Champion (Kanye West song)
- Not to be confused with "Champions", another Kanye West song from the album Cruel Winter.
| "Champion" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Song by Kanye West | ||||
| from the album Graduation | ||||
| Released | September 11, 2007 | |||
| Recorded |
2006 Sony Music Studios (New York, New York) The Record Plant (Hollywood, California) | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 2:47 | |||
| Label | Roc-A-Fella, Def Jam | |||
| Songwriter(s) | K. West, W. Becker, D. Fagen | |||
| Producer(s) | Kanye West, Brian Miller | |||
| Graduation track listing | ||||
| ||||
"Champion" is a song by American hip-hop artist Kanye West. It was released as the second song on the track-listing of his third studio album, Graduation. The track was produced by West and Brian "All Day" Miller and contains elements of "Kid Charlemagne" by the jazz-rock band Steely Dan. Though not released as a single, "Champion" managed to debut and peak at ninety-nine and ninety-four on the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and Pop 100 chart respectively. The official music video for the song was directed by Nabil Elderkin and released on August 12, 2008 on West's blog.
Chart performance
Despite not being released as a single, "Champion" managed to enter charts. It made both its debut and peak at number ninety-nine on the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.[1] The song also managed to debut and peak at number ninety-four on the U.S. Billboard Pop 100 chart for the issue date of September 29, 2007.[2]
Music video
An accompanying music video was made for "Champion" and directed by Nabil Elderkin.[3] The Olympic-themed video revolves around a puppet version of Kanye West participating in the 100 m sprint at a sporting event known as the Unified Games. After receiving permission to race thanks to majority vote on a live "K-Span" television broadcast, the scene transits to the starting line. It is there that flashbacks display the extensive training the puppet undertook to get where he is. The race commences and nearing the finishing line, the puppet is able to pass the other runners and emerge victorious. The music video was released on August 12, 2008 on West's blog.[4] The video was filmed at Adolfo Camarillo High School in Camarillo, California.
Personnel
Information taken from Graduation liner notes.[5]
- Songwriters: Kanye West, Walter Becker, Donald Fagen
- Producers: Kanye West, Brian "Allday" Miller
- Recorders: Andrew Dawson, Anthony Kilhoffer
- Mix engineer: Andrew Dawson
- Synthesizer: Omar Edwards
- Additional vocals: Tony "Penafire" Williams, Connie Mitchell
Charts
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs | 99[1] |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 | 94[2] |
External links
References
- 1 2 "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Champion". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2008-03-29. Archived from the original on June 9, 2014. Retrieved 2008-03-29.
- 1 2 "Pop 100 – Champion". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2007-09-27. Archived from the original on July 9, 2015. Retrieved 2007-09-27.
- ↑ Bhansali, Akshay (October 9, 2009). "'Glow In The Dark' Book To Show Kanye West Behind The Scenes". MTV. Viacom Media Networks. Retrieved July 31, 2012.
- ↑ West, Kanye (2008-08-12). "Exclusive Champion Video". Kanye West: Blog. Kanye West/Mascotte Holdings. Retrieved 2008-08-12.
- ↑ Graduation (Media notes). Kanye West. Roc-A-Fella Records. 2007.
