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Graduation (album)

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Graduation is the third studio album by American hip hop recording artist and producer Kanye West. It was released on September 11, 2007 on Roc-A-Fella Records. It is also West's last album to be influenced by a college theme in both the album's title and artwork.

Graduation
Studio album by
Kanye West
ReleasedSeptember 11, 2007
Recorded2005–2007
Studio
Genre
Length51:12
LabelRoc-A-Fella, Def Jam
ProducerKanye West (exec.), Kyambo "Hip Hop" Joshua (exec.) Gus Dudgeon, Jon Brion, Warryn Campbell, Mike Dean, DJ Toomp, Eric Hudson, Daft Punk, Edwin Birdsong, Brian Miller, Nottz, Patrick Reynolds, Gee Robertson
Kanye West chronology
Can't Tell Me Nothing
(2007) 		Graduation
(2007) 		808s & Heartbreak
(2008)
Singles from Graduation
  1. "Can't Tell Me Nothing"
    Released: May 15, 2007
  2. "Stronger"
    Released: July 31, 2007
  3. "Good Life"
    Released: October 2, 2007
  4. "Flashing Lights"
    Released: November 12, 2007
  5. "Homecoming"
    Released: February 18, 2008

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [2]
The A.V. ClubB+[3]
Robert ChristgauA−[4]
The Guardian     [5]
Los Angeles Times    [6]
NME6/10[7]
Pitchfork Media8.7/10[8]
Rolling Stone     [9]
Slant Magazine     [10]
Spin8/10[11]

Graduation received general acclaim from music critics.[12]

Track listing

No. TitleProducer(s) Length
1. "Good Morning" (featuring Connie Mitchell, Tony Williams & Jay-Z)Kanye West, Gus Dudgeon 3:15
2. "Champion" (featuring Connie Mitchell)Kanye West, Brian Miller 2:47
3. "Stronger" (featuring Daft Punk)Kanye West, Mike Dean*, Daft Punk, Edwin Birdsong 5:11
4. "I Wonder" (featuring Labi Siffre)Kanye West 4:03
5. "Good Life" (featuring T-Pain, John Legend & Ne-Yo)Kanye West, DJ Toomp, Mike Dean** 3:27
6. "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (featuring Connie Mitchell)Kanye West, DJ Toomp 4:30
7. "Barry Bonds" (featuring Lil Wayne)Nottz, Kanye West* 3:24
8. "Drunk and Hot Girls" (featuring Tanya Herron & Mos Def)Kanye West, Jon Brion** 5:13
9. "Flashing Lights" (featuring Dwele & Connie Mitchell)Kanye West, Eric Hudson 3:57
10. "Everything I Am" (featuring DJ Premier)Kanye West 3:47
11. "The Glory" (featuring John Legend, Mos Def, Jalil Williams & Jehireh Williams)Kanye West, Gee Robertson*, Plain Pat* 3:32
12. "Homecoming" (featuring Chris Martin)Kanye West, Warryn Campbell 3:23
13. "Big Brother"  DJ Toomp 4:47

 • (*) designates co-producer
 • (**) designates additional production

Notes:[17]

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.[17]

