Stronger (Kanye West song)

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"Stronger"
"Stronger" artwork displaying Dropout Bear with West's glasses
Single by Kanye West
from the album Graduation
ReleasedJuly 31, 2007 (2007-07-31)
Recorded
  • 2006–07 (2006–07)
Studio
Genre
Length5:15 (album version)

4:08 (radio edit)

4:27 (video version)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Kanye West singles chronology
"Can't Tell Me Nothing"
(2007) 		"Stronger"
(2007) 		"Good Life"
(2007)
Music video
"Stronger" on YouTube

"Stronger" is a song by American rapper Kanye West, released as the second single from his third studio album, Graduation (2007). The production was handled by West, with an extended outro co-produced with Mike Dean. The composition is electronic in nature, employing drums and synthesizers as the most prominent instruments. For the track, West repeats a vocal sample of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by French house duo Daft Punk in the background while he delivers lyrics about the resolve that comes when one is faced with adversity, paraphrasing Friedrich Nietzsche's dictum "What does not kill me makes me stronger" for the song's refrain. West has described the song as an "emancipation" as it allowed him to vent his frustration over mistakes made in the year prior.

The song's production process was arduous, with West and his team reportedly mixing the track over 75 times, including after its release as a single. Although he worked with eight audio engineers and eleven mix engineers around the world for the track, West still felt dissatisfied with the results and decided to enlist the aid of record producer Timbaland in redoing the drum programming to "Stronger" prior to the release of Graduation. West felt the result he achieved paled in comparison to the sampled original track by Daft Punk, but they were delighted by the song, leading to future collaborations. The single's music video, directed by Hype Williams, features sci-fi imagery based on the 1988 anime film Akira, and was shot largely in Tokyo, Japan. Kanye West's look, wearing shutter shades in the music video, became a signature of his in the late 2000s.

Released as a single on July 31, 2007, "Stronger" would top the Billboard Hot 100 several weeks later, becoming West's third number-one single. It was a top ten single in ten countries, topping the charts in Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom and the United States. The song was praised by music critics. It was awarded a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 50th Grammy Awards, and was named as one of the best songs of the year by Rolling Stone and Spin. The song's popularity has been credited to not only encouraging other hip-hop artists to incorporate house and electronica elements into their music, but also for playing a part in the revival of disco and electro-infused music in the ensuing years. "Stronger" has since sold five million copies in the United States, and was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2021, making it one of the best-selling singles in the United States. In 2021, it was ranked number 500 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[2]

Background[edit]

Daft Punk performing at O2 Wireless Festival in 2007
The song is based on a vocal sample of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by Daft Punk, who approved the sample and were pleased with the final product.

Prior to release, West first shared a snippet of "Stronger" on his mixtape Can't Tell Me Nothing in May 2007. The song was playlisted by BBC Radio 1, appearing on Tim Westwood's "Top Five Heavy Hits" for July 31, 2007.[3][4] The song's cover art was released through West's website with a video teaser on June 29, 2007. It was designed by Japanese artist Takashi Murakami, who handled the artwork of singles and the creative direction for Graduation.[5][6] The cover artwork features a cartoon version of West's mascot "Dropout Bear", wearing the rapper's white sunglasses.[5][7]

"Stronger" musically derives from a vocal sample of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" (2001) by French house duo Daft Punk.[8] The sample was requested by West through Pedro Winter, Daft Punk's manager at the time. The duo, who enjoyed the track, granted approval and were open-minded towards producing for rappers after the sample increased their popularity in hip hop; they found the genre "exciting and interesting".[9] West later met the Daft Punk musicians, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, at Chicago music festival Lollapalooza in 2007.[9] West was convinced "Stronger" was inferior to "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" when he heard it after release, although Daft Punk disagreed and were delighted with how the song turned out. The two first heard it on Power 106 when awaiting a San Francisco flight; Homem-Christo recalled that the DJ transitioned from their original into the song and expressed how West's sound "was really fat".[3][10] He clarified that they may not have collaborated in the studio, but the original's vibe separately connected with West's work.[3][10] For a Spin story with West and Bangalter in January 2008, the rapper offered that he had accomplished a new level of musicality with how the song was crafted, particularly the end, and described his previous shortcomings at reaching this level as "still way better than everything else in hip-hop".[11] Bangalter was particularly interested in West making the sample suitable for his own personality, noticing how the rapper distorts its meaning like Daft Punk's musical attempts to express their ideas universally. He also said that the combination of genres for "Stronger" was done at a time of "open-mindedness on the part of both the musicians and the audiences", while West recalled receiving criticism from the electronic community for sampling a "holy grail" and the hip-hop community for venturing outside his genre.[11] West offered that hip-hop is about innovation and crafting previously unheard combinations, observing the bittersweetness of wanting to be both influential and original. Bangalter echoed West's views on influence; he explained that "what you want is the next generation to destroy what you've done" and start over again, emphasising the importance of taking risks when famous.[11] He also would not comment about a future collaboration with West, though Daft Punk later contributed production to his album Yeezus in 2013, notably working on its lead single "Black Skinhead".[11][12]

