Jump to content

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

This is a good article. Click here for more information.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Who Will Survive in America)

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
The album cover is textless, consisting mostly of empty red space. In the center is a crude painting of Kanye West being straddled on a bed by an armless winged female with fearsome features and a long, spotted tail. Both are nude, and the female's nipples and buttocks are visible.
Original artwork. The central image is pixelated on censored versions of the cover. The censored cover is used on digital versions of the album.
Studio album by
Kanye West
ReleasedNovember 22, 2010 (2010-11-22)
Recorded2009–2010
Studio
Genre
Length68:34
Label
Producer
Kanye West chronology
VH1 Storytellers
(2010) 		My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
(2010) 		Watch the Throne
(2011)
Alternate cover
Identical to the normal cover but the painting is replaced with one depicting a ballerina holding a wine glass with red liquid inside. A parental advisory sticker has also been added to the bottom right corner.
Physical release sold in retail stores
Singles from My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
  1. "Power"
    Released: July 1, 2010
  2. "Runaway"
    Released: October 4, 2010
  3. "Monster"
    Released: October 23, 2010
  4. "All of the Lights"
    Released: January 18, 2011

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is the fifth studio album by the American rapper Kanye West. It was released by Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records on November 22, 2010. Retreating to a self-imposed exile in Hawaii after a period of controversy in 2009, following his interruption of Taylor Swift at the MTV Video Music Awards, West recorded the album at Honolulu's Avex Recording Studio in a communal environment involving numerous musicians. Additional recording sessions took place at Glenwood Place Studios in Burbank, California, along with the New York City studios Electric Lady and Platinum Sound.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was mainly produced by West, alongside a variety of high-profile producers such as Mike Dean, No I.D., Jeff Bhasker, RZA, Bink, and DJ Frank E. Critics noted the music's maximalist aesthetic and opulent production style that utilizes various elements from his previous work, including soul, pop, baroque, electro, and symphonic sounds, as well as progressive rock influences. The album's lyrics explore themes such as West's celebrity status, consumer culture, self-aggrandizement, and the idealism of the American Dream. Guest vocalists include Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Jay-Z, Pusha T, Rick Ross, Kid Cudi, John Legend, Bon Iver, and Elton John.

Alongside several free songs released through West's weekly GOOD Fridays series, he supported My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy with four US Billboard Hot 100 top-40 singles, "Power", "Runaway", "Monster", and "All of the Lights". West also released an accompanying musical short film, Runaway (2010). The album was an immediate and widespread critical success, and reviewers lauded the maximalist approach. It was listed as the best album of 2010 in many publications' year-end lists. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was awarded Best Rap Album at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards and CD of the Year at the 2011 BET Hip Hop Awards.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 and the Canadian Albums Chart, while reaching the top 10 in six other countries. The album eventually achieved a triple platinum certification in the United States from the Recording Industry Association of America, alongside sales certifications in a few other territories. It was ranked in lists as the best album of the 2010s and among the greatest of all time by several publications, including Pitchfork and Rolling Stone.

Background

[edit]

Dark Fantasy was my long, backhanded apology. You know how people give a backhanded compliment? It was a backhanded apology. It was like, all these raps, all these sonic acrobatics. I was like: "Let me show you guys what I can do, and please accept me back. You want to have me on your shelves."

—Kanye West, speaking to The New York Times in 2013[1]

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was conceived at Avex Recording Studio during Kanye West's self-imposed exile in Oahu, Hawaii in 2009, following a period of public-image controversy.[2][3] West said that fatigue from overworking led to his controversial outburst at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) when the singer Taylor Swift was awarded Best Female Video at the ceremony. He was disgusted with the ensuing media response, which led to a brief hiatus from recording.[2] He also observed at the time of the album's release that Swift never defended him in any interviews, saying she continuously "rode the waves" from the controversy.[4] West had held recording sessions at the same studio for his previous album 808s & Heartbreak (2008).[2]

In response to the backlash to West's behaviour, his scheduled tour Fame Kills: Starring Kanye West and Lady Gaga with the singer Lady Gaga to promote 808s & Heartbreak was cancelled on October 1, 2009, without an official explanation.[5] A year later, he explained to Ellen DeGeneres the incident served as motivation for his works because he felt like "a soldier of culture", realizing no one wants this to be his role and admitted he will continuously "feel convicted about things that really meant stuff to culture that constantly get denied for years".[6] In 2013, West clarified that the album served as a backhanded apology after his MTV VMAs outburst, detailing that he used the music to become accepted again. He elaborated that a minimum of 80 percent was genuine, with the remainder "fulfilling a perception" for the public.[1] West also insisted that he was not criticizing My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and instead failed to reach satisfaction, then openly revealed his idea of the truth.[1]

Recording and production

[edit]