  • Kanye West – executive producer, primary artist (All Tracks), producer (All Tracks except 13)
  • Lil Wayne - featured artist (Track 7)
  • Mos Def – featured artist (Track 8), backing vocals (8, 11)
  • T-Pain – featured artist (Track 5)
  • Dwele – featured artist (Track 9)
  • DJ Premier – featured artist (Track 10)
  • Jay-Z – featured artist, additional rap vocals (Track 1)
  • Chris Martin – featured artist, additional vocals (sung by) (Track 12)
  • Connie Mitchell – featured artist, additional vocals (Tracks 1-2, 6, 9)
  • Tanya Herron – featured artist, additional vocals (Track 8)
  • John Legend – featured artist, backing vocals (Tracks 5, 11)
  • Ne-Yo – featured artist, backing vocals (Track 5)
  • Jalil Williams – featured artist, additional backing vocals (Track 11)
  • Jehireh Williams – featured artist, additional backing vocals (Track 11)
  • Daphne Chen – violin (Tracks 5, 8)
  • Eric Gorfain – violin (Tracks 5, 8)
  • Luigi Mazzocchi – violin (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Charles Parker – violin (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Igor Szwec – violin (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Emma Kummrow – violin (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Olga Konopelsky – violin (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Gloria Justen – violin (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Peter Nocella – viola (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Leah Katz – viola (Tracks 5, 8)
  • Alexandra Leem – viola (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Alma Fernandez – viola (Track 5)
  • Mike Dean – keyboards (Track 3, 7), music arranger (3), string arrangements (5, 8), recording engineer (3), guitar (3), mixing (5-8, 10, 12), producer (3, 5)
  • Jon Brion – keyboards (Track 4), percussion (12), record producer (8)
  • Darryl Beaton – keyboards (Track 6)
  • Andy Chatterly – keyboards (Tracks 1, 3, 8, 11)
  • Chris Rob – keyboards (Track 6)
  • Richard Dodd – cello (Tracks 5, 8)
  • John Krovoza – cello (Track 5)
  • Jennie Lorenzo – cello (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Tim Resler – bass (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Omar Edwards – piano (Tracks 4-5, 10), keyboards (3, 11) synthesizer (4-5, 8), synthesizer bass (8).
  • Nottz Raw –producer (Track 7), recording engineer (Track 7)
  • Tony Rey – recording engineer (Track 6)
  • Seiji Sekine – recording engineer (Track 3)
  • Greg Koller – recording engineer (Tracks 4, 8, 12)
  • Bruce Buechner – recording engineer (Track 12)
  • Andrew Dawson – recording engineer (All Tracks), mixing (Tracks 2, 4-6, 9, 12-13)
  • Anthony Kilhoffer – recording engineer (Tracks 1-6, 9-12), mixing (1, 11)
  • Anthony Palazzole – assistant recording engineer (Track 2, 5-10, 12)
  • Andy Marcinkowski – assistant recording engineer (Tracks 2, 5-10, 12-13)
  • Richard Reitz – assistant recording engineer (Tracks 3, 6)
  • Jared Robbins – assistant recording engineer (Track 3)
  • Kengo Sakura – assistant recording engineer (Track 3)
  • Bram Tobey – assistant recording engineer (Tracks 1-6, 8, 10-11)
  • Matty Green – assistant recording engineer (Tracks 1, 9, 11-12)
  • Nate Hertweck – assistant recording engineer (Tracks 1-6, 10-11)
  • Jason Agel – assistant recording engineer (Tracks 1-6, 8, 10-11)
  • Tracey Waples – marketing
  • Al Brancch – marketing
  • Takashi Murakami – artwork
  • Carol Corless – package production
  • Eric Hudson – all other instruments (Track 9), producer (9)
  • Warryn Campbell – producer (Track 12)
  • Larry Gold – string arrangements, string conductor (Tracks 4, 9)
  • Rosie Danvers – string arrangements (Track 11)
  • Sandra Campbell - project coordinator
  • Sean Cooper – sound designer (Track 12)
  • Tommy D – string section producer (Track 11)
  • Vlado Meller – mastering
  • Terese Joseph – A&R
  • Kyambo Joshua – executive producer
  • Manny Marroquin – mixing (Track 3)
  • Kazuhiro Mizuno – design
  • Patrick "Plain Pat" Reynolds – A&R, producer (Track 11)
  • Timbaland – additional drum machine (Track 5), additional music programming (3)
  • Gus Dudgeon - producer (Track 1)
  • Daft Punk - music arranger (Track 3), producer (3)
  • Edwin Birdsong - music arranger (Track 3), producer (3)

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2007) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[18] 2
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[18] 26
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[18] 11
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[19] 49
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[20] 1
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[18] 10
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[18] 11
European Albums (Billboard)[21] 3
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[18] 16
French Albums (SNEP)[18] 9
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[18] 10
Irish Albums (IRMA)[18] 2
Italian Albums (FIMI)[18] 33
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[22] 13
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[18] 2
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[18] 2
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[18] 30
Scottish Albums (OCC)[23] 3
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[18] 6
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[18] 3
UK Albums (OCC)[18] 1
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[24] 1
US Billboard 200[25] 1
US Top Catalog Albums (Billboard)[26] 15
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[27] 1
Chart (2012) Peak
position
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[28] 37
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Canadian Albums (Billboard) 144
Lithuanian Albums (AGATA)[29] 94
US Billboard 200 154
US Rolling Stone 200[30] 144