On annotations for Genius in 2015, Canadian DJ A-Trak detailed the origins of the sample. A-Trak and West heard a sample of Daft Punk's "Technologic" from Busta Rhymes' 2005 track "Touch It" on a tour bus in 2006; the rapper was a fan of the beat, but did not know who the duo were at the time.[13] The two went to a hotel and the DJ played "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" to West, who was insistent on sampling the track after taking a liking. A-Trak felt reluctant because of a 1990s "mentality in terms of sampling" for using unknown records, although retrospectively believed West's choice was correct and that culture had accelerated musically.[13] West sent him an early instrument of "Stronger" as they were on tour and A-Trak appreciated the sample, after which West made the beat and re-wrote his verse for months. The DJ ultimately contributed scratching to the song, decided by West since "it's only right".[13] A-Trak later spoke about the sample at the Meadows Music & Arts Festival 2017 in New York City (NYC), crediting West's "curiosity period" when genres were largely separated and focusing on his strength at "identifying these [great] things".[14] The DJ also recapped his initial reluctance as he offered that West may not have known of Daft Punk, but "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" remained "an international hit" and using it could come across as cheap.[14]

Writing and recording[edit]

"Stronger" paraphrases a dictum from German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, whose content is related by West to the more physical subject of a girl. West was particularly proud of his comparison between her and Apollonia Kotero, honoring how the reference stood out for its purity as opposed to rappers using "prefabricated metaphors and similes" about subjects from guns to sports.[3] The track utilizes a vocal sample of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by Daft Punk, the instrumental of which samples "Cola Bottle Baby" (1979), a song by the funk keyboardist Edwin Birdsong. Bangalter and Homem-Christo were credited as co-writers of "Stronger" because of the vocal sample, while Birdsong received a writing credit due to the master use of "Cola Bottle Baby".[8][15] West sought to give his sample a cinematic sound and he slowed it down, loosening the rhythm and overdubbing throbbing synths.[15][16] The rapper and record producer Mike Dean, who handled the outro, layered and re-arranged the sample to create their crescendos.[8][15] West accompanied it with his rapping and singing, which transformed "a robotic feel into something much more soulful".[16]

Entrance to Sony Music Studios
Sony Music Studios in New York, one of the locations for the song's recording sessions.

The song was recorded at Ape Sounds in Tokyo, Sony Music Studios in NYC, and the Record Plant in Hollywood, California.[8] Its recording sessions placed attention to detail and were a turning point in the production process for Graduation, following West having previously been "aimlessly making songs".[17][18] Video director Hype Williams inspired West to move towards a futuristic direction after he heard the song when it had no drums, which he did for the music video and the album: "It inspired a whole movement."[18] He returned to the studio to resume working on songs like "Stronger", finding creative inspiration from films such as Total Recall (1990). West explained he worked his recent mistakes into the songwriting for the song, having swam "in wack juice" that he needed to escape, such as blogs making fun of him.[18] He concluded that rather than an apology, he used the song as "an emancipation".[18] Inspired by his worldwide stadium tour with Irish rock band U2 from 2005 to 2006, West redesigned the song for it to be chanted.[19] He said that the song offered the "bigger sound" of stadium music, providing "a throw-your- hands-up-in-the-sky vibe".[20] West explained the song has a "heavy melody", although it features a digital hi-hat as opposed to a snare drum.[20] West worked on "Stronger" with 8 audio engineers and 11 mix engineers at Larrabee North Studios in Universal City, California and Battery Studios in NYC, recording over 50 versions of the track.[3][20][21]

