgao

HoneyBunny

5y

Whats up guys I’m Kanye West I am in chicgao

Nessy

5y

why listens to that s***

che_guevara

5y

Keep dreaming man if ye outsells drake ill film myself stabbing a homeless guy