Year-end charts

Chart (2007) Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[31] 88
European Albums (Billboard)[32] 75
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[33] 93
UK Albums (OCC)[34] 59
US Billboard 200[35] 12
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[36] 4
Worldwide Charts (IFPI)[37] 17
Chart (2008) Position
Australian Urban Albums (ARIA)[38] 19
UK Albums (OCC)[39] 121
US Billboard 200[40] 79
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[41] 29
Chart (2016) Position
US Billboard 200[42] 157
Chart (2017) Position
Australian Urban Albums (ARIA)[43] 82
Chart (2018) Position
Australian Urban Albums (ARIA)[44] 78
Chart (2019) Position
Australian Urban Albums (ARIA)[45] 70

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Australia (ARIA)[46] Platinum 70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[47] 2× Platinum 160,000^
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[48] Platinum Expression error: Missing operand for *. 
Ireland (IRMA)[49] Platinum 15,000^
Japan (RIAJ)[50] Gold 100,000^
New Zealand (RIANZ)[52] Gold 7,500^
Russia (NFPF)[54] Gold Expression error: Missing operand for *.*
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[55] Gold 15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[57] Platinum 600,000^
United States (RIAA)[58] 2× Platinum 2,700,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Graduation (album) Media

  • West's experiences on arena rock tours such as U2's Vertigo Tour (pictured) inspired his direction for the album.

  • Connie Mitchell contributed vocals to several songs on the album.

  • The track "Everything I Am" features turntable scratches by famed record producer DJ Premier

  • West wrote lyrics expressing an ambivalence towards his newfound wealth and fame.

  • Publicity over the album's release date pitted West in a sales competition against rapper 50 Cent (pictured).

  • West performing before a crowd at V Festival on August 18, 2007, in Chelmsford, England.

  • West performing at the United Center in Chicago on the album's supporting tour.