The final version of the song was mixed by Manny Marroquin, who worked with West on several sessions.[8] Marroquin and West got past the challenge of mixing the song through strong communication, beginning with a 14-hour working day at Larrabee and then completing four three-hour sessions at Battery.[16] The producer contributed at Battery in his spare time from working with Alicia Keys; he adjusted the arrangements and the instrumentation with West, who frequently looked for new elements to incorporate. Marroquin worked using stereo submixes and stems on his laptop at the studios, printing mixes with the analogue effects and editing on software like Pro Tools.[16] Due to West's slowing of the song and chopping of the sample, it created glitches that were fixed by him adding volume drops for a few milliseconds each time. To avoid the song being too dominated by the sample that West's vocals could not be heard, Marroquin used a Doubler plug-in and equalization.[16]

West mixed "Stronger" 75 times, with over 100 elements including many layers and he was dedicated to working with Marroquin on the kick drum sounding precise, seeking out a sound for the clubs.[16][22] Marroquin broke the drum down into an 808, snare drum, and hi-hat, then working on the sample, keyboard, and vocals; West heard the final version from Larrabee and exclaimed "That's it!"[16] However, he still felt dissatisfied after hearing the song's drums back-to-back with record producer Timbaland's 2007 single "The Way I Are" at a nightclub, deciding to enlist the producer to assist him in redoing the song's drum programming.[3][15][23] Despite being perplexed that West was not already satisfied with the song, Timbaland still helped with the programming as they went through 12 iterations.[15][17] The completed version of "Stronger" contains a master use of Edwin Birdsong's "Cola Bottle Baby."[8][24]

Composition[edit]

The lyrics of the song's refrain paraphrase Friedrich Nietzsche's famous quote: "...what does not kill me makes me stronger."

"Stronger" is a hip-hop song that lasts for a duration of five minutes and eleven seconds (5:11).[8] The composition incorporates elements from a range of electronic music genres, including house, electro, techno and electronica.[25][26] According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Universal Music Publishing Group, "Stronger" is composed in the key of E-flat minor (E♭m) and set in the time signature of common time, with a moderate tempo of 104 beats per minute.[27] The song follows a basic sequence of E♭m–D♭–A♭m7–C♭–B♭ as its chord progression.[16][27] The stark musical composition is electronic in nature, employing distorted, layered synthesizers as its prominent instrument.[28] The production of the track revolves around a vocoder-affected vocal sample of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by the French house duo Daft Punk.[20][29] As one of the most musically complex arrangements on Graduation, West experiments with an elliptic song structure that makes extensive use of descending synth-bass and alternating backbeats.[16]

The song starts with its refrain, where the cut-up sample of Daft Punk's robotic vocals can be heard at a decreased tempo.[16] Following its introduction, West raps the refrain as the vocal sample is played continuously in the background.[30] During the refrain, the track maintains a distinctive four-to-the-floor rhythmic pattern which takes cues from house-music.[30] For the verses, West switches to a syncopated hip-hop beat; propulsive programmed drums replete with rumbling kick drums that stomps over the layered synths.[31][28] He integrates additional vocal hooks into the song's bridge while also adjusting its refrain and at one interval includes an ad libitum.[32] At its close, the track enters a flanging extended outro from Dean that contains a synth-heavy breakdown.[8] It comes complete with abrasive keyboard stabs, operatic harmonies and somber electric guitars which chime in unison.[33] A-Trak also delivers a four-bar solo of scratches, which is barely audible.[13]

"Stronger" (2007)
"Stronger" demonstrates an influence of house music and electro, evident in its four-on-the-floor rhythm and distorted, layered electronic synths. The track is built around a Daft Punk vocal sample over alternating backbeats and also showcases a blending of infectious hooks and West's forceful delivery.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

For the track, West evokes his rapping technique to a thumping beat.[16] Within two verses, he delivers his defiant lyrics at loud volume with fragmented, forceful flow that makes use of rests as the song builds into a bombastic crescendo.[34][35] With a simplified, halting vocal delivery, West manipulates his articulation to match the melodies of the musical composition.[36][35][37] An inspirational aspect can be found within "Stronger," where West speaks about the resolve that comes when one is faced with adversity, with defiant lyrics at the song's refrain that paraphrase Nietzsche's famous dictum: "What does not kill him, makes him stronger."[38] Regarding the lyrical content, West describes the abrasive track as an "emancipation," as he uses the first verse to vent his pent-up frustration over mistakes that he had made in the past year.[18] In addition, West views the single as a return with the help from his fans, hence the "I need you right now" lyric which serves as a hook that follows the refrain. As he told an interviewer for The Guardian, "It's also a message from me to my fans that I'm coming back after a time away and I need you right now, to help me come back."[20]