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was recorded at Avex in Honolulu, Hawaii. Additional recording took place at Glenwood Place Studios in Burbank, California, and at Electric Lady Studios and Platinum Sound Recording Studios in New York City.[7] It was reported that West spent around $3 million provided by his record label Def Jam to record the album, making it one of the most expensive albums ever made.[8][9] He explained the initial recording process to Noah Callahan-Bever, the editor-in-chief of Complex and West's then-confidant, telling him he had resided in Hawaii accompanied by his favorite producers and artists to work on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and provide inspiration.[2] Various contributors engaged in sessions with West for the album, including Kid Cudi, Elton John, Rick Ross, Pusha T, and Justin Vernon.[10][11][12] Vocals were also recorded by M.I.A., Mos Def, Santigold, and Seal.[11][12] Producers who contributed in the sessions included Q-Tip, RZA, Pete Rock,[13] Madlib,[14] Statik Selektah,[15] and DJ Premier.[16] Madlib said he made five beats for My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,[14] while DJ Premier revealed his work did not make the final cut.[16]

West block-booked the three session rooms of Avex simultaneously for 24 hours a day to work on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, until he felt it was complete. According to Callahan-Bever, when West "hits a creative wall", he changes to another studio room to work on a different song.[17] Sheets of paper were posted on one side of the studio with what were known as "Kanye Commandments", such as "No Tweeting" and "No Pictures".[2] West never slept a full night there, opting instead to take power naps on a studio chair or couch in 90-minute intervals when working during the night. Engineers worked a similar schedule, remaining active 24 hours a day. The heavy work ethic led to West and his crew having multi-course breakfasts each morning at his Diamond Head residence, cooked by in-house chefs.[18] Later in the mornings after breakfast, West and most of the crew played games of 21 against locals at the Honolulu YMCA for leisure. Kid Cudi smoked marijuana in preparation and worked out on a treadmill, while RZA exercised in the weight room.[17][19]

SSL 9000J and custom 3-way main monitors shown in the control room of Avex
Drums and microphone shown in the tracking room of Avex
Control room (top) and tracking room (bottom) of Avex Recording Studio in Honolulu, where the album was recorded

Throughout the album's development, West enlisted other producers and musicians for opinions of its music. At the studio, they went through various conversations and contributions.[2][10][18] Observing these discussions during a visit, Callahan-Bever noted that despite the presence of prominent musicians, "the egos rarely clash; talks are sprawling, enlightening, and productive" around the future, present, and past.[18] Q-Tip described the process as "music by committee" and elaborated on its significance to the sessions and West's work ethic:

He'll go, 'Check this out, tell me what you think.' Which speaks volumes about who he is and how he sees and views people. Every person has a voice and an idea, so he's sincerely looking to hear what you have to say—good, bad, or whatever ... When he has his beats or his rhymes, he offers them to the committee and we're all invited to dissect, strip, or add on to what he's already started. By the end of the sessions, you see how he integrates and transforms everyone's contributions, so the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. He's a real wizard at it. What he does is alchemy, really.[20]

The rapper Pusha T characterized My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy as "a collage of sounds" and found West's recording methods unorthodox.[21] He explained that when the team thought they were focused on a song, West would hear the work of a record producer such as Jeff Bhasker and his attention would be captured as he went through "his mental Rolodex" to the most suitable point for it on the album.[21] Expressing a similar sentiment, the rapper Malik Yusef said that he was mocked for his vision of incorporating collaborators from genres outside hip hop like John.[10] DJ Premier recalled that West insisted to him during the production for no electro, describing him as "that crazy dude he's always been" and pointing out his focus on the album's rawness.[22]

West ensured that the album's recording sessions were secretive, placing paper sheets in the studio reading "no tweeting, no talking, no e-mailing", and also prohibiting speaking with people outside of the location.[23] Pusha T recalled West's attitude in an interview for Rolling Stone, saying that following a leak he remembered his strictness, "Fuck this! We're not going to ever work there again!"[23] In October 2010, West tweeted that the recording of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy had been finished.[24]

Musical style

[edit]

The music was described as maximalist hip hop[25][26] by numerous publications, incorporating East Coast rap,[27] boom bap,[28] R&B ballads, electronic music, and progressive rock samples.[29][30][31] Various writers also noticed elements from West's previous four albums.[a] The Village Voice's Sean Fennessey thought that West had adopted the skills of his collaborators from the five years before My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, which he sometimes uses to an increased level. West incorporates lush soul from 2004's The College Dropout, orchestration from 2005's Late Registration, a rich atmosphere from 2007's Graduation, and emotionally tired electro from 808s & Heartbreak.[33][34] Pitchfork's Ryan Dombal and AllMusic's Andy Kellman wrote My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy seamlessly combines elements from West's earlier albums; the latter felt that "All of the Lights" denotes its varied elements and "maniacal extravagance".[25][32] David Amidon of PopMatters observed the pop sound of Graduation and 808s & Heartbreak.[35]

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was described as a progressive rap record by Carl Williott of Idolator and Rolling Stone's Christopher R. Weingarten, with the latter noting that it came at the time of lower album budgets.[36][37] The album draws elements from varied genres like progressive rock, soul, and old-school rap, moving towards a new sound.[38][39] My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy follows a dense, wide scope of styles;[40][41] Al Horner from NME called it a rap opera.[42] The author Kirk Walker Graves thinks West became a collagist, who makes a bold and vulnerable work of art from "scattered pop shards and indelible beats".[43]

