I Wonder (Kanye West song)
"I Wonder" is a song by American hip-hop recording artist and record producer Kanye West. It was released as the fourth song on his third studio album Graduation (2007). The track was produced by West and retains influences from stadium rock, alternative music, and a variety of electronic-music subgenres. It contains a sample from "My Song" by British singer-songwriter, musician, and poet Labi Siffre. A major development in the song's creation was West touring the world the year prior with Irish rock band U2 on their Vertigo Tour. Afterwards, he sought out to compose a hip hop-oriented variation of "City of Blinding Lights," the band's 2005 single. The layered arrangement contains experimental orchestrations, with a distorted electronic synthesizer that acts as the lead instrument. The maximalist synths are further supplemented with a sweeping string section as well as winding keyboards. Its experimental musical composition is also notable for West's rapping technique. His lyrical delivery features a fragmented, forceful flow where he raps minimalist verses in an intense staccato vocal style. Lyrically, "I Wonder" is an introspective number, containing a blend of melancholic lines that discuss finding one's dreams.
"I Wonder"
August 28, 2007
March 2007
- Sony Music (New York)
- Record Plant (Hollywood)
- Henson Recording (Hollywood)
4:03
- Kanye West
- Labi Siffre
The song received widespread acclaim from contemporary music critics, who hailed it as an album highlight. Even though it did not enter charts, the album track has become a cult classic amongst fans and listeners. West himself actually cited "I Wonder" as one of his top three favorite songs from Graduation. At one point, he even contemplated releasing "I Wonder" as the albums' fourth single, but subsequently chose "Flashing Lights" in its place. Nevertheless, "I Wonder" has since been certified triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Although an accompanying music video was never produced for "I Wonder," a special video clip was made for the track. The video clip premiered during an album listening session West held for Graduation at the New World Stages in New York City. It was one of seven clips that were designed by West and edited by film editor Derrick Lee exclusively for the event. The video clip for "I Wonder" features a montage of scenes from the 1982 science fiction film Tron. West performed the song on the set-list on his worldwide Glow in the Dark Tour (2008).
Composition[edit]
"I Wonder" is a mid-tempo hip hop song that lasts for a duration of four minutes and three seconds (4:03).[1] The song incorporates elements similar to that of traditional R&B and classic soul music in addition to influences from stadium rock and subgenres of electronic-music including electro, house, and rave music.[8][19][22][45] Its downbeat instrumentation consists of an immense orchestra which sees a combining of West's trademark strings, piano, and samples along with abrasive synths and a distorted drumbeat.[16][20][34][46] An experimental track, "I Wonder" features a stop-and-start arrangement with gradual, melodic cadence and a stuttering rhythm.[5][7] West's simplistic yet forceful rapping makes extensive use of rests as the song builds into a bombastic crescendo.[7][11] Over the course of his three verses, West showcases an untraditional approach to cadence for his leaner rhyme schemes.[47][48][49] With a halting delivery, West manipulates his vocal articulation in order to match the melodies of the musical composition.[50][51] He initially delivers his lyrics in terse phrases at loud volume and high velocity with an intense staccato style in between a vocal sample from "My Song" by British singer and poet Labi Siffre.[1][50] He enunciates and stresses each syllable in every word within the first minimalist staccato verse, then transitions to a faster, more fluid flow for the more intricate second and third verses.[52] West routinely stops his full-throated rapping and allows the sample, strings and pianos to wander indistinctly for measures at a time.[53]