Lawsuit[edit]

In 2010, Vincent Peters sued West, arguing "Stronger" is an illegitimate copy of a song he recorded in 2006. Peters claimed that he handed a copy of his track to John Monopoly, West's business manager, who, according to Peters, gave the song to West.[39] Both songs share the title, make reference to model Kate Moss, and feature chorus lyrics that rhyme "wronger" and "longer".[39] A federal judge dismissed the claim, finding no substantial similarity, but Peters went to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. West's lawyers claim both derive their respective chorus lyrics from Friedrich Nietzsche's famous dictum, "What does not kill him, makes him stronger."[39] In 2012, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in West's favor, ordering the lawsuit dismissed. Diane Wood, the presiding judge, noted that Nietzsche's dictum had been employed in popular works for decades, including Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)", a hit single at the time.[40] The Hollywood Reporter quoted the ruling: "Although the fact that both songs quote from a 19th century German philosopher might, at first blush, seem to be an unusual coincidence, West correctly notes that the aphorism has been repeatedly invoked in song lyrics over the past century."[40]

Critical reception[edit]

The track was well received by music critics. Ann Powers of the Los Angeles Times praised West's performance: "On 'Stronger,' he pushes himself like a runner on a treadmill, always on the verge of losing his breath."[35] Although Louis Pattison of NME criticized what he viewed as "brazen theft" from Daft Punk, he called the song "a silicone-hearted vocoder serenade, beefed up with hoover-like synthesisers."[41] Anna Pickard of The Guardian praised it for the Daft Punk sample, viewing the track as opening with "the immediate familiarity of a Daft Punk sample" and the sample as "working well over this thumping beat".[42]

"Stronger" appeared in numerous year-end lists; Spin named "Stronger" the best song of 2007,[43] The Village Voice ranked "Stronger" at number seven on their annual year-end critics' poll Pazz & Jop.[44] Blitz listed it the ninth best song of 2007.[45] MTV named "Stronger" the sixth best song of 2007.[46] Thought Catalog listed the song as the eleventh best pop song of 2007.[47] Consequence of Sound named it the 17th best song of 2007.[48] "Stronger" was placed 20th in Australia's annual Triple J Hottest 100.[49] Rolling Stone named it the eleventh best song of 2007,[50] elsewhere in the magazine's decade-end readers' poll the song was named the sixth best single of the 2000s.[51] Furthermore, a 2013 Rolling Stone reader's poll ranked "Stronger" as West's eighth best song to that point.[52]

Commercial performance[edit]

"Stronger" entered the Billboard Hot 100 on the charting week of August 11, 2007 at number forty-seven, the highest debut single on the chart that week.[53] Over the next eight weeks, the song steadily climbed upwards, eventually reaching the number one position on the charting week of September 29, 2007, pushing the previous week's chart topper, Soulja Boy Tell 'Em's "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" into the number two position.[54] However, the following week, "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" replaced "Stronger" atop the charts, making West's single reach its peak for only one week.[55][56] It is West's third number-one single in the United States, following on from "Slow Jamz" in 2004, and "Gold Digger" in 2005, respectively.[57]

After becoming West's first number one single in the UK, "Stronger" went on to be met by widespread international success, reaching number-one in Canada and New Zealand.[58][59][60] The song debuted at number three in the United Kingdom and rose to become West's very first British number one single.[61][62][58] Climbing on downloads alone, it surpassed the prior week's number one single, Robyn's "With Every Heartbeat".[62] The song ranks as the 24th biggest hip-hop song of all time in the UK up to April 17, 2017.[63] As of August 5, 2021, it is West's second most successful track in the country behind only "Gold Digger", despite the latter not having reached number one.[64] "Stronger" spent 18 weeks on the German Singles Chart and peaked at number 17.[65] The song ended 2007 as the 19th best-selling, and sixth best-selling digital single in the UK.[66][67] "Stronger" was the sixth best selling song on iTunes in 2007.[68] "Stronger" was the second best-selling digital song of 2007 in Canada.[69]

In February 2010, it was revealed that "Stronger" was the 16th most-downloaded song of all time on iTunes.[70] It was the 17th best selling digital song of all time in the US by August 2010.[71] As of March 2013, the single has sold five million copies in the US.[72] In 2017, it was revealed that "Stronger" had stayed in the ARIA Top 500 for ten straight years, making it the longest running song on the chart with 522 weeks.[73] On October 6, 2021, the song was awarded a diamond certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shelving 10 million certified units in the US, becoming the 64th single to receive this certification and West's first.[74] The song is the most streamed song released in 2007 on Spotify.