Lyrics and themes

[edit]

Throughout the album, West's lyrics explore themes of excess,[44] celebrity,[40][45][46] grandiosity,[47] self-aggrandizement, self-doubt,[48][49] romance,[25] escapism,[50] decadence,[35][51] and sex.[38][52] My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy also openly acknowledges alcohol and drug usage more than West's previous albums.[53] West places an introspective focus on fame, detailing the perks of power that he links to neoliberalism.[6][48][46] The rapper addresses deep personal insecurities,[48][54] although philosopher Julius Bailey writes that he embraced his narcissism in contrast to the chipmunk soul on The College Dropout.[43] West displays varied emotions,[55][56] which range from lows to highs of the rapper's mental state.[46] He conveys feelings of despair with his public image since 808s & Heartbreak, depicting his out-of-control world.[54][57] According to author Bernadette Marie Calafell, West used My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy to celebrate monstrosity after his troubled year.[4]

West ventures into the id of his own ego on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, showing his perspective as a celebrity.[25][43][49] He poses a risk of self-destruction with the id,[49] while perusing any goal or girl he can and driven by the buzz of consumer culture, despite ultimately being unsatisfied.[38] Ann Powers of the Los Angeles Times depicted the songs as "pornographic boasts, romantic disaster stories, devil-haunted dark nights of the soul" and perceived West as not welcome nor sure about the purpose of his presence due to the discussion of race.[38] Powers felt that rather than an issue for West, it is the inherent curse of author Michael Eric Dyson's theory of "the exceptional black man" whose talents are welcomed, but he is excluded for his skin color.[38] According to Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield, the album serves as "a rock-star manifesto" in a world where expectations have generally lowered.[29]

Songs

[edit]

Tracks 1–7

[edit]
"Dark Fantasy"
"Dark Fantasy" showcases orchestration that The Village Voice's Sean Fennessey thought West learnt from working with Jon Brion on Late Registration (2005), and begins the album's decadent, hedonistic themes.[34][55]
Problems playing this file? See media help.

The album begins with "Dark Fantasy", opened by rapper Nicki Minaj narrating a rework of Roald Dahl's 1982 poem Cinderella,[38] followed by a chorus including Auto-Tuned "oohs" and "ah-ah-ah-aahs", as well as backing accents.[43][31] The song introduces the themes of decadence and hedonism,[55] with West musing how it had been planned to drink to release pain, "But what's worse, the pain or the hangover?"[58] The track's lyrics contain musical and popular culture references, including fellow rapper Nas, the 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", British singer Leona Lewis, and the song "Sex on Fire" by Tennessee rock band Kings of Leon.[59] "Gorgeous" is an uplifting blues-styled track,[45] relying on a guitar riff juxtaposed with melodic piano.[43] The track is seen by Graves as West's "scattershot mission statement" and it sees him tackling racial injustices, including comparing himself to black rights activist Malcolm X with the title "Malcolm West".[43][45][60] "Power" features a dark production that relies on a sample of King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man" (1969), which Fennessey found to be "apocalyptic" and it is accompanied by chants loosely resembling a choir.[34][31] West delves into escapism on the song, mentioning his struggles with the public and narrating his vision of a career suicide.[55][26]

"All of the Lights" incorporates drum 'n' bass breaks, energetic percussion, and horn instruments.[58][61] The opening lines mention the death of Michael Jackson and present the narrative of a man who goes through multiple issues including abusing his lover and serving prison time.[61] West enlisted 11 guest vocalists for the song, including Alicia Keys, John Legend, Tony Williams, and Elly Jackson; Rihanna sings the hook.[62] In an interview with MTV, Jackson said that West designated her to layer up the vocal arrangement with other people as he simply used his favorite vocalists worldwide "to create this really unique vocal texture on his record, but it's not the kind of thing where you can pick it out".[63] "Monster" is a posse cut,[34][51] which features staccato strings that invoke paranoia and it was described by Calafell as addressing critics through exploration of their "monstrous construction" of West.[4][29] West rap about using inappropriate methods to drown his pain and Nicki Minaj asserts her queen status on the song.[48][58] The fellow posse cut "So Appalled" is built around piano and strings,[39][51] with the performers delivering their odes to success and affirming that "this shit is/fucking ridiculous".[43][64][65]

Tracks 8–13

[edit]
"Devil in a New Dress"
"Devil in a New Dress" utilizes West's characteristic style of altering the pitch and tempo from classic soul records with a sample of Smokey Robinson's 1960 song "Will You Love Me Tomorrow",[51][66] though the production was instead handled by Bink.[7] Andy Kellman of AllMusic called the song "a throwback soul production" that invokes West's early work,[32] while The New York Times' Jon Caramanica saw it as resembling "the slowed-down soul" of The College Dropout (2004).[27]
Problems playing this file? See media help.

