Kanye West

Released: April 24, 2006

Songwriter: Kanye West The Game Willard Meeks

Producer: Jon Brion Kanye West

[Intro: Kanye West & Choir]
La la la la la la lah, la la la la la lah
That's that crack music, crack music
That real black music
La la la la la la la lah, la la la la la lah
Uh, yeah

[Verse 1: Kanye West]
How we stop the Black Panthers?
Ronald Reagan cooked up an answer
You hear that? What Gil Scott was hearin'
When our heroes or heroines got hooked on heroin
Crack raised the murder rate in D.C. and Maryland
We invested in that, it's like we got Merrill lynched
And we been hangin' from the same tree ever since
Sometimes I feel the music is the only medicine
So we cook it, cut it, measure it, bag it
Sell it, the fiends cop it, nowadays they can't tell if
That's that good shit, we ain't sure, man
Put the CD on your tongue, yeah, that's pure, man

[Chorus: Kanye West & Choir]
Uh, that's that crack music, crack music
Yeah, that real black music
La la la la la la la lah, la la la la la lah
Yeah, uh, yeah, that's that crack music, crack music
Yeah, that real black music, black music
La la la la la la la lah, la la la la la lah
Yeah, yeah, uh, uh

[Verse 2: Kanye West]
From the place where the father's gone
The mothers is hardly home
And the Madigan's lock us up in the Audy Home
How the Mexicans say, we just tryin' to party holmes
They wanna pack us all in a box like styrofoam
Who gave Saddam anthrax?
George Bush got the answers
Back in the hood it's a different type of chemical
Arm & Hammer baking soda raised they whole quota
Right when our soldiers, ran for the stove 'cause
'Cause, dreams of being Hova
Went from bein' a broke man to bein' a dopeman
To bein' a President, look there's hope, man
This that inspiration for the Moes and the Folks, man
Shorty come and see his momma straight overdosin'
Yeah, and this is the soundtrack
This the type of music that you make when you 'round that

[Chorus: Kanye West & Choir]
Uh, crack music, crack music
Yeah, that real black music, black music
La la la la la la la lah, la la la la la lah
Yeah, uh, uh, listen, that's that crack music, crack music
Yeah, that real black music
La la la la la la la lah, la la la la la lah

[Post-Chorus: Kanye West]
You know, man, how good it feels to have strings for that chorus?

[Outro: Kanye West]
How could you let this happen?
Happen? Happen? Happen? Happen?

The ubiquitous Kanye West—from his famous quip, “George Bush doesn’t care about black people,” to “I'ma let you finish,” to marrying Kim Kardashian, to announcing that he’s running for President, and admitting his love for President Trump—you can see that he’s a staple of the tabloids and the entertainment world, industry-wide.

That certainly doesn’t take anything away from his music; as a matter of fact, it only seems to add to his fortuitous career. For instance, his 2010 album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, was universally praised by fans and critics alike; it was recorded during the backlash he received from the Swift interruption and during his break-up with then-girlfriend Amber Rose.

He has scored other well-known hits, as well, from each of his previous studio albums—such as “Stronger,” “Heartless,” and “Gold Digger.” Each of his albums has been massive critical and commercial successes, including his collaboration album with JAY-Z, Watch the Throne. As of 2020, West has won an astounding 21 Grammys, tied with JAY-Z as the most decorated hip-hop artist in Grammy history.

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