Stronger (Kanye West song)

Infobox Single
Name = Stronger
Artist = Kanye West


from Album = Graduation
A-side =
B-side =
Released = July 31, 2007
Format = CD single, digital download, 12" vinyl
Recorded =
Genre = Hip hop
Length = 5:12
Label = GOOD Music, Island Def Jam, Roc-A-Fella
Writer = Kanye West, Thomas Bangalter, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, Edwin Birdsong
Producer = Kanye West (additional drum programming by Timbaland) (extended outro co-produced by Mike Dean)
Certification = Platinum (RIAA) [ [http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH_RESULTS RIAA ] ]
Last single = "Can't Tell Me Nothing"
(2007)
This single = "Stronger"
(2007)
Next single = "Good Life"
(2007)"Stronger" is the second single from Kanye West's album "Graduation". The single was first released digitally on July 31, 2007. "Stronger" features a prominent sample from the song "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by the French house music duo Daft Punk, who received songwriter credit and had their costumes appear in the music video. The song won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 50th Grammy Awards.

History

A snippet of "Stronger" was released from West's "Can't Tell Me Nothing" mixtape. Shortly after, on May 31, 2007 Mark Ronson played the full-length song on his podcast. On June 27, 2007, "Stronger" was put onto the BBC Radio 1 Up-Front playlist and was later upgraded to the A-List a month prior to its release.

The single art was released on West's website on June 28, 2007. It was designed by artist Takashi Murakami. It features a cartoon version of the "Dropout Bear" previously seen on the cover of West's "The College Dropout" and "Late Registration" albums wearing sunglasses similar to the those West wears in the video, as well as the robotic heads of duo Daft Punk.West performed a partial version of this song live at the Concert for Diana held at Wembley Stadium on July 1, 2007 to a crowd of 63,000 people. An estimated 500 million people watched the event in over 140 countries worldwide.

The song was released to iTunes on July 31, 2007 and has reached number 1. It debuted on the "Billboard" Hot 100 at number 47 and later peaked at the number 1 position the same week his album Graduation took the number one spot. It is West's third number one in the U.S., following "Slow Jamz" and "Gold Digger." The song debuted on the UK singles chart at number three and later became West's first number one single in the UK. Climbing on downloads alone, it surpassed the prior week's number one single, Robyn's "With Every Heartbeat". It has also topped the Canadian Hot 100 and New Zealand charts.

30 Seconds to Mars performed a cover version of "Stronger" on BBC Radio 1, which is featured on "Radio 1's Live Lounge – Volume 2". The cover features a slower tempo on guitar and omits the profanity, which was reworded by their lead singer Jared Leto. Leto said that he "hoped that Kanye [was] okay" with the editing. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/jowhiley/galleries/2411/1#/gallery2411 BBC - Radio 1 - Jo Whiley] ]

After getting "jibbed" out of opening the "MTV Video Music Awards", West appeared on the "Ellen DeGeneres Show" and expressed his displeasure at the circumstances which lead up to and came during and after the award show. He then performed "Stronger" on the show. He also performed a portion of the song at the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards in a competition between "The Office" actor Rainn Wilson similar to "Don't Forget the Lyrics" (which, like the 2007 Emmys, airs on FOX) with host Wayne Brady presiding. West sang the last line of the chorus as "That how long I've been on you" which was supposed to be "That how long I've been on ya", losing to Wilson. West jokingly retorted "I never win", poking fun at his losses at award ceremonies and presented the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program alongside Wilson. [ [http://www.celebrity-gossip.net/celebrities/hollywood/kanye-west-and-rainn-wilsons-emmy-rap-201927/ Kanye West and Rainn Wilson performed the song Stronger at the 2007 Emmy Awards ] ]

The song can be heard for the promo of the 2007 film "The Kingdom". It can also be heard as the introductory song of the Toronto Raptors, New York Mets, Texas Longhorns, Washington Wizards and Tampa Bay Rays. Also, the New York Giants entered the field to this song at Super Bowl XLII and during most of their home games during the season. The New York Rangers play it at every home game as well. The song won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance for the 50th Grammy Awards. It is also Featured in Season 4 Ep 4 of Entourage as background music in a night club. The song was also named the number one record of 2007 in the January 2008 issue of "Spin" magazine with Kanye West and Daft Punk presiding on the cover. This song was number 11 on "Rolling Stone"'s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007. [No byline (December 11, 2007). [http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/17601851/the_top_50_albums_of_2007/3 "The 100 Best Songs of 2007"] "Rolling Stone". Retrieved 2007-12-21] This song was also number 96 on "MTV Asia"'s list of Top 100 Hits of 2007. [MTV Asia. [http://www.mtvasia.com/Funstuff/Contests/MTVTop100Hits2007/top100.html "Top 100 Hits List"] . Retrieved 2007-12-27]

Daft Punk themselves made a surprise appearance at the 50th Grammy Awards on February 10, 2008 to join West in performing a reworked version of the song on stage at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. A press release specified that this was the first televised live performance by Daft Punk in their career. [ [http://www.nme.com/news/daft-punk/34231 Daft Punk Make Surprise Grammy Appearance with Kanye West] nme.com. Retrieved on February 10, 2008.]

tructure

"Stronger" features a sample of the popular 2001 song "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by Daft Punk that consists of a vocal performance by the duo. On July 3, 2007, West told Zane Lowe on BBC Radio 1 that although he believes "Stronger" is "a great song", it does not compare to the sampled original. Daft Punk were delighted upon first hearing the new song on Power 106 while on a San Francisco flight. As Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of the duo stated, "Our song had a good sound, but when [the radio DJ] put Kanye's record on, the sound was really f at. It sounds really big." The use of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" was requested through Daft Punk's manager Pedro Winter and approved by the duo. [ [http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/46039-interview-daft-punk Interview: Daft Punk] Pitchfork Media. Retrieved on October 3, 2007.] De Homem Christo also clarified that "It's not a collaboration in the studio, but the vibe of the music we do separately connected in what [West] did with the song."Jonathan Cohen (August 14, 2007). [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003625611 Exclusive: Live Album to Chronicle Daft Punk Tour] . "Billboard". Retrieved on August 27, 2007.]