"Devil in a New Dress" is built on a sample of Smokey Robinson's "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" (1960).[7][51] The lyrics range from self-criticism to warning and lust to heartache,[4][51] with its sexual and religious imagery described by one critic as "part bedroom allure, part angelic prayer".[67] The song is the only track without production by West, yet features his characteristic style of manipulating the pitch and tempo of classic soul samples.[7][51][66] "Runaway" contains a piano-based motif comprising a series of uninterrupted descending half and whole notes,[68] with a coda that incorporates cello at first, before a violin section and West's vocoder-singing,[51] which is distortion that covers the final three minutes.[43] West uses the song's lyrics to address public opinion and his character issues, proclaiming a toast to all with those flaws.[65][69] Fennessey cited "Runaway" as the point in My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy where "self-laceration overtakes chest-beating", while Graves is taken aback by how the song contains all of its contradictions; "self-mythologizing, rife with hubris, [and] assertively 'artistic' to the point of unintentional parody".[34][43]

Inspired by West's two-year relationship with model Amber Rose, "Hell of a Life" samples the Mojo Men's "She's My Baby" (1966) and follows a narrative of marrying a porn star that Graves calls "pornographic anxiety".[7][25][43] According to Dombal, the song "attempts to bend its central credo—'no more drugs for me, pussy and religion is all I need'—into a noble pursuit".[25] He wrote that it crosses the lines of "fantasy and reality, sex and romance, love and religion, until no lines exist at all".[25] "Blame Game" is a low-key track that is built around a sample of Richard D. James's piano composition "Avril 14th" (2001),[70][71] and features additional vocals from Legend.[7] The song focuses on a painful domestic dispute where West and a woman go back and forth aggressively,[70][72] and contains a profane skit by comedian Chris Rock.[73]

"Lost in the World" features tribal drums and prominent samples from the indie folk band Bon Iver's "Woods" (2009), with West applying the sample "as the centerpiece of a catchy, communal reverie".[51][74] West enthusiastically told Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon when listening to the song, "Fuck, this is going to be the festival closer."[4] It features several musical changes, beginning with Vernon's faint vocals,[7][53] followed by 4/4 drums, a gospel chorus,[74] and increased tempo, and a final measured tempo.[75] "Lost in the World" transitions into the closing track "Who Will Survive in America".[35] It serves as the album's coda and samples jazz poet Gil Scott-Heron's "Comment No. 1" (1970),[7][58] a surrealist piece delivered by him in spoken word about the African American experience and the fated idealism of the American dream.[38][49][76] Scott-Heron's original speech is edited to an excerpt that, according to Kot, "retains its essence, that of an African-American male" feeling isolated from the US and his culture.[55] By contrast, Fennessey wrote that the seriousness of the denouement does not suit "an album that is more about the self's little nightmares than some aching societal rejection".[34]

Title and packaging

[edit]
Portrait showing George Condo in a chair
Visual artist George Condo, who designed the album's artwork

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was once titled Good Ass Job and then Dark Twisted Fantasy.[24][77][78] On July 28, 2010, West announced on his newly registered Twitter account that the former title was scrapped and he had been considering "a couple of titles".[79] He expressed uncertainty about the title in September, tweeting: "I can't decide on my album title [...] uuuugh!!!!"[24] The official title, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, was announced by West on October 5, 2010;[80] Good Ass Job was eventually planned as the title of a collaborative album with Chance the Rapper, which never materialized.[81]

The album's artwork, designed by George Condo, shows West being straddled on a couch by an armless winged female, who has fearsome features and a long, spotted tail. Both are nude, with West shown holding a beer.[82][83][84] Bailey sees Condo's style for the cover as pop surrealist and Cubist and portraying "various aspects of West's album themes".[6] He also asserts that its royal red colour is "symbolic of passion, love, anger, and, of course, blood", marked by the starkness.[6] According to Vulture writer Dan Kois, the mythological figure straddling West is "a kind of fragment, between a sphinx, a phoenix, a haunting ghost, a harpy".[84] The artwork was done at Condo's studio, after West visited for several hours and they listened to tapes of his music. Over the next few days, the painter designed eight or nine paintings for the album. Two of them were portraits of West: an extreme closeup, with mismatched eyes and four sets of teeth; a portrait showing his head, crowned and decapitated, placed sideways on a white slab, pierced by a sword. Condo also did a painting of a dyspeptic ballerina in a black tutu and one of the crown alongside the sword in a grassy landscape.[83] He made five covers in total, which were all included with the purchase of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.[82] A second cover that contains a painting of a ballerina was posted on the Amazon.com pre-order page.[85] The image was originally intended to be the cover art for "Runaway", but West used a photograph of a ballerina instead.[85] Another painting, The Priest, was completed for the album by Condo, who described it as an attempt to bring depictions of religious figures into the modern world.[86]

