Kanye West

=== 1996–2002: Early work and Roc-A-Fella  ===
West began his early production career in the mid-1990s, creating beats primarily for burgeoning local artists in the Chicago area. He received his first official production credits at age nineteen, when he produced eight tracks on ''Down to Earth'', the 1996 debut album of Chicago-based [[underground hip hop|underground]] rapper Grav.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Photos: Kanye West's Career Highs—and Lows 1 of 24|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/photos-kanye-wests-career-highs-and-lows-20101210|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=December 10, 2010|access-date=March 4, 2013|archive-date=February 16, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130216104340/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/photos-kanye-wests-career-highs-and-lows-20101210|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 1998, West was the first producer signed to the management-production company [[Hip Hop Since 1978]], founded by Gee Roberson and Kyambo "Hip-Hop" Joshua.<ref>{{cite web |title=Gee Starts Own Label |url=https://hitsdailydouble.com/news&id=287384&title+Gee-Starts-Own-Label |website=Hits Daily Double |access-date=February 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200203080324/https://hitsdailydouble.com/news%26id%3D308429 |archive-date=February 3, 2020 |date=December 21, 2012 |url-status=live }}<br />{{cite web |title=Gee, Is He Making Moves? |url=https://hitsdailydouble.com/news&id=308429 |website=HitsDailyDouble |access-date=February 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200203080324/https://hitsdailydouble.com/news%26id%3D308429 |archive-date=February 3, 2020 |date=September 20, 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> For a time, West acted as a ghost producer for [[D-Dot|Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie]]. Due to his association with Angelettie, West was not able to release a solo album, so he formed the Go-Getters, a hip hop group composed of him and fellow Chicago natives [[GLC (rapper)|GLC]], Timmy G, [[Really Doe (rapper)|Really Doe]], and Arrowstar.<ref name=Barber>{{cite web|author=Barber, Andrew|title=93. Go-Getters "Let Em In" (2000)|url=http://www.complex.com/music/2012/07/the-100-best-kanye-west-songs/let-em-in|work=[[Complex (magazine)|Complex]]|date=July 23, 2012|access-date=August 7, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120727014600/http://www.complex.com/music/2012/07/the-100-best-kanye-west-songs/let-em-in|archive-date=July 27, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Reid, Shaheem|title=Music Geek Kanye's Kast of Thousands|url=http://www.mtv.com/bands/m/music_geek/kanyewest_100305/|publisher=MTV|date=September 30, 2005|access-date=April 23, 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060415173601/http://www.mtv.com/bands/m/music_geek/kanyewest_100305/|archive-date=April 15, 2006}}</ref> The Go-Getters independently released their first and only studio album, ''World Record Holders'' in 1999 through West's company, [[GOOD Music|Konman Productions]].<ref name=Barber /> West spent much of the late 1990s further producing for several musical acts.<ref name="Saddleback">{{cite book |title=Kanye West: Hip-Hop Biographies |year=2013 |publisher=Saddleback Education Publishing |isbn=978-1-62250-016-1 |page=18}}</ref> He produced the third track on [[Foxy Brown (rapper)|Foxy Brown]]'s second studio album ''[[Chyna Doll (album)|Chyna Doll]]'' (1999), which became the second hip-hop album by a female rapper to peak atop the US [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] chart.<ref name="Saddleback" />