References

  1. ↑ name=metacritic
  2. ↑ Kellman, Andy. Review: Graduation. Allmusic. Retrieved on October 6, 2009.
  3. ↑ Rabin, Nathan (September 11, 2007). Kanye West: Graduation. Chicago. http://www.avclub.com/articles/kanye-west-graduation,7568/. Retrieved April 8, 2013. 
  4. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Consumer Guide". MSN Music: October 1, 2007. Archived from the original Archived 2009-12-19 at the Wayback Machine on 2009-10-06.
  5. ↑ Lynskey, Dorian (September 7, 2007). "Kanye West, Graduation". The Guardian (London: Guardian News and Media Limited). http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2007/sep/07/urban.shopping. Retrieved September 10, 2007. 
  6. ↑ Powers, Ann. Hip-hop's Man of Two Minds. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 6, 2009.
  7. ↑ Pattison, Louis (September 13, 2005). "NME Reviews – Kanye West: Graduation". NME. IPC Media. Retrieved September 13, 2007.
  8. ↑ Pytlik, Mark. September 11, 2007. Review: Graduation. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved on 2009-10-06.
  9. ↑ Brackett, Nathan. Review: Graduation Archived 2012-06-14 at the Wayback Machine. Rolling Stone. Retrieved on October 6, 2009.
  10. ↑ Henderson, Eric. Review: Graduation. Slant Magazine. Retrieved on June 13, 2010.
  11. ↑ Aaron, Charles (November 2007). "Doo Wah Diddy". Spin. SPIN Media LLC: 114. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  12. ↑ Kanye West: Graduation (2007): Reviews. Metacritic. Accessed September 2, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Graduation Kanye West - Album, singles et concerts sur Virgin Mega". Archived from the original on October 18, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Graduation (Alternative Business Partners)". January 1, 2007.
  15. ↑ "Graduation + 2 remixes Kanye West - Album, singles et concerts sur Virgin Mega". Archived from the original on October 18, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Graduation (French Limited Version)". September 11, 2007 – via open.spotify.com.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Graduation (Media notes). Kanye West. Roc-A-Fella Records. 2007. 
  18. ↑ 18.00 18.01 18.02 18.03 18.04 18.05 18.06 18.07 18.08 18.09 18.10 18.11 18.12 18.13 18.14 18.15 "Kanye West – Graduation". aCharts.us. 2007. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved September 29, 2007.
  19. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Kanye West – Graduation" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  20. ↑ "Kanye West Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  21. ↑ Sexton, Paul (2007-09-24). "Kingston, Blunt Rule On U.K. Charts". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2015-07-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20150704104542/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1049057/kingston-blunt-rule-on-uk-charts. Retrieved 2020-01-10. 
  22. ↑ "Japanese Oricon Top 30 Albums". Oricon. Oricon, Inc. 2007. Archived from the original on March 3, 2009. Retrieved September 23, 2007. (in Japanese)
  23. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100: 16 September 2007 - 22 September 2007". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2020-01-11.
  25. ↑ "Kanye West Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-01-11.
  26. ↑ "Kanye West Chart History (Top Catalog Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-12-09.
  27. ↑ "Kanye West Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-01-11.
  28. ↑ "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – 2012. 11. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  29. ↑ "2019 44-os savaitės klausomiausi (TOP 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. November 4, 2019. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  30. ↑ "Top 200 Albums – October 31, 2019". Rolling Stone. https://www.rollingstone.com/charts/albums/2019-10-25/. Retrieved 2020-01-24. 
  31. ↑ "Top 100 Albums 2007". ARIA. Archived from the original on July 28, 2010. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  32. ↑ "European Top 100 Albums (Year end) 2007". Billboard. 2008-01-13. Archived on 2009-02-25. Error: If you specify |archivedate=, you must also specify |archiveurl=. http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/charts/yearendcharts/european-top-100-albums.jsp. Retrieved 2020-01-11. 
  33. ↑ "Jahreshitparaden 2007". Swiss Music Charts. Hung Medien (in German). Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2019-09-22.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  34. ↑ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2007". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on April 3, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  35. ↑ "Billboard 200 Albums (Year end) 2007". Billboard. 2008-01-13. Archived from the original on 2015-02-28. https://web.archive.org/web/20150228075828/https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2007/top-billboard-200-albums. Retrieved 2019-09-22. 
  36. ↑ "R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Year end)". Billboard. 2008-01-13. Archived from the original on 2013-11-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20131119110105/http://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2007/top-r-b-hip-hop-albums. Retrieved 2013-05-17. 
  37. ↑ "Top 50 Global Best Selling Albums for 2007" (PDF). IFPI. Archived from the original on April 10, 2011. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
  38. ↑ "Top 50 Urban Albums 2008". ARIA. Archived from the original on May 28, 2013. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  39. ↑ "UK Albums Chart 2008" (PDF). ChartsPlus. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 27, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
  40. ↑ "Billboard 200 Albums (Year end)". Billboard. 2009-01-13. https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2008/top-billboard-200-albums. Retrieved 2019-08-04. 
  41. ↑ "R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Year end)". Billboard. 2009-01-13. https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2008/top-r-and-b-hip-hop-albums. Retrieved 2019-04-04. 
  42. ↑ "Billboard 200 Albums (Year end)". Billboard. 2016-12-09. https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2016/top-billboard-200-albums. Retrieved 2019-12-09. 
  43. ↑ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2017". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  44. ↑ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2018". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on March 28, 2019. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  45. ↑ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2019". ARIA Charts. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  46. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2016 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  47. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Kanye West – Graduation". Music Canada.
  48. ↑ "Danish album certifications – Kanye West – Graduation". IFPI Denmark.
  49. ↑ "2007 Certification Awards – Platinum". The Irish Charts. IRMA. Archived from the original on December 24, 2008. Retrieved December 12, 2008.
  50. ↑ "Japanese album certifications – Kanye West – Graduation" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  51. ↑ ??????????? 2007?10? (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ). November 10, 2007. Archived from the original on November 9, 2012. Retrieved November 10, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  52. ↑ "New Zealand album certifications – Kanye West – Graduation". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand.
  53. ↑ "Chart #1591: Graduation Gold certification". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. November 19, 2007. Archived from the original on December 4, 2008. Retrieved November 19, 2007.
  54. ↑ "Russian album certifications – Kanye West – Graduation" (in Russian). National Federation of Phonogram Producers (NFPF).{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  55. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Kanye West; 'Graduation')". Hung Medien.
  56. ↑ "Swiss Certifications – Awards 2008". SwissCharts.com. Hung Medien. 2008. Archived from the original on May 15, 2011. Retrieved April 26, 2009.
  57. ↑ "British album certifications – Kanye West – Graduation". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Graduation in the field Search. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Click Go
  58. ↑ "Gold & Platinum – Graduation". Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Archived from the original on August 6, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
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