Released: April 24, 2006

Songwriter: David Foster Kanye West Cynthia Weil Tom Keane

Producer: Kanye West

[Intro (Over Chorus): Kanye West & Audience]
Now if the Roc is in the buildin', say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Throw your diamonds in the air
If the Roc is in the buildin', say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Throw your diamonds in the air
If the Roc is in the buildin', say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Throw your diamonds in the air
If the Roc is in the buildin', say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Throw your diamonds in the air, keep your diamonds in the air
Your diamonds in the air, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah

[Chorus: Chaka Khan]
Through the fire, to the limit, to the wall
For a chance to be with you, I'd gladly risk–
Through the fire, through whatever, come what–
For a chance at loving you, I'd take it all–
Right down to the wire, even through the fire

[Verse 1: Kanye West]
I drink a Boost for breakfast, an Ensure for dessert
Somebody ordered pancakes, I just sip the sizzurp
That right there could drive a sane man berserk
Not to worry, Mr. H-to-the-Izzo's back to wizz-ork
How do you console my mom or give her light support
Tellin' her her son's on life support?
And just imagine how my girl feel
On the plane scared as hell that her guy look like Emmett Till
She was with me before the deal, she tryna be mine
She a Delta, so she'd been throwin' that Dynasty sign
No use in me tryna be lyin', I been tryna be signed
Tryin' to be a millionaire, how I used two lifelines
In the same hospital where Biggie Smalls died
The doctor said I had blood clots, but I ain't Jamaican, man
Story on MTV and I ain't tryna make a band
I swear, this right here, history in the makin', man

[Chorus: Chaka Khan]
Through the fire, to the limit, to the wall
For a chance to be with you, I'd gladly risk it all
Through the fire, through whatever, come what may
For a chance at loving you, I'd take it all the way
Right down to the wire, even through the fire

[Interlude (Over Chorus): Kanye West]
Yeah, through the limits, to the wall
If y'all know this, sing along with it
What? I hear you, I hear you, I hear you
Through the– uh, through whatever, come
I can't hit that note either, fam
Yeah
Uh, uh, question

[Verse 2: Kanye West]
What if somebody from the Chi' that was ill got a deal
On the hottest rap label around?
But he wasn't talkin' 'bout coke and birds
It's more like spoken word, 'cept he's really puttin' it down?
And he explained the story 'bout how Blacks came from glory
And what we need to do in the game
Good dude, bad night, right place, wrong time
In the blink of a eye, his whole life changed
If y'all could feel how my face felt
You would know how Mase felt
Thank God I ain't too cool for the safe belt
I swear to God, driver two wanna sue
There's a lawyer for the case to keep what's in my safe safe
My dawgs couldn't tell if I…
I looked like Tom Cruise on Vanilla Sky, it was televised
It's been an accident like GEICO
Y'all thought I was burnt up like Pepsi did Michael
I must got a angel, ‘cause look how death missed his ass
Unbreakable, what, you thought they'd call me Mr. Glass?
I look back on my life like the Ghost of Christmas Past
Toys "R" Us where I used to spend that Christmas cash
And I still won't grow up, I'm a grown-ass kid
Swear I should be locked up for stupid shit that I did
But I'm a champion, so we turned tragedy to triumph
Make music that's fire, spit my soul through the wire

[Chorus: Chaka Khan]
Through the fire, to the limit, to the–
For a chance to be with you, I'd gladly risk it–
Through the fire, through whatever, come what–
For a chance at loving you, I'd take it all the way
Right down to the wire, even through the fire

[Outro (Over Chorus): Kanye West & Audience]
Yeah, say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Now throw your diamonds in the air
If the Roc is in the buildin', say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Keep your diamonds in the air
If the Roc is in the buildin', say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Now keep your diamonds in the air
If the Roc is in the buildin', say, "Hell yeah" (Hell yeah)
Keep your diamonds in the air, keep your diamonds in the air
Your diamonds in the air, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah, yeah-yeah

Kanye West

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.