West told Condo that he wanted a phoenix painting and after he came up with the artwork, the rapper expressed his admiration for how they both "express ourselves with our truest vision".[82] According to Condo, West requested the original cover image to be provocative enough to be banned by retailers, as a publicity stunt.[87] In October 2010, a month before the album's release, West tweeted: "Yoooo they banned my album cover!!!!! Banned in the USA!!! They don't want me chilling on the couch with my Phoenix!"[87] He also suggested Walmart had rejected the cover and cited the case of rock band Nirvana's 1991 album Nevermind, which featured a photo of a naked baby. West questioned why the band are allowed to have someone nude on their cover, but he "can't have a PAINTING of a monster with no arms and a polka dot tail and wings".[87] In response, Walmart denied the suggestion in a statement declaring the company's excitement about My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and its arrival in stores.[87] Certain retailers did not carry the original cover, with West substituting it with Condo's ballerina artwork, while some shipped copies used a pixelated version of the original.[88][89]

In 2015, Billboard named the album's artwork as the 30th best of all time. The magazine wrote that West "matched the widescreen brilliance of the album's music with boundary-cracking art", including a demonic image of him "being straddled by a nude angel".[90] In 2017, NME listed the cover as the seventh best album artwork of the 21st century so far.[91]

Marketing

[edit]
West performing at the 2011 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
West performing his headlining set at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in 2011

Before the release of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, West initiated the music program GOOD Fridays through his website beginning August 20, 2010, offering a free download of a new song for each Friday.[92][93] West tweeted that he was aware his fans needed new music, "so I'm dropping 1 new song every weekend until Xmas" and he explained a release could be a song by him, Jay-Z, or another artist.[93] Titled after his imprint label GOOD Music, the program generated considerable publicity ahead of the release of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Young Money Entertainment online marketing coordinator Karen Civil retrospectively called the program genius, detailing that West undertook a program not previously attempted and "at a point when he was the most hated person in music, he brought excitement back with his Friday releases".[92] GOOD Fridays was intended to run until December 2010, but West extended it through to January 2011.[92][94]

On September 12, 2010, West premiered "Runaway" with a live performance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards.[95] Three weeks later, on October 2, he performed the song a second time on Saturday Night Live, along with "Power".[96] On October 4, 2010, West announced the album's release date of November 22,[80][97] after he had previously tweeted that he was "contemplating my album date".[24] The rapper also announced that certain songs from GOOD Fridays would be included on it.[80] My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was released by Def Jam and Roc-A-Fella on November 22, 2010, being made available for digital download on Amazon at a list price of $3.99.[49][98] The deal was only offered by Amazon, while the album was simultaneously made available on iTunes and West's website linked to this release.[99] Four singles were released from it and all reached the top 40 of the US Billboard Hot 100, with the lead single "Power" released on July 1, 2010, charting at number 22.[100][101][102] "Runaway" was released on October 4,[80] and reached number 12, while "Monster" and "All of the Lights" were released on October 23, 2010, and January 18, 2011, respectively;[103][104] they both charted at number 18.[102]

A 35-minute film entitled Runaway, featuring the titular song's official music video, was directed by West and released on October 23, 2010.[105][106] Filmed in Prague over a period of four days in the summer of 2010,[105] the film stars West and model Selita Ebanks, with the script penned by Hype Williams and the story written by West.[107] West described the video as an overall representation of his dreams and a reflection of feelings throughout his life, including a parallel of the situation from 2009 to 2010.[105][108] He explained that it is "the story of a phoenix fallen to Earth", whom he makes his girlfriend, though she faces discrimination and eventually "has to burn herself alive and go back to her world".[109] West elaborated how he had been deeply considering the idea of a phoenix for a while and this could be parallel to his career that he "threw a Molotov cocktail" at in 2009, then felt the need to make a comeback "as a better person".[109] At a Runaway screening in Paris, he broke down into tears. After another screening in Los Angeles, West said that the affect his music and art has on people people inspires him to continue in his career.[110] The film was included on a bonus DVD for the deluxe edition of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.[111]

For initial promotion of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, West performed at Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in late November 2010.[112][113] Following the release of the album, West performed headlining sets at several large festivals in 2011, including SXSW,[114] Lollapalooza,[115] Austin City Limits,[116] and Coachella; the latter was viewed by The Hollywood Reporter as "one of the great hip-hop sets of all time".[117]

Commercial performance

[edit]

In its first week of release, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling 496,000 copies. The entry blocked Nicki Minaj's debut album Pink Friday from the top spot with 375,000 sales; the week marked the first time in two years that the chart had two albums bow with over 300,000 units. It also gave West his fourth consecutive US number-one album and surpassed the 450,000 first-week sales of 808s & Heartbreak, with the debut becoming the fourth-best sales week of 2010.[118] The album's first-week digital sales of 224,000 units accounted for 45% of the total and stood as the fourth-highest digital copies for an album in a week.[119]

In its second week on the Billboard 200, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy descended six places to number seven with 108,000 copies sold, marking a 78% sales decline, while remaining above Pink Friday by one place.[120] As of July 2013, it had sold 1,300,000 copies in the United States, as reported by Nielsen SoundScan.[121] By June 2011, the album had sold 483,000 digital copies, ranking as the second best-selling digital rap album ever.[122] On November 23, 2020, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for pushing 3,000,000 certified units in the US.[123] According to Billboard, as of 2022, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is one of the 15 best-performing 21st-century albums without any of its singles being chart-toppers on the Hot 100.[124]