Music video[edit]

The song's music video was shot in Tokyo, Japan.

Background[edit]

The "Stronger" music video was directed and produced by Williams, with director of photography John Perez, editor Peter Johnson, executive producer Susan Linss and post supervisor Amelia Torabi. Post production and visual effects were done at RhinoFX by VFX Supervisor Vico Sharabani.[75] Williams explained that the decision to work with West again was natural after he heard the song, stating "When I heard the record I thought it was something I could kind of dive in with him on it. I felt like my whole world made sense to do it. He has a lot of relationships with a lot of filmmakers but I think this particular song spoke to me."[76]

The video explores life in a sleek space-age robot world set in Japan,[75] and was filmed guerrilla-style over twelve days in Tokyo and Los Angeles in April 2007,[76][77] featuring shots in Aoyama clothing store A Bathing Ape and Harajuku clothing store Billionaire Boys Club/Ice Cream.[75] The video features appearances by a real-life Japanese motorcycle gang, singer-model Cassie Ventura, and the two principal actors from the film Daft Punk's Electroma dressed as Daft Punk.[10] The video also features multiple scenes which pay homage to the 1988 anime film Akira.[78] These include the light effects on the motorbikes, the hospital scenes and West being scanned by machines.

Development[edit]

West approached Island/Def Jam chairman Antonio "L.A." Reid with only a general concept for the video, with no storyboard, asking for $1.2 million to fund four videos. The treatment was simply "Kanye and Hype in Japan". West and Williams had the vision in their brains, but they didn't have anything on paper. There was no storyboard. They just wanted to get a bunch of footage." West, a fan of Japanese directors and anime, had desired to shoot in Japan to give the video a futuristic look, in line with the creative design of Graduation as a whole.[7]

In the clip's original storyline, West plays the part of a man in a motorcycle gang, who gets into a bar fight with Japanese rivals and gets a beaten so bad that the doctors have to rebuild him.[7] Both West and Williams had originally planned to integrate scenes from the film into the video.[78] but decided against so to produce something more impressionistic. Williams explained this to SOHH "He was always inspired by Akira, there was a point where we really dove in and wound up filming parts of that movie for the video, but we decided to back off of it and do something a little more abstract for the final version. So originally it went from inspired by -- to us really diving into that world and giving him a piece of the story and that kind of transmutated into the video that's out now.”[75]

West and his entourage got no permits to film, simply having interpreters explain the situation to locals.[7] The clip features shots of a real-life riot of a Japanese politician; it took place directly outside of Williams' hotel, and West encouraged the director to go out and film it. West was not satisfied when going over the footage back in the United States, he spent ten weeks in editing suites editing the video.[7] He decided to abandon the storyline and choose a video with "the hottest shots possible," going to New York for additional filming at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. Williams was unable to film additional footage, with the video already extensively over-budget, so West hired a local team. The video's most famous shots were filmed in New York,[7] and feature West wearing a pair of Alain Mikli shutter shades, which he requested from the designer specifically for the video.[79] Dissatisfied with the footage of said shots, due to the director of photography not being the same as Williams' DOP, West distorted the footage to resemble what it might look like as if it were broadcast over a cathode ray tube television set.[7] Further pickup shots were filmed in Los Angeles, including segments featuring Daft Punk, who were coincidentally in L.A. at the time and attended the video shoot.[7] Williams explained that the video was West's vision saying, "He's a strong filmmaker in his own right, a very well-respected and strong filmmaker in my book. He really did a great job executing his vision. I was kinda his co-partner on this one."[76]

Post-production[edit]

Don "Don C" Crawley, West's manager and confidant, described his perfectionist attitude whilst editing the clip:

Kanye almost had a brain aneurysm, editing this video for three months. Literally, 10 weeks of editing going back in. Then he still was not satisfied, so he shot more footage in New York. [...] Kanye put everything else on halt. He was in the editing suite till 4 or 5 in the morning. He went way over budget editing, sitting in them expensive editing suites. He kept going — and not only kept going, but he wanted to shoot more footage.[7]

Rhinofx VFX Supervisor Vico Sharabani said that the process of this project was totally unconventional.