West collaborated with Timbaland to rework the percussion for the final cut of the song, which appears on the "Graduation" album. [Shaheem Reid (August 21, 2007). [http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/1567552/20070821/west_kanye.jhtml? Kanye West Thanks 50 Cent for Much-Hyped Rivalry: 'We Push Each Other'] . VH1. Retrieved on August 31, 2007.] This version contains master use of Edwin Birdsong's "Cola Bottle Baby",Kanye West "Graduation" liner notes (2007).] a song sampled by Daft Punk for "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger". The pre-album version of "Stronger" known to the public and being used by radio, television and other outlets is the version used as the single.

On October 4, 2007, a previously unreleased version of "Stronger" was revealed. This version features a singular, unused verse from West. The structure is also different, as it features less synthesizer chords and percussion, with the Daft Punk sample more dominant at the forefront of the production. It is believed that this version was an early draft of the final song. [ [http://www.kanyetalk.com/unlreesed-version-of-stronger-218.html kanYe Live! - The #1 kanYe West Fan Site » Alternate Version of Stronger (Unreleased)] ]

The refrain "That that don't kill me can only make me stronger" stems from Friedrich Nietzsche's quote "What does not kill me, makes me stronger" from his "Twilight of the Idols".

The A-Trak remix of the song is used in an advert for the short-lived American TV show Bionic Woman.

Music video

. On VH1, BET and MTV, West is credited as "Mr. West" in the "Stronger" video.

The video features appearances by singer and model Cassie Ventura and the two principal actors from the film "Daft Punk's Electroma" dressed as Daft Punk. The video features multiple scenes which pay homage to the 1988 anime film "Akira". [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2007-07-08/kanye-west-music-video-inspired-by-akira Kanye West Music Video Inspired by Akira] . Anime News Network (July 7, 2007). Retrieved on August 27, 2007.] These include the light effects on the motorbikes, the hospital scenes and West being scanned by machines. [ [http://www.christianmontoya.com/2007/06/28/screencaptures-of-similarities-between-kanye-wests-stronger-and-akira/ Screencaptures of similarities between Kanye West's "Stronger" and "Akira"] . The Montoya Herald (June 28, 2007). Retrieved on August 27, 2007.] Both West and Williams had originally planned to integrate scenes from the film. West also wears a pair of Alain Mikli sunglasses, which he specifically requested from the designer. [ [http://offtherack.people.com/2007/07/05/the-scoop-on-kanye-wests-funky-sunglasses/ The Scoop on Kanye West's Sunglasses] . people.com. Retrieved on October 10, 2007.] The sunglasses have since become a signature of West, who often dons them during performances. The video was nominated two 2007 MTV Video Music Awards for Video of the Year and Best Editing in a Video.

Track listing

CD single (UK)

# "Stronger" (Album Version - Explicit)
# "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (Album Version - Explicit)

CD single (international)

# "Stronger" (album version)
# "Stronger" (instrumental)
# "Can't Tell Me Nothing"
# "Stronger" (video)

12" picture disc (UK)

# "Stronger" (radio edit)
# "Stronger" (LP dirty)
# "Stronger" (instrumental)
# "Stronger" (LP clean)

iTunes Remixes single

# "Stronger (A-Trak Remix)"
# "Stronger (Andrew Dawson Remix)"

Chart positions

"Stronger" entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart on the charting week of August 11, 2007 at number 47, the highest debut single on the chart that week. The song steadily climbed the chart, reaching the number one position on the charting week of September 29, 2007, pushing the previous week's chart topper, Soulja Boy's "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" into the number two position. However, the following week, "Crank That" replaced "Stronger" atop the charts, making the West's single reach its peak for only one week.

"Stronger" has seen widespread success internationally, reaching number one in Canada, Turkey, New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States, and on the composite United World Chart. The song ended 2007 as the years 19th biggest-selling single in the UK. [BBC Music. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chart/singles2007.shtml "Top 40 Singles of the Year 2007 "] . Retrieved 2007-12-30]

###@@@KEY@@@###
-s-ttl| title = Billboard Pop 100 number-one single| years = September 29, 2007
-succession box
before = "With Every Heartbeat" by Robyn with Kleerup
title = UK Singles Chart number-one single
years = August 19, 2007 – September 1, 2007
after = "Beautiful Girls" by Sean Kingston succession box
before = "Beautiful Girls" by Sean Kingston
title = RIANZ New Zealand number one single
years = September 10, 2007 – September 17, 2007
after = "Ayo Technology" by 50 Cent featuring Justin Timberlake and Timbaland succession box
before = "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" by Soulja Boy
title = "Billboard" Hot 100 number-one single
years = September 29, 2007
after = "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" by Soulja Boysuccession box
before = "Big Girls Don't Cry" by Fergie
title = United World Chart number one single
years = September 29, 2007 - October 13, 2007
after = "1973" by James Blunt

References

External links

* [http://www.kanyewest.com/videos/index.php?em2766=408_-1__0_~0_-1_9_2007_0_0 "Stronger" music video]