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy became West's fourth number one album on the Canadian Albums Chart.[125] It reached number four on the Danish Albums chart,[126] and in March 2021, was certified double platinum by IFPI Danmark for shipments of 40,000.[127] My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy opened at number six on the ARIA Albums chart and on September 10, 2021, it was awarded a double platinum certification from the Australian Recording Industry Association for over 140,000 copies shipped in Australia.[128][129] The album charted within the top 10 in Norway,[130] South Korea,[131] New Zealand,[132] and Switzerland.[133] On January 22, 2021, it received a platinum certification from the British Phonographic Industry for selling 300,000 units in the United Kingdom.[134] By 2018, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy had registered a billion streams on Spotify.[3]

Critical reception

[edit]
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.8/10[135]
Metacritic94/100[136]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[32]
Entertainment WeeklyA[33]
The Guardian[64]
The Independent[65]
MSN Music (Expert Witness)A[48]
NME9/10[58]
Pitchfork10/10[25]
Rolling Stone[29]
Spin9/10[49]
USA Today[30]

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was met with widespread critical acclaim.[137] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 94, based on 45 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[136] The aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 8.8 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[135]

Numerous reviewers highlighted West's move towards maximalism. Andy Gill of The Independent praised the album as "one of pop's gaudiest, most grandiose efforts of recent years, a no holds-barred musical extravaganza" that forgoes the concept of good taste from the beginning.[65] Powers, writing for the Los Angeles Times, found West's artistry comparable to Pablo Picasso, reaching "the Cubist mandate of rearranging form, texture, color and space" for suggesting newer viewpoints.[38] The album was called a work of art and West's most lavish record in a review by Time magazine's David Browne, who said it proved again that few other artists shared his ability to adeptly mix diverse elements.[39] Steve Jones of USA Today was impressed by West's display "of sonic flavors — old school hip-hop, progressive rock, R&B, classical music" for how he combines and matches these genres, concluding his only predictability is a consistent drive to make every project his best.[30]

Critics often looked at the album as being among West's best work. Rolling Stone's Sheffield said My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy marked West's best and most wildly inspired album, asserting that no other act was recording music as dark or maximalist; he added the rapper transgresses the conventions he had established himself for rap and pop music in the past five years.[29] James Reed of The Boston Globe said that the album is "seamlessly his personal best" as West becomes self-involved in the varied styles and universal themes, standing as the most original hip hop record of 2010, through his efforts to push the genre's boundaries.[138] Christgau, in MSN Music, hailed it as a "world-beating return to form" for the rapper.[48] Michael Denslow of Consequence wrote that My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy features "nine-minute rap epics" which break the traditional verse–chorus form and West manages to convey an attempt at the greatest album of all time, executing this well using "all the swagger and hype with an album that may actually be that good".[139] The Village Voice's Sean Fennessey observed that while the album cannot be perfect as listeners "will reach to call [it]", West's point from the album is imperfection.[53] He also noted the skillful engineering and sequencing, through the way each song transitions over like "some long night out into the hazy morning after".[53] Pitchfork awarded the album a 10/10, the first perfect score the publication had given to a new release since Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot in 2002. Dombal from the publication highlighted West's "blast of surreal pop excess" that the majority of artists would not even try to create.[25][140]

A few reviewers were more qualified in their praise, mostly focusing on West's rapping. For The Guardian, Kitty Empire was critical of his lyrics calling women "ruthless money-grabbers" on an otherwise "herculean [...] flawed near-masterpiece".[64] AllMusic writer Andy Kellman found West's rapping inconsistent on "a deeply fascinating accomplishment" in his catalogue and one of complicated merit that is "as fatiguing as it is invigorating, as cold-blooded as it is heart-rending, as haphazardly splattered as it is meticulously sculpted", and maintains complexity across 70 minutes.[32] David Amidon from PopMatters desired for West to utilize his rap skills from The College Dropout and that the songs may be good yet he misses "the opportunity to provide us with answers", in spite of the lush production on one of hip hop's "most bloated, egotistical, fantastical, flat-out amazing release[s]" for a while.[35]

Rankings

[edit]

Numerous critics and publications included My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy on their year-end top albums lists. Many named it the best album of 2010,[141] including Billboard,[142] Time,[143] Slant Magazine,[144] Pitchfork,[145] Rolling Stone,[146] and Spin.[147] My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was voted best album in The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll for 2010, winning by the largest margin in the poll's history with 3,250 points.[148][149] "Power", "Runaway", and "Monster" were voted in the top-10 of the Pazz & Jop singles list.[150] Metacritic, which collates reviews of music albums, identified it as the best-reviewed album of 2010.[151] The album stood as the first rap release to achieve this since Outkast's 2000 album Stankonia and the sixth-highest ranking of albums released in the 2010s to have at least 15 professional reviews.[151][152]

