Homecoming (Kanye West song)
"Homecoming" is a song by the American rapper Kanye West from his third studio album, Graduation (2007). The song features a guest appearance from Chris Martin and he co-wrote it with West and Warryn Campbell, who served as the producers. West and the singer worked on the song when they met at Abbey Road Studios in February 2006, engaging in a jam session where Martin came up with the concept. It was a re-working of West's 2001 recording "Home (Windy)", which featured John Legend and a different beat. The recording was inspired by Common's "I Used to Love H.E.R." and themed around West's hometown of Chicago, maintained for the new version.
"Homecoming"
"Good Night"
February 2, 2008
2006
- Fever Recording (North Hollywood)
- Abbey Road (London)
- Sony Music (NYC)
- Record Plant
- Ocean Way Recording (Hollywood)
3:23
- Kanye West
- Chris Martin
- Warryn Campbell
- Kanye West
- Warryn Campbell
On February 2, 2008, "Homecoming" was released in the United Kingdom as the album's fifth and final single by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. It is a hip hop song with elements of gospel and pub rock, accompanied by Martin's arena rock piano. The singer also performs the chorus, questioning returning home and adding a hint of reggae. In the lyrics of the song, West delivers an ode to Chicago and narrates his relationship with the city. He personifies Chicago as a childhood sweetheart named Wendy, expressing his guilt and rejection from her after leaving for fame.
"Homecoming" received mixed reviews from music critics, who were mostly divided in their responses to Martin's feature. Some praised West's lyricism and emotional impact, while a few critics identified the song as a highlight of Graduation. It was later ranked as among West's best songs by numerous publications, including The Jamaica Observer and CraveOnline. The song charted at number 69 on the US Billboard Hot 100, while reaching number 15 on the Hot Rap Songs chart. It was more successful in Europe, peaking at number five in Ireland and number nine in the United Kingdom, becoming West's eighth top-10 single in the latter territory. The song attained top 40 positions in 11 other countries, including Norway and Denmark. In the United States, the song was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It has been certified platinum in both Denmark and the UK by IFPI Danmark and the British Phonographic Industry, respectively.
An accompanying black-and-white music video was filmed in Chicago during November 2007, later released in April 2008. The video features a montage of West traversing the streets of the city and showcases its landmarks, alongside cameos from his friends and rap acts there. It was nominated for Best Hip Hop Video at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards. West delivered a live performance of "Homecoming" with Legend at The Box nightclub in August 2010, with the singer appearing at the grand piano. The rapper performed the song at the Global Gathering and Coachella festivals in 2008 and 2011, respectively. It was played live on piano by Dave in April 2022.
Writing and development[edit]
A new beat was entirely made for "Homecoming" despite using verses from "Home", while Legend's hook was replaced by a chorus from Martin that maintained the Chicago theme and the song served as a loving, emotional ode to the city.[20][21][22][23] The lyrical content expounds upon West's relationship with Chicago, expressing a metaphoric narrative with a feminized personification of his hometown as a childhood sweetheart,[6][10][24] regretting leaving for fame as he cannot abandon it.[17][25] West kept most of his lyrics from the original, which were inspired by his labelmate and fellow Chicago rapper Common's "I Used to Love H.E.R." (1994) and he changed certain ones as Martin requested him to.[20][25][26] He led Martin to forgo his typical midtempo balladry for the song, favoring flashier, inspirational piano work.[11][27] Martin's pounding piano was looped to begin off-beat for a rawer hip-hop sound and displays a gospel influence recurrent in West's productions, while he contributes reggae to the chorus.[28][29][30][31]
The song was described as "very emotional" by West during an interview with Concrete Loop on October 5, 2007.[32] Inspired by his worldwide stadium tour with Irish rock band U2 from 2005 to 2006, he redesigned the song for it to be chanted.[2][33] Accordingly, the new composition features sharp piano flourishes placed over booming, stadium music to accompany a sing-along pop chorus.[11][31][34] Meanwhile, the piano accompaniment is laden with energetic minor chords and results in arena rock.[35][36] Compared to Legend's singing on the original, Martin delivers a smooth, elastic chorus on "Homecoming".[6][37]
Promotion and release[edit]
In January 2007, West told Billboard that he was considering releasing the song as the lead single for Graduation.[55] "Homecoming" was first previewed when the digital radio station BBC Radio 1Xtra hosted an "Audience With Kanye West" event at the BBC Radio Music Theatre in London on August 13.[56] West guided a specially selected audience through Graduation, playing the album on his MacBook Air laptop via a speaker system.[56] "Homecoming" was one of the tracks that West played during a listening session for Graduation at the New World Stages in Manhattan, NY on August 28, 2007. Inside an auditorium, West revealed his influences and aspirations. West played the songs from start-to-finish uninterrupted, with special programs of the lyrics handed out.[57][58][59] When an audience member asked West why "Home" became "Homecoming" with a new beat, he replied that he believed the original would not suit stadiums, although the lyrics were too good to not use.[60]
On September 11, 2007, West's third studio album Graduation was released, including "Homecoming" as the twelfth track.[61] West subsequently imparted that it was among his three favorite songs from the album.[32] On February 2, 2008, the song was released for digital download in the UK as the fifth and final single from the album by West's labels Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam.[6][62] The labels later issued it on a maxi-single in Germany on May 9, with "Good Night" serving as the B-side.[63] Four days later, the song was serviced to US rhythmic contemporary radio stations.[64] On July 1, 2008, the song was released on a CD single through Universal.[65]
Appearances in media[edit]
A remix of "Homecoming" by DiscoTech was included as the 17th track of Sky High on November 17, 2008, a mixtape consisting of remixes of various tracks that West originally produced and it was compiled by DJ Benzi with the rapper's associate Plain Pat. The project was commissioned by West and his team in the lead up to his fourth studio album 808s & Heartbreak, with each remix experiencing at least five reiterations before release and they mostly have a club-friendly dance theme.[144] Leo Flynn produced a Rockabye Baby! CD that consisted of instrumental lullaby renditions of West's tracks and was released on May 18, 2010, including "Homecoming" as the 12th and final track.[145][146] On June 7, 2012, producer Carlos Serrano shared his mashup of "Homecoming" and singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey's "Born to Die" (2011), layering West and Martin's vocals over the instrumentation of the latter song.[147] Production duo Urban Noize included a re-imagined version of the song on their remix EP Mr. West on July 20, which consisted of remixes of eight tracks across West's career chosen by the duo.[148][149][150]
On October 3, 2016, Jeff Kirshman published his ode to "Homecoming" in Brooklyn Magazine, writing that it reminds him of living in Wyoming due to invoking his memories of images and knowledge.[151][152] Kirshman particularly enjoyed the song when he listened to Graduation in high school and he first performed it at a dilapidated Hollywood-themed Karen & Jim's venue, with his view of his rap skills as basic being affirmed by the crowd's negative reactions. He was compelled to perform the song again and did this at a bar while drinking warm beer by a row of dim lights, onlooked by a mounted head of the Star Wars character Admiral Ackbar.[151] On April 29, 2022, British rapper Dave played a section of the song on piano for his We're All Alone in This Together tour's show at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago, serving as a tribute to West.[153]
Information taken from Graduation liner notes.[1]
Recording
Personnel