[[File:Jay-Z Kanye Watch the Throne Staples Center 9 (cropped).jpg|thumb|West received early acclaim for his production work on [[Jay-Z]]'s ''[[The Blueprint]]''. The two are pictured here in 2011.]]
In 2000, West began producing for artists on [[Roc-A-Fella Records]] as an in-house producer. West is often credited with revitalizing Jay-Z's career with extensive contributions to his 2001 album ''[[The Blueprint]]'',<ref name="Mitchum" /> which ''Rolling Stone'' ranked among their list of greatest hip-hop albums.<ref name="RS500">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-20120531/jay-z-the-blueprint-20120524|title=500 Greatest Albums of All Time: #464 (The Blueprint)|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=November 18, 2003|access-date=December 11, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160715175432/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-20120531/jay-z-the-blueprint-20120524|archive-date=July 15, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> West produced songs for label cohorts such as [[Beanie Sigel]] and [[Freeway (rapper)|Freeway]], but also produced beats which were used by artists on other labels including [[Ludacris]], [[Alicia Keys]], and [[Janet Jackson]].<ref name="Mitchum">Mitchum, Rob. [https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8767-the-college-dropout/ Review: ''The College Dropout''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090731093001/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8767-the-college-dropout/ |date=July 31, 2009 }}. [[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]. Retrieved July 23, 2009.</ref><ref name=auto>Serpick, Evan. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110930054329/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/kanye-west/biography Kanye West]. ''Rolling Stone'' Jann Wenner. Retrieved December 26, 2009.</ref> Meanwhile, West struggled to attain a record deal as a rapper.<ref name="Road">{{Cite news|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1496766/road-grammys-kanye-west.jhtml|title=Road to the Grammys: The Making Of Kanye West's College Dropout|last=Reid|first=Shaheem|date=February 9, 2005|access-date=January 4, 2009|publisher=MTV|archive-date=July 18, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718104107/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1496766/road-grammys-kanye-west.jhtml|url-status=live}}</ref> Multiple record companies, including [[Capitol Records]],<ref name=KanplicatedPg2 /> denied or ignored him because he did not portray the [[gangsta rap|gangsta]] image prominent in mainstream hip hop at the time.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|556}} Desperate to keep West from defecting to another label, then-label head [[Damon Dash]] reluctantly signed West to Roc-A-Fella as a recording artist.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|556}}<ref>{{cite web|author=Williams, Jean A|access-date=April 27, 2008|url=http://www.blackcollegian.com/kanye-west-the-man-the-music-and-the-message/|title=Kanye West: The Man, the Music, and the Message. (Biography)|publisher=The Black Collegian|date=October 1, 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150125003250/http://www.blackcollegian.com/kanye-west-the-man-the-music-and-the-message/|archive-date=January 25, 2015}}</ref>

A 2002 car accident, which shattered his jaw,<ref name=wsws /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/kanye-west-apos-2002-car-211020679.html|title=How Kanye West's 2002 Car Crash Shaped His Entire Career|publisher=Yahoo-Finance|access-date=June 6, 2018|archive-date=April 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220415153441/https://finance.yahoo.com/news/kanye-west-apos-2002-car-211020679.html|url-status=live}}</ref> inspired West; two weeks after being admitted to the hospital, he recorded "[[Through the Wire]]" at the [[Record Plant Studios]] with his jaw still wired shut.<ref name=wsws>Kearney, Kevin (September 30, 2005). [http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2005/09/kany-s30.html Rapper Kanye West on the cover of Time: Will rap music shed its "gangster" disguise?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160401225638/http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2005/09/kany-s30.html |date=April 1, 2016 }}. World Socialist Web Site. Retrieved September 23, 2007.</ref> The song was first included on West's debut [[mixtape]] ''Get Well Soon...'', which was released in December 2002.<ref>{{cite web|author=Kamer, Foster|access-date=June 6, 2018|url=https://www.complex.com/music/the-50-best-rapper-mixtapes/kanye-west-get-well-soon|title=9. Kanye West, Get Well Soon ... (2003)—The 50 Best Rapper Mixtapes|work=[[Complex (magazine)|Complex]]|date=March 11, 2013|archive-date=March 13, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313223732/http://www.complex.com/music/2013/03/the-50-best-rapper-mixtapes/kanye-west-get-well-soon|url-status=live}}</ref> At the same time, West announced that he was working on an album titled ''The College Dropout'', whose overall theme was to "make your own decisions. Don't let society tell you, 'This is what you have to do.'"<ref>Reid, Shaheem (December 10, 2002). "[http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1459071/kanye-west-raps-through-broken-jaw.jhtml Kanye West Raps Through His Broken Jaw, Lays Beats For Scarface, Ludacris] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131228152622/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1459071/kanye-west-raps-through-broken-jaw.jhtml |date=December 28, 2013 }}". MTV. Retrieved October 23, 2007.</ref>