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy appeared on decade-end best albums lists. In 2012, Complex included it on their list of "25 Rap Albums From the Past Decade That Deserve Classic Status".[153] In October 2013, the magazine ranked the album as the best hip hop album of the last five years.[154] In 2014, Pitchfork named it the best album of the 2010s so far, with Ian Cohen writing, "West broke the ground upon which the new decade's most brilliant architects built their masterworks; Bon Iver, Take Care, Channel Orange, and Good Kid, M.A.A.D City don't exist without the blueprint of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy."[155] It was later ranked as the top album of the 2010s by The A.V. Club,[156] Billboard,[157] and Rolling Stone.[158] Christgau named My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy as the decade's eighth-best album, saying it remains "perversely superb".[159]

In 2014, Spin named My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy as the eighth best album of the past 30 years, with Dan Weiss noting it is a world combining samples, interpolations, and vocalists; he expressed that West does not believe "one man should have all that power" of God, yet he "lives one hell of a life".[160] Six years later, Marc Hogan from Pitchfork considered it among the great art pop albums of the last 20 years to "have filled the void of full-length statements with both artistic seriousness and mass appeal that was formerly largely occupied by [rock] guitar bands".[161] In 2017, the staff of HipHopDX wrote the album is "widely considered [West's] magnum opus" and the release that made the public's perception of him positive again.[162] EW picked My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy as the eighth greatest album of all time in 2016, while it was ranked 21st and 17th on the lists by NME and Rolling Stone in 2013 and 2020, respectively.[163][164][165] The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[166]

Select rankings of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Publication List Year Rank Ref.
The A.V. Club The Best Music of 2010 2010
1
[167]
50 Favorite Albums of the 2010s 2019
1
[156]
Billboard Top 10 Albums of 2010 2010
1
[142]
The 25 Best Albums of 2010 2010
1
[142]
100 Best Albums of the 2010s 2019
1
[157]
Entertainment Weekly 10 Best Albums of 2010 2010
1
[168]
Greatest Albums of all Time 2016
8
[163]
The Guardian The 100 Best Albums of the 21st Century 2019
3
[169]
Metacritic The Best Albums of 2010 2011
1
[151]
The Best Albums of the Decade (2010–2019) 2019
6
[170]
NME 50 Best Albums of 2010 2010
34
[171]
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time 2013
21
[164]
Pitchfork The Top 50 Albums of 2010 2010
1
[145]
The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s 2019
2
[172]
Rolling Stone Best Albums of 2010 2010
1
[146]
500 Greatest Albums of All Time 2012
353
[165]
100 Best Albums of the 2010s 2019
1
[158]
500 Greatest Albums of All Time 2020
17
[173]
The 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time 2022
6
[174]
Spin The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985–2014) 2015
8
[160]
The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics' poll of 2010 2010
1
[148]

Industry awards

[edit]

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy won awards for both Album of the Year and Reader's Choice: Best Album at the 2010 HipHopDX Awards, receiving over 50 percent of the vote for the latter.[175] The album was awarded CD of the Year at the next year's BET Hip Hop Awards, while it was nominated for Outstanding Album at the 2011 NAACP Image Awards.[176][177] The album received a nomination for Top Rap Album at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards, though ultimately lost to fellow rapper Eminem's Recovery.[178]

For the 54th Annual Grammy Awards in 2012, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was awarded Best Rap Album, while "All of the Lights" was nominated for Song of the Year, Best Rap Song, and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, winning in the latter two categories.[179] However, The Recording Academy's decision not to nominate My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy for Album of the Year was viewed by many media outlets as a snub,[180][181] along with the rejection of West and Jay-Z's 2011 effort Watch the Throne in the category.[182][183][184] For the Los Angeles Times, Randall Roberts pinpointed the exclusion of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – "the most critically acclaimed album of the year, a career-defining record" – as a snub in favor of nominating less substantial albums.[185] Time journalist Touré deemed West's nominations in minor Grammy categories as booby prizes and stated that the album was easily "the best reviewed album in many years", being lauded by critics "like nothing since Radiohead's zenith", while achieving success with over 1,200,000 sales.[186] Touré explored possible reasons for the academy to snub West, including split votes between My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Watch the Throne and concerns over his past controversies, but ultimately perceived "a lack of respect for hip hop and its complexity" from those who are into music, yet lack knowledge of this genre.[186]

Having expressed that he thought he was snubbed for major awards in the past, West responded to the Grammy nominees onstage during a concert on the Watch the Throne Tour in December 2011. West believed the snub was due to releasing Watch the Throne and My Beautiful Dark Fantasy within a year of each other, feeling he "should've just spaced it out, just a little bit more".[182][183] On the 10th anniversary of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Will Lavin of NME recalled that despite winning Best Rap Album, "it was snubbed for Best Album without so much as a nomination".[3] Two years later, Vibe listed the record as one of 10 rap albums snubbed of Album of the Year, with Preezy Brown mentioning this was "a Grammy snub that's one of the more egregious in recent memory".[187]

