"Lost in the World" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Kanye West from his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010). The song features vocals by Justin Vernon of indie folk band Bon Iver, as well as sampling his 2009 song "Woods". It also contains portions of "Soul Makossa" written by Manu Dibango, and samples of "Comment No. 1", performed by Gil Scott-Heron. It was produced by West and Jeff Bhasker, who wrote the track with Vernon and Malik Jones. "Lost in the World" was initially leaked on September 29, 2010, and was 5 minutes and 55 seconds long. The version on the album was divided into two parts, with the outro becoming a new track entitled "Who Will Survive in America".
"Can't Tell Me Nothing" is a song by American rapper Kanye West from his third studio album, Graduation (2007). The song contains additional vocals from Young Jeezy and Connie Mitchell. It was produced by West with DJ Toomp with West being responsible for 60 percent of the production. The song originated from Young Jeezy's "I Got Money", after West made changes to the track. On May 15, 2007, the song premiered via Hot 97 and was released by Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam that same day as the lead single from the album. A hip hop track, it was described by West as a theme song for the people. The lyrics see West reflecting on his fame while he expresses different types of feelings.
"Flashing Lights" is a song by American rapper Kanye West from his third studio album, Graduation (2007). The song features a guest appearance from R&B singer Dwele and additional vocals from Australian singer Connie Mitchell. West co-wrote and co-produced the song with Eric Hudson, who had completed the production before the duo added a live string section in 2007. It was released to US rhythmic contemporary radio as the album's fourth single on November 20, 2007, by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. A hip hop, electro rap, and R&B song with elements of numerous genres, it prominently utilizes strings and synths. Lyrically, the song features West rapping about a complicated relationship where a girl has power over him; he also compares the paparazzi to Nazis.
Bon Iver is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon. Vernon had originally formed Bon Iver as a solo project, but it eventually became a band consisting of Vernon, Sean Carey, Michael Lewis, Matthew McCaughan, Andrew Fitzpatrick, and Jenn Wasner
Justin DeYarmond Edison Vernon is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best-known as the primary songwriter and frontman of indie folk band Bon Iver. He is also a member of the bands Volcano Choir, Big Red Machine, the Shouting Matches, and Gayngs, and was previously a member of the now-defunct band DeYarmond Edison. Known for his distinct falsetto voice, Vernon has received widespread acclaim for his work, predominantly with Bon Iver.
Francis and the Lights is the American music project of Francis Farewell Starlite. The term "and the Lights" refers both to the lights on a stage and pixels on a computer screen. Francis Farewell Starlite is an American musician, record producer, singer, songwriter, and dancer. He is primarily a vocalist and pianist, and is often credited by the Francis and the Lights name for his solo work. He is a frequent collaborator of multiple artists and producers, including Kanye West, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, Cashmere Cat, Chance the Rapper, Nico Segal, Frank Ocean and Banks.
James Blake Litherland is an English singer, songwriter, and record producer. He first gained recognition following the release of three extended plays—The Bells Sketch, CMYK and Klavierwerke—in 2010. He signed with A&M Records to release his self-titled debut album (2011) the following year, which was met with critical praise and peaked within the top ten of the UK Albums Chart. He then departed the label in favour of Republic Records, through which he released his second album, Overgrown (2013) to further critical and commercial success; it likewise peaked within the chart's top ten and moderately entered the US Billboard 200. His third album The Colour in Anything (2016) was followed by his 2018 single "King's Dead", which peaked at number 50 on the UK Singles Chart and marked his first entry–at number 21–on the Billboard Hot 100. Its success foresaw the release of his fourth album, Assume Form (2019), which yielded his highest entry on both the UK Albums Chart and Billboard 200. His fifth and sixth albums, Friends That Break Your Heart (2021) and Playing Robots Into Heaven (2023) followed thereafter.
"Monster" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Kanye West, released as the third single from his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010). The song features rappers Jay-Z, Rick Ross, and Nicki Minaj, along with indie folk group Bon Iver. All five credited acts have writing credits on the posse cut, with the production handled by West and Mike Dean. The instrumental is atmospheric and drum-heavy, and the lyrics reflect influences from horror films, creating an eerie composition which drew critical comparisons to the Michael Jackson track "Thriller".
Jacob Stacey Schreier is an American commercial, music video and film director. He was a founding member of Waverly Films, a Brooklyn-based filmmaking collective, and joined Park Pictures in 2006, releasing his first feature film Robot & Frank in 2012. In 2015, he released Paper Towns, an adaptation of the 2008 novel of the same name by John Green. He is also directing the upcoming 2025 Marvel Studios film Thunderbolts*.
