Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts as well as commercial media and is known for blurring the line between high and low arts. His influential work draws from the aesthetic characteristics of the Japanese artistic tradition and the nature of postwar Japanese culture. He designed the album covers for Kanye West's third studio album Graduation and West and Kid Cudi’s collaborative studio album Kids See Ghosts.
The College Dropout is the debut studio album by the American rapper and record producer Kanye West. It was released on February 10, 2004, by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. 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.
GOOD Music is an American independent record label founded by rapper Kanye West in 2004. The label entered an exclusive long-term worldwide distribution contract with the Island Def Jam Music Group in 2011. In 2012, the label released its only compilation album, Cruel Summer. In 2015, Pusha T was appointed president of the label by West, while record executive Steven Victor was appointed chief operating officer (COO). In late 2022, Pusha T stepped down from the position as he was no longer on speaking terms with West.
Graduation is the third studio album by the American rapper and record 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, including DJ Toomp. The album features guest appearances from recording artists such as Dwele, T-Pain, Lil Wayne, Mos Def, DJ Premier, and Chris Martin. The cover art and its interior artwork were designed by Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami.
American rapper and record producer, Ye, better known as Kanye West, has released 10 studio albums, three collaborative studio albums, one compilation album, one demo album, two live albums, one video album, and five mixtapes. All ten of his studio albums have been certified at least gold in the United States. As of June 2021, West has certified 25 million equivalent solo albums units in the United States, placing him among the highest-certified music artists in the United States.
Michael George Dean is an American record producer, audio engineer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known for his synthesizer-heavy instrumentation and audio mixing for high-profile music industry artists. Beginning his career in 1992, he was first credited on releases for Texas-based rappers such as Scarface, Willie D, and Geto Boys, although he has since worked with artists including the Weeknd, Beyoncé, Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Travis Scott, Jay-Z, Drake, Madonna, Selena Gomez, and Lana Del Rey, among others. As a non-performing lead artist, Dean has released five solo studio albums: 4:20 (2020), 4:22 (2021), Smoke State 42222 (2022), 4:23 (2023), and 424 (2024).
"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.
Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi, also known by his stage name Kid Cudi, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Cudi moved to New York City in pursuit of a musical career, where he first gained recognition for his song "Day 'n' Nite." Initially self-published on his MySpace page, the song became a hit online and served as a catalyst for Cudi to team up with record producers Plain Pat and Emile Haynie to record his first full-length project, a mixtape titled A Kid Named Cudi (2008). Its release helped Cudi rise to prominence and establish a fanbase, catching the attention of rapper Kanye West—who signed Cudi to his GOOD Music label by late 2008.
Patrick Reynolds, professionally known as Plain Pat, is an American music executive, record producer, songwriter and disc jockey (DJ). He is perhaps best known for overseeing American musicians Kanye West and Kid Cudi, during their respective early vocations. He is also noted for working with prominent artists such as Drake, Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, Lupe Fiasco, Ghostface Killah, The Roots, Lloyd, Young Gunz, Ashanti, Ludacris, Freeway, Ja Rule, N.O.R.E. and The Mutton Birds among others.
A Jesus piece is a spiritual or religious piece of jewelry that is popular in the hip hop community and depicts the face of Jesus with the crown made out of thorns. Many hip hop artists and celebrities, including The Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z, Kanye West, Big Pun, The Game, Kendrick Lamar and Meek Mill among others, have adopted the Jesus piece as a common fashion accessory and have them decorated with many precious gems. Cheaper Jesus pieces have also been sold in other materials including wood and inexpensive metals. Traditional medals in Western Christianity that are worn as necklaces have depicted the Holy Face of Jesus.
Anthony Kilhoffer is an American hip hop record producer, songwriter, and engineer, best known for his collaborations with Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Keyshia Cole and John Legend.