Track listing

[edit]
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy standard edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Dark Fantasy"
4:40
2."Gorgeous" (featuring Kid Cudi and Raekwon)
  • West
  • No I.D.
  • M. Dean
5:57
3."Power"
4:52
4."All of the Lights (Interlude)"
  • West
  • M. Dean
  • West
  • M. Dean
1:02
5."All of the Lights"
4:59
6."Monster" (featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj and Bon Iver)
6:18
7."So Appalled" (featuring Swizz Beatz, Jay-Z, Pusha T, Cyhi the Prynce and RZA)
  • West
  • No I.D.
  • M. Dean[a]
6:37
8."Devil in a New Dress" (featuring Rick Ross)
5:52
9."Runaway" (featuring Pusha T)
9:07
10."Hell of a Life"
5:27
11."Blame Game" (featuring John Legend)
7:49
12."Lost in the World" (featuring Bon Iver)
4:16
13."Who Will Survive in America"
  • West
  • Bhasker
  • Scott-Heron
  • Bocage
  • Scramuzza
1:38
Total length:1:08:34
iTunes Store bonus track[188]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
14."See Me Now" (featuring Beyoncé, Charlie Wilson and Big Sean)
6:03
Total length:1:14:37
Deluxe edition bonus DVD[111]
No.TitleWriter(s)Director(s)Length
1."Runaway" (short film)
West35:00

Track notes[7]

  • ^[a] signifies a co-producer
  • ^[b] signifies an additional producer
  • "Dark Fantasy" features background vocals by Nicki Minaj and Bon Iver member Justin Vernon, and additional vocals by Teyana Taylor and Amber Rose
  • "Gorgeous" features background vocals by Tony Williams
  • "Power" features additional vocals by Dwele
  • "All of the Lights" features additional vocals by Rihanna, Kid Cudi, Tony Williams, The-Dream, Charlie Wilson, John Legend, Elly Jackson of La Roux, Alicia Keys, Elton John, Fergie, Ryan Leslie, Drake, Alvin Fields and Ken Lewis
  • "Runaway" features background vocals by Tony Williams and additional vocals by The-Dream
  • "Hell of a Life" features additional vocals by Teyana Taylor and The-Dream
  • "Blame Game" features additional vocals by Chris Rock and Salma Kenas
  • "Lost in the World" and "Who Will Survive in America" feature additional vocals by Charlie Wilson, Kaye Fox, Tony Williams, Alicia Keys and Elly Jackson of La Roux

Sample credits[7]

Personnel

[edit]

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[7]

Charts

[edit]

Certifications

[edit]
Certifications and sales for My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[129] 2× Platinum 140,000‡
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[233] Gold 20,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[127] 3× Platinum 60,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[234] Gold 100,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[235] Gold 25,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[134] Platinum 300,000‡
United States (RIAA)[123] 3× Platinum 1,300,000[121]

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

[edit]
Release dates and formats for My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Region Date Label(s) Format(s) Ref.
Various November 22, 2010
Digital download [98]
Virgin EMI CD [236]
United States December 28, 2010
  • Def Jam
  • Roc A Fella
 Vinyl [237]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Elements were noted by the likes of Julius Bailey,[6] Andy Kellman of AllMusic,[32] Simon Vozick-Levinson of Entertainment Weekly,[33] and Ryan Dombal of Pitchfork.[25]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Caramanica, Jon (June 11, 2013). "Behind Kanye's Mask". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2016. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Callahan-Bever, Noah (November 2010). "Kanye West: Project Runaway". Complex. Archived from the original on December 28, 2010. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
  3. ^ a b c Lavin, Will (November 22, 2020). "Celebrating Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy 10 years on". NME. Archived from the original on July 5, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e Calafell, Bernadette Marie (2015). My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Monstrosity, performance, and race in contemporary culture. New York City: Peter Lang. ISBN 9781433127373. Retrieved February 2, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ "Kanye West and Lady Gaga 'Fame Kills' Tour Canceled". Rolling Stone. October 1, 2009. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d e Bailey, Julius (2014). My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – The Cultural Impact of Kanye West. New York City: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-1137395818. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k West, Kanye (2010). My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Media notes). Roc-A-Fella Records.
  8. ^ Jacobs, Allen (September 17, 2010). "Def Jam Records Has Reportedly Spent $3 Million on Kanye West's New Album". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on September 19, 2010. Retrieved November 28, 2010.
  9. ^ McPhate, Tim (June 28, 2017). "Kanye West, the Beatles: 5 expensive albums by Grammy winners". The Recording Academy. Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  10. ^ a b c Holmes, Charles (November 23, 2020). "The Secret History of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, 10 Years On". The Ringer. Archived from the original on October 18, 2022. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  11. ^ a b Kaufman, Gil (October 7, 2010). "Kanye West Adds M.I.A., La Roux And Alicia Keys To Album". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 10, 2010. Retrieved November 28, 2010.
  12. ^ a b "MIA announces collaboration for Kanye West album Dark Twisted Fantasy". NME. September 21, 2010. Archived from the original on September 24, 2010. Retrieved November 28, 2010.
  13. ^ Kuperstein, Slava