The College Dropout is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on February 10, 2004, by Def Jam Recordings and Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records. In the years leading up to release, West had received praise for his production work for rappers such as Jay-Z and Talib Kweli, but faced difficulty being accepted as an artist in his own right by figures in the music industry. Intent on pursuing a solo career, he signed a record deal with Roc-A-Fella and recorded the album over a period of four years, beginning in 1999.
Leonard Harris, better known by his stage name GLC, is an American rapper from Chicago, Illinois. He was formerly a member of the Go Getters.
Faheem Rashad Najm, known by his stage name T-Pain, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He popularized the creative use of the Auto-Tune pitch correction effect, used with extreme parameter settings to create distinctive vocal sounds. Others followed, including rappers Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, Kanye West, Future, Travis Scott and Trippie Redd.
The discography of American rapper T.I. consists of eleven studio albums, one compilation album, one remix album, four extended plays (EPs), 13 mixtapes, 110 singles and 11 promotional singles. He has also released one music video album and over 60 music videos, the details of which are included in his videography.
"Stronger" is a song by American rapper Kanye West, released as the second single from his third studio album, Graduation (2007). The production was handled by West, with an extended outro co-produced with Mike Dean. The composition is electronic in nature, employing drums and synthesizers as the most prominent instruments. For the track, West repeats a vocal sample of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by French house duo Daft Punk in the background while he delivers lyrics about the resolve that comes when one is faced with adversity, paraphrasing Friedrich Nietzsche's dictum "What does not kill me makes me stronger" for the song's refrain. West has described the song as an "emancipation" as it allowed him to vent his frustration over mistakes made in the year prior.
DeAndre Cortez Way, known professionally as Soulja Boy, is an American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence after his self-released debut single "Crank That " peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for seven non-consecutive weeks in 2007. He then released his debut album, Souljaboytellem.com (2007), which also included the single "Soulja Girl".
Teyana Me Shay Jacqueli Shumpert is an American singer, actress, dancer and choreographer. In 2005, she signed a record deal with Pharrell Williams' Star Trak Entertainment imprint. Afterwards, she choreographed the music video for "Ring the Alarm" by Beyoncé. Taylor would then appear on MTV's My Super Sweet 16, prior to the 2008 release of her debut single "Google Me". Soon after, she landed (uncredited) guest features on the songs "Dark Fantasy" and "Hell of a Life" by Kanye West, from his album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010).
"Good Morning" is the first song from American hip hop recording artist and record producer Kanye West's third studio album Graduation (2007). The song was produced by West and contains samples from the recording "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" by English singer and pianist Elton John. As the opening track, the song serves as an introduction to the musical and lyrical themes of the album. West establishes the academic narrative of it, celebrating his graduation in the realm of hip hop and rapping about his skepticism of higher education over thumping, off-kilter boom bap drums.
"Swagga Like Us" is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and T.I. featuring fellow American rappers Lil Wayne and Kanye West, the latter of whom also produced the song, constructing primarily around a vocal sample of "Paper Planes" by British musician M.I.A. It was released on September 6, 2008, in the United States as the fifth single from T.I.'s sixth album Paper Trail (2008). The track was also initially slated for inclusion on Jay-Z's eleventh album The Blueprint 3 (2009), however it ultimately failed to make the final track listing.
Bobby Ray Simmons Jr., better known by his stage name B.o.B, is an American rapper, singer and record producer. Raised in Decatur, Georgia, Simmons was signed to Jim Jonsin's Rebel Rock Entertainment imprint in 2006. Two years later, Jonsin and Simmons signed a joint venture deal, with fellow rapper T.I.'s Grand Hustle Records, under the aegis of Atlantic Records. Following his major-label deal, Simmons quickly achieved commercial success, when his debut single "Nothin' on You", reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2009, and earned a Grammy Award for Record of the Year nomination.
Sean Michael Leonard Anderson, known professionally as Big Sean, is an American rapper. Anderson began his music career in 2007 and gained popularity in 2010 with his third mixtape Finally Famous Vol. 3: Big. He then signed a recording contract with GOOD Music and Def Jam Recordings and released his debut studio album, Finally Famous in 2011, which included the US top 10 single "Dance (Ass)". Anderson followed it with his second album, Hall of Fame (2013), while his third album, Dark Sky Paradise (2015), debuted atop the US Billboard 200. It also included the hit singles "I Don't Fuck with You" and "Blessings". His fourth album, I Decided (2017), contained "Bounce Back", his highest-charting US single, while his fifth album Detroit 2 (2020) was his third consecutive platinum album.
"Whatever U Want" is a single by American rapper Consequence featuring fellow American rapper Kanye West and American singer John Legend. The music video, directed by Hype Williams, was released in October 2009.
The discography of American rapper and record producer B.o.B consists of seven studio albums, five compilation albums, three extended plays (EPs), 26 mixtapes, 51 singles, 14 promotional singles, and 76 music videos.
"Deuces" is a song written and performed by American singer Chris Brown featuring fellow American musicians Tyga and Kevin McCall. Produced by McCall, "Deuces" was released digitally on June 25, 2010, as the lead single from Brown's first collaborative effort with Tyga, titled Fan of a Fan (2010). The song is a slow, down-tempo R&B ballad featuring elements from the genres of house and pop music, while the song is lyrically about "breaking it off with a girl after failed attempts to make the relationship work". "Deuces" was later included on Brown's fourth studio album, F.A.M.E. (2011).
Nayvadius DeMun Cash, better known by the stage name Future, is an American rapper and singer. Known for his mumble-styled vocals and prolific output, Future is considered a pioneer of the use of melody and auto-tune in modern trap music. Due to the sustained contemporary popularity of his musical style, he is commonly regarded as one of the most influential rappers of his generation.
Michael Len Williams II, known professionally as Mike Will Made It or simply Mike Will, is an American record producer and rapper. He is best known for producing trap beats for several Southern hip hop and pop artists on various commercially successful singles, including "Black Beatles" and "Powerglide" by Rae Sremmurd, "Mercy" by Kanye West, "No Lie" by 2 Chainz, "Bandz a Make Her Dance" by Juicy J, "Pour It Up" by Rihanna, "Love Me" by Lil Wayne, "Body Party" by Ciara, "We Can't Stop" by Miley Cyrus, "Formation" by Beyoncé, and "Humble" by Kendrick Lamar. He has released six mixtapes and one solo studio album, Ransom 2.
Freebandz is an American record label founded by American rapper Future. The label's releases are distributed through Epic Records.
The discography of American rapper Cyhi the Prynce consists of 1 studio album, 12 singles, 6 mixtapes and 1 extended play.
"Thank You" is a song by American rapper Busta Rhymes. It was released on November 7, 2013 by Cash Money Records and Republic Records as the intended second single from his tenth studio album, Extinction Level Event 2: The Wrath of God. The album, released October 30, 2020 by Conglomerate and Empire, excluded both "Thank You" and "#Twerkit", the album's intended lead singles.
"Spaceship" is a song by American musician Kanye West, featuring fellow American rappers GLC and Consequence, taken from West's debut studio album The College Dropout (2004). It was scheduled to be released as the album's sixth and final single, but this plan ended up being cancelled. The music video was released in June 2009. "Spaceship II" and "Spaceship III" were released by Alex Wiley in 2013 and Consequence in 2017.