Virgil Abloh was an American fashion designer and entrepreneur. He began his own line of luxury streetwear clothing, Pyrex Vision, in 2012, and became the chief executive officer of the Milan-based label Off-White, a fashion house he founded in 2013. Abloh was also the artistic director of Louis Vuitton's menswear collection beginning in 2018, and was given increased creative responsibilities across the LVMH brand in early 2021.
Kids See Ghosts was an American hip hop supergroup composed of rappers Kanye West and Kid Cudi. Formed during West's 2018 Wyoming sessions, the duo's eponymous debut album was released in June of that year by Def Jam Recordings, along with their respective label imprints, GOOD Music and Wicked Awesome Records. Met with critical and commercial success, the album peaked at number two on the US Billboard 200 and received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The duo disbanded in 2022 due to personal disagreements, although they reconciled the following year.
Kids See Ghosts is the debut studio album by the American hip hop supergroup Kids See Ghosts, composed of the rappers and producers Kanye West and Kid Cudi. It was released on June 8, 2018, through Wicked Awesome Records and GOOD Music, and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. Prior to the release, West and Cudi had collaborated on each others' work since 2008, although they experienced personal quarrels due to creative differences. The first studio sessions for the album began after the two reunited in late 2016.
"4th Dimension" is a song by American hip hop duo Kids See Ghosts, composed of the rappers Kanye West and Kid Cudi, from their eponymous debut studio album (2018). The song features a guest appearance from Louis Prima, who was credited as a featured artist due to his work being sampled. It was produced by West, with additional production from Mike Dean and Noah Goldstein. The producers co-wrote the song with Kid Cudi and Prima, with the latter of the two receiving credit as a result of it sampling music by him. A hip hop song, it samples Prima's "What Will Santa Claus Say " and Shirley Ann Lee's "Someday". Lyrically, the song features Kids See Ghosts presenting their thoughts to stop themselves from becoming worried.
"Kids See Ghosts" is a song by American hip hop duo Kids See Ghosts, composed of Kanye West and Kid Cudi, from their debut studio album of the same name (2018). The song features a guest appearance from Mos Def, who received credit under his real name of Yasiin Bey. It was produced by West, Kid Cudi, and Plain Pat, while additional production was handled by Andrew Dawson, Justin Vernon and Noah Goldstein. Apart from Plain Pat and Goldstein, the producers wrote the song alongside Bey. Making heavy use of synthesizers, the song draws inspiration from ambient music. Lyrically, the song reflects on the difficulties of fame and success.
"Cudi Montage" is a song by American hip hop duo Kids See Ghosts, composed of Kanye West and Kid Cudi, released as the final track on their eponymous debut studio album (2018). The song was produced by Kid Cudi and Dot da Genius, with co-production from Mike Dean. The song also features vocals from Mr Hudson. Dot da Genius recorded with Kids See Ghosts in 2018, and he recalled West as unifying him and Kid Cudi's musical interests. An electro-gospel track with rock influences, the song samples Kurt Cobain's unreleased track "Burn the Rain". In the lyrics of the song, Kids See Ghosts pledge to not repeat past mistakes.
"Reborn" is a song by American hip hop duo Kids See Ghosts, composed of the rappers Kanye West and Kid Cudi, from their eponymous debut studio album (2018). The song was produced by the latter of the two members and Dot da Genius, while co-produced by Plain Pat and Evan Mast, with additional production from Benny Blanco. The lead producers wrote it alongside West and Mast. Prior to release, Kid Cudi had posted about being reborn. Dot da Genius recorded with the duo in 2018; he recalled West as unifying him and Cudi's musical interests.
"XTCY" is a song by Kanye West. It was originally released by DJ Clark Kent on August 11, 2018 for free download before released as a single on August 30. The song heavily samples "My Bleeding Wound" by The New Year.
"Remote Control" is a song by American rapper Kanye West from his tenth studio album Donda (2021). The song, which features vocals from fellow American rapper Young Thug, was produced by West alongside Cubeatz, Digital Nas, Ojivolta, 88-Keys, Mike Dean and Teddy Walton.