Its musical composition begins at a medium tempo with a graceful, intricate introduction.[36][54] The track's intro is steeped in lilting melody, consisting of twinkling piano keys and a soft vocal sample from "My Song" by Labi Siffre.[28][36][50] Suddenly, the off-kilter, dreamlike composition erupts, abruptly unleashing an overdriven electronic synthesizer.[19][55] "I Wonder" opens with West proclaiming, "I've been waiting for this moment my whole life," accompanied by a sinuous synth-lead over crunchy drumbeats.[19][56] Its distorted snare drum strokes, crashing rimshots, and a bottom-heavy kick drum combine to form the track's breakbeats.[20][28][57] The discordant synthesizer gives off roaring feed-back and intertwines with the melody of the sample, which evolves over the duration of the song to transform into an anthemic, piano-driven refrain.[15] A torrent of dissonant synths undulate as they are ornamented with ethereal keyboard lines and throbbing bass.[19] Following the second verse, the synths retract as the song adopts a heavy string section.[6] The operatic strings mimics the melodies of the synthesizer and the vocal sample.[58] At the start of the third verse, the strident synth-lead and later on the piercing drum strokes and rumbling kick drums make their return.[27] Towards its end, the musical composition enters an energetic breakdown.[59] During this period, its snares, kick drums, and keyboards are brought to the forefront before the lush orchestration finish off with a sweeping string arrangement.[19][27][60]
The lyrical content of "I Wonder" contains introspection regarding dream chasers, being melancholic in tone.[33][58] The song features a chorus that pertains to discovering one's elusive dreams. During the verses, West depicts the struggle others experience to figure out their lives.[33] The dark, intimate track is where West finds himself alternating from anguished soul-searching to swaggering bravado over the lush orchestration.[60][61] West varies his highly emotive style of rapping in order to convey the struggle a person goes through in the pursuit to determine the meaning behind their life.[33] During the song's first two verses, when West is in difficult relationship, his rapping unnatural and staggering. But for the third and final verse, when the relationship has been seemingly severed, West returns to his confident demeanor and usual cadence.[62] His lyrics throughout the track engage in a poignant discussion that talks about the burden of expectations as well as struggle in a relationship from an honest perspective.[59][63] All of which West acknowledges that he once went through before he figured out his own life and found his own dreams.[33] He also takes the time to address the negative criticism that was directed towards him along the way.[15] West ponders on the prospect of achieving success by staying true to one's own unique disposition, while utilising the sample as a hook to ask the existential question, "And I wonder if you know what it means to find your dreams?"[12]
Some music journalists noted a sense of melancholia in the track's lyrical content and delivery that were at odds with its aspirational themes. To Hillary Crosley from Billboard, West's primary goal was to place lyrical focus on individual inspiration: "I've been waiting on this my whole life/You can still be what you wish you is, that's what intuition is."[4] However, Greg Kot of Chicago Tribune detected that at the heart of the song lies a crept-in hint of self-doubt: "And I wonder if you know what it all means?"[22] Todd Williams from The Boombox remarked that West sounds as if he's in mired in disbelief regarding his accomplishments in his career and life.[54] Jesal Padania for RapReviews.com concludes that the song's ambivalent lyricism serves to loosely document the miscommunication between West and everyone else around him, while its multiple buzz-lines and his liberal use of Shakespearian open text function to hook the listener in: "Do you even remember what the issue is?"[9] 411Mania reviewer Sean Comer commented on the storytelling abilities that West exhibited. He states, "Kanye always delivers his stories in compelling fashion – it's just that he's writing what he knows: his life, triumphs, travails and all. In reality, this was assessment on the state of his fame. Sometimes, it's from a place of bemusement and others, a contemplative resting place."[64]
Commercial performance[edit]
On June 15, 2018, "I Wonder" was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of half a million paid digital downloads.[72] At the time, it stood as the only track on the entire studio album that managed to be certified without debuting on record charts in the absence of an official single release (since then, "Champion" and "Everything I Am" have been certified platinum and gold on September 23, 2020, respectively).[73]
Music video[edit]
