Kanye West

Released: April 24, 2006

Songwriter: Kanye West Rhymefest

Producer: Kanye West

[Intro: Kanye West]
We at war
We at war with terrorism, racism
But most of all, we at war with ourselves
Now let me hear you say

[Chorus: Kanye West & The Arc Choir]
(Jesus walk)
God show me the way
Because the Devil's tryna break me down
(Jesus walk with me)

[Verse 1: Kanye West]
You know what the Midwest is? Young and restless
Where restless (Niggas) might snatch your necklace
And next these (Niggas) might jack your Lexus
Somebody tell these (Niggas) who Kanye West is
I walk through the valley of the Chi where death is
Top floor, the view alone will leave you breathless *gasps*
Try to catch it, *gasps* it's kinda hard
Getting choked by detectives, yeah, now check the method
They askin' us questions, harass and arrest us
Sayin', "We eat pieces of shit like you for breakfast"
Huh? Y'all eat pieces of shit? What's the basis?
We ain't going nowhere but got suits and cases
A trunk full of coke, rental car from Avis
My mama used to say, "Only Jesus can save us"
Well, mama, I know I act a fool
But I'll be gone 'til November, I got packs to move, I hope

[Chorus: Kanye West & The Arc Choir]
(Jesus walk)
God show me the way
Because the Devil's tryna break me down
(Jesus walk with me)
Pray is that my feet don't fail me now
(Jesus walk)
And I don't think there's nothin' I could do now
To right my wrongs
(Jesus walk with me)
I wanna talk to God
But I'm afraid 'cause we ain't spoke in so long
(Jesus walk)
God show me the way
The Devil's tryna break me down
(Jesus walk with me)
The only thing that I pray
Is that my feet don't fail me now
(Break me down, break me down
Break me down, break me down
Break me down, break me down)

[Verse 2: Kanye West]
To the hustlers, killers
Murderers, drug dealers, even the strippers
(Jesus walks for them)
To the victims of welfare, feel we livin' in Hell here, hell yeah
(Jesus walks for them)
Now, hear he, hear he, want to see Thee more clearly
I know He hear me when my feet get weary
We're the almost nearly extinct
We rappers is role models: we rap, we don't think
I ain't here to argue about His facial features
Or here to convert atheists into believers
I'm just tryna say the way school need teachers
Kathie Lee needed Regis, that's how I need Jesus
So here go my single, dawg, radio needs this
They said you could rap about anything except for Jesus
That means guns, sex, lies, videotape
But if I talk about God my record won't get played?
Well, if this take away from my spins
Which'll probably take away from my ends
I hope it take away from my sins
Bring the day that I dream about
Next time I'm in the club, everybody screamin' out

[Chorus: Kanye West & The Arc Choir]
(Jesus walk)
God show me the way
The Devil's tryna break me down
(Jesus walk with me)
The only thing that I pray
Is that my feet don't fail me now

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.

more tracks from the album

Late Orchestration

From the album

Late Orchestration (2006)

Kanye West popular songs

Jesus Walks (Live at Abbey Road Studios)Kanye West

Kanye West

Late Orchestration