“Kanye approached the creation of this video the same way he writes a song. He wanted to put different elements together and according to how they relate to each-other he would then take the next step. This made for a very creative environment with a quickly-evolving vision. Originally, there were supposed to be just four machine shots, but when we showed them the style frame we created for the machine, Kanye decided to re-edit the video around the machine, adding a dozen more shots. Kanye is a very talented visual artist and his passion translates to the way he manages the process. The whole process was very intimate and fast paced, with ideas flying around 24/7. It was a truly amazing creative collaboration between Kanye, Hype, our team, and editorial; everyone contributed to every aspect of the job. It was also very rewarding to hear of the video nomination for the MTV music awards.”[75]

A rough cut of the video first premiered at the Tribeca Studios in New York City on June 19, 2007,[77] with West editing the clip until the last minute.[7] Elsewhere, Williams revealed that an extended, limited-edition version of the music video was due for an internet type of release, but this ultimately never come to fruition.”[75]

Live performances[edit]

West performing "Stronger" at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee on June 14, 2008, during the Glow in the Dark Tour.

West performed a partial version of "Stronger" live at the Concert for Diana held at Wembley Stadium on July 1, 2007, to a crowd of 63,000 people. An estimated 500 million people watched the event in over 140 countries.[80] Daft Punk made a surprise appearance at the 50th Grammy Awards on February 10, 2008, to join West in performing a reworked version of the song on stage at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. A press release specified that this was the very first televised live performance by Daft Punk in their career.[81] In an interview, de Homem-Christo specified that the live performance of "Stronger" at the 50th Grammy Awards was "truly a collaboration from the start. We really did it all hand in hand."[82]

During his live performance at Coachella in 2011, West performed a version with altered lyrics in the second verse of the track to insult his ex-girlfriend Amber Rose.[83] Following on from this, it was rumoured that there was a confrontation between West and Amber's then-boyfriend Wiz Khalifa, which Khalifa dismissed as being untrue.[84] West performed the song at the 2011 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show,[85] he was due to perform in 2007 but dropped out due to the death of his mother.[86]

Cover versions and media usage[edit]

The JabbaWockeeZ performed to this song in the first season finale of America's Best Dance Crew as their victory performance for being crowned champions. Thirty Seconds to Mars performed a cover version of "Stronger" on BBC Radio 1, which is featured on Radio 1's Live Lounge – Volume 2 and a UK release of the single "From Yesterday". The cover features a slower tempo on guitar and omits the profanity, which was reworded by their lead singer Jared Leto. Leto said that he "hoped that Kanye [was] okay" with the editing.[87] The song was also cover by Swiss metalcore band Breakdown of Sanity.[88]

Kanye West's shutter shades in the music video

The song can be heard for the promo of the 2007 film The Kingdom. It can also be heard as the introductory song of the Baltimore Orioles, Toronto Raptors, New York Mets, Texas Longhorns, Washington Wizards, Cincinnati Reds and Tampa Bay Rays. The New York Giants entered the field to this song at Super Bowl XLII and during most of their home games during the season. The New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks play it at every home game as well. The song is also featured in Season 4 Episode 4 of Entourage as background music in a night club. The A-Trak remix of the song is used in an advert for the short-lived American TV show Bionic Woman. This song is also used by Animal Planet to promote their new show Jockeys, appearing in commercials as well as being the series' opening theme. UK rapper Kano has freestyled over this song on his mixtape MC No.1. The song also appeared on the trailer for the videogame Top Spin 4. In 2008 "Stronger" was featured in the movie Never Back Down, when the main character, Jake Tyler, enters the "Beatdown" tournament.