Even though "I Wonder" doesn't have an accompanying music video, a special video clip was created for the track prior to the release of Graduation.[39] It was displayed for the very first time when Kanye West hosted a late-night album listening session for Graduation in New York City on August 28, 2007, at the New World Stages.[6] The video clip for "I Wonder" was one of seven that were designed by Kanye West and Derrick Lee exclusively for the event.[74] Derrick Lee was the editor of the music video for "Flashing Lights" and was able to edit all seven video clips in the span of three days.[75] West presented the gapless playback session inside an auditorium with an evocative light-show across a stage that featured theatrical smoke machines, laser beams, stage spotlights and other special effects.[6][39][74] The elaborate spectacle was all set in almost perfect time with the music.[39] While the music played, a large screen positioned in the middle of the stage flashed a sequence of images edited to sync up with "I Wonder."[27][39] They are taken from scenes of the 1982 science fiction film Tron.[6] Kanye West later made the video clip available for viewing on his official blog on March 24, 2008. In the blog entry, Kanye stated that the video clip for "I Wonder" may be his most favorite out of all the other video clips that were made for some of the songs from Graduation and displayed the night of the album listening session.[76]
Kanye West performed "I Wonder" for the very first time before an audience of over five hundred fans and invited guests during an intimate secret show with Barbadian singer Rihanna.[42] The show was held at Methodist Central Hall, just opposite of the Houses of Parliament, on August 20, 2007, in London, England.[41] For the concert, West wore a black jacket, grey tracksuit bottoms, sunglasses and white tennis shoes.[43] After a false start, West leapt onto the stage and began the secret show with a live performance of "I Wonder."[43] He was accompanied by a twenty-one piece all-female string orchestra, background vocalists, a keyboardist and his tour DJ A-Trak.[42] The twenty-one women were all draped in plastic dresses while their faces were colored in with fluorescent cosmetic face paint.[43] At the end of the concert, a shower of silver confetti and ticker tape reading Touch the Sky fell from the ceiling onto the audience as "Touch the Sky," the fourth single from West's previous studio album Late Registration, was played on the speakers.[43]
While instrumentally backed by a sixteen-piece band, West performed "I Wonder" for a benefit concert promoting and raising funds for higher education.[77] The concert was sponsored by West's charity foundation and was held on August 24, 2007, at Chicago's House of Blues.[77] One of the initiatives funded by the concert is the Loops Dreams Teacher Training Institute, which encourages the incorporation of hip-hop into Chicago Public Schools curriculum.[78] Wearing an untucked white shirt, a purple cardigan, jeans and a pair of sunglasses, West performed "I Wonder" as the opener of his ninety-minute set.[77] After about a minute, West abruptly paused the track and walked off-stage. He returned three minutes later to perform a string of hit singles from his first two studio albums, starting with "Diamonds from Sierra Leone," the lead single of his sophomore album Late Registration. West restarted "I Wonder" later on and at one point even played a few chords on an upright piano.[77] During a soundcheck prior to start of the charity concert, West met with well over 200 of the local students.[78] West also gave the audience members a sneak peek of the early production stages of his forthcoming Glow in the Dark Tour.[78] In a review of the concert, Chicago Tribune music critic Greg Kot wrote that he was taken aback by the sudden halt of "I Wonder." He also thought West's piano playing was under-rehearsed and felt the arrangement was not as fully realized as the song's recorded version. However, Kot still praised the live rendition of "I Wonder" and remarked that West's performance "aspired to stadium-rap heights".[77]
The track was included as the second live performance within the set list of Kanye West's Glow in the Dark Tour, which began on April 16, 2008, at the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington.[79] The composition is but one of the many, various songs taken from West's first three studio albums that West uses for his conceptual concert. They serve to form a space opera storyline that details the story (tale?) of how a stranded space traveler struggles for over a year making attempts to escape from a distant planet while on a mission to bring creative back to Earth.[79] In the narrative, West plays an astronaut who performs the song after talking with his robotic on-board computer Jane once his spacecraft crashes onto an unknown planet.[80][81]
"I Wonder" was among a list of songs that West performed during a 90-minute set when he headlined the annual dance music festival Global Gathering on July 25, 2008, becoming the very first hip-hop artist to do so.
Controversies:
Information taken from Graduation liner notes.[1]