"Fade" is a song by American rapper Kanye West from his seventh studio album, The Life of Pablo (2016). The song features vocals from Post Malone and Ty Dolla Sign. It was first played at West's Yeezy Season 2 show in September 2015, before later being released for digital download and streaming as the third and final single from the album on September 9, 2016, through GOOD Music and Def Jam. 11 days later, the aforementioned labels serviced the song to radio stations across the United States. A hip house song with club elements, it samples Mr. Fingers's "Mystery of Love", Rare Earth's and The Undisputed Truth's respective cover versions of "(I Know) I'm Losing You", Hardrive's "Deep Inside", and Barbara Tucker's "I Get Lifted ". The lyrics of the song focus on trying to hold on to a fading love.
"Real Friends" is a song by American rapper Kanye West, featuring vocals from fellow singer Ty Dolla Sign. It was released as a promotional single from West's seventh studio album, The Life of Pablo, on January 8, 2016, The song includes West rapping about his trust issues around friends and family, with Whodini's song "Friends" being directly recalled.
Coloring Book is the third mixtape by American rapper Chance the Rapper. It was produced by his group The Social Experiment, Lido, and Kaytranada, among others. For the mixtape, Chance also collaborated with musicians such as Kanye West, Young Thug, Francis and the Lights, Justin Bieber, 2 Chainz, Kirk Franklin, and the Chicago Children's Choir.
"All We Got" is a song by American rapper Chance the Rapper featuring Kanye West and Chicago Children's Choir, from Chance's third mixtape Coloring Book (2016). It contains vocals from Francis Starlite, Grace Weber, Isaiah Robinson, Jack Red, Sima Cunningham, Teddy Jackson and Vasil Garvanliev. A remix was shared by SBTRKT in March 2018.
"Friends" is a song by American music project Francis and the Lights featuring Bon Iver and uncredited contributions from Kanye West. The song was released as a single on July 7, 2016, accompanied by a music video featuring Francis Farewell Starlite, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver and Kanye West.
"Wild Love" is a song by Norwegian DJ and record producer Cashmere Cat, featuring vocals by Canadian singer the Weeknd and American pop project Francis and the Lights. It was released on 26 August 2016, as the lead single from Cashmere's debut studio album, 9 (2017). The track was written by The Weeknd, Cashmere Cat, Benny Blanco, and Francis Starlite. It was produced by Cashmere Cat and Blanco. It is the first of five collaborations between Cashmere Cat and The Weeknd, being followed by several tracks off The Weeknd's third studio album Starboy (2016). The song was noted by several critics as being reminiscent of Imogen Heap's 2005 hit single "Hide and Seek".
American rapper Kanye West has released four video albums and been featured in various music videos. He has also made cameo appearances in films and appeared in several television programs.
"I Thought About Killing You" is a song by American rapper Kanye West, released as the opening track on his eighth studio album, Ye (2018). The song was produced by West, Francis and the Lights, and Benny Blanco, with additional production from Mike Dean, Andy C and Aaron Lammer. The production is driven by repetitive a cappella intonations, which play in the background. The lyrical content of the song centers around West's thoughts of suicide and homicide, delivered in both rapping and spoken word. West imparted that he has had suicidal thoughts in an interview with The New York Times.
"All Mine" is a song by American rapper Kanye West from his eighth studio album, Ye (2018). The song features vocals from American singers Ty Dolla Sign and Ant Clemons. The song's production relies on a simplistic drum-led style and was primarily handled by West, while it was co-produced by Mike Dean and additional production was handled by Francis and the Lights, and Scott Carter. West co-wrote the song alongside 13 others, with the information being revealed what lyrics co-writer Consequence was responsible for.
"Take Me to the Light" is a song by American pop project Francis and the Lights featuring Bon Iver and Kanye West. It is the lead single from their forthcoming album, Same Night Different Dream. The song marks the second collaboration between all three artists following the 2016 single "Friends." It also features additional contributions from Caroline Shaw and uncredited vocals by Chance the Rapper. It was released as a single on August 30, 2019, but did not appear on most streaming services until September 3, 2019.
BJ Burton is an American record producer, songwriter, engineer, and mixer. He is known for his work with Bon Iver, Francis and the Lights, Low, Charli XCX, and The Japanese House, and has also worked with the likes of Eminem, Lizzo and Mike Will Made It among others.