"Stronger" is featured in (and is on the soundtrack for) the 2011 film The Hangover Part II. In 2013, on the HBO show Girls, Allison Williams's character performed the song at a slower tempo. West re-uses the song's "I need you right now" refrain on the outro to "On Sight", a track from 2013's Yeezus.[89] "Stronger" was also used as a track that can be selected on the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit at Universal Studios Florida. "Stronger" was used in a gameplay TV spot for the 2016 video game Watch Dogs 2.[90] The song was used in a Nescafé trailer for the Dolce Gusto Drop.[91] The song appears in the BBC Radio 1Xtra episode 10 Moments That Made Kanye West.[92]

Legacy[edit]

Considered one of West's most radio-friendly songs,[52] "Stronger" has been credited with not only encouraging other hip-hop artists to incorporate house and electronica elements into their music, but also with playing a part in the revival of disco and electro-infused music in the late 2000s.[93] The song also brought Daft Punk to prominence in the United States; Rolling Stone credited it with "the beginning of the group's path to mainstream success."[52] The song helped sales of Daft Punk's Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger go from 1,000 per week to between 5,000 and 7,000.[94] The song has been looked at as a turning point in how the talents of West were viewed in his career and it brought him more commercial success.[95][96] In a piece for NME, Luke Morgan Britton saw the song as the transition between the rapper's self-declared "'Old Kanye' and the more avant-garde, era-defining and zeitgeist-defining music" he later moved towards.[95] Britton elaborated that West diversified his influences for Graduation by taking on electronic and indie music from across the world, noting the former genre on the song particularly changed hip hop's sound and demonstrated his "Midas-like touch" by epitomizing an era with his production.[95]

In 2011, Stronger was voted "the greatest workout song of all time" after topping a nationwide poll by Gold's Gym.[97] In 2020, uDiscoverMusic named it the best workout song of all time.[98] The song was named as the sixth most popular workout song on Spotify in 2021, based on the data of appearances on playlists for working out.[99] In a 2024 analysis of appearances on motivational playlists of Spotify and Apple Music, "Stronger" was ranked as the most motivational song.[100]

In 2021 the song was listed at number 500 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[101]

Accolades[edit]

See also: List of awards and nominations received by Kanye West
Year Organization Award Result Ref.
2007 BET Hip Hop Awards Best Hip-Hop Video Won [102]
MTV Europe Music Awards Best Video Nominated [103]
MTV Video Music Awards Video of the Year Nominated [104]
Best Director Nominated
Best Editing Nominated
2008 ASCAP Pop Music Awards Most Performed Songs Won [105]
BMI London Awards Pop Awards Won [106]
BMI Pop Awards Award Winning Songs Won [107]
BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards Award Winning Songs Won [108]
Grammy Awards Best Rap Solo Performance Won [109]
International Dance Music Awards Best Rap/Hip Hop Dance Track Won [110]
MOBO Awards Best Video Won [111]
MTV Video Music Awards Japan Video of the Year Nominated [112]
Best Hip-Hop Video Nominated
MuchMusic Video Awards Peoples Choice: Favourite International Video Nominated [113]
Best International Video Nominated
NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Music Video Nominated [114]
Outstanding Song Nominated
People's Choice Awards Favorite Hip-Hop Song Nominated [115]

Track listing[edit]

Credits and personnel[edit]

Information taken from Graduation liner notes.[8]

Recording

Personnel

  • Kanye West – songwriter, production
  • Thomas Bangalter – songwriter
  • Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo – songwriter
  • Edwin Birdsong – songwriter
  • Mike Dean – keyboards, guitars, extended outro
  • Timbaland – additional programming
  • Seiji Sekine – recording
  • Andrew Dawson – recording
  • Anthony Kilhoffer – recording
  • Manny Marroquin – mix engineer
  • Kengo Sakura – assistant mix engineer
  • Bram Tobey – assistant mix engineer
  • Jason Agel – assistant mix engineer
  • Nate Hertweck – assistant mix engineer
  • Jared Robbins – assistant mix engineer
  • La Mar "Mars" Edwards – keyboards
  • Andy Chatterley – keyboards

Charts[edit]

Weekly charts[edit]

Certifications and sales[edit]

Certifications and sales for "Stronger"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[158] 8× Platinum 560,000‡
Canada
Digital downloads 		— 152,000[159]
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[160] 2× Platinum 180,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[161] 5× Gold 750,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[162] 2× Platinum 100,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[163] Gold 7,500*
United Kingdom (BPI)[164] 3× Platinum 1,800,000‡
United States (RIAA)[165] Diamond 10,000,000‡
United States (RIAA)[166]
Mastertone 		Platinum 1,000,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

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External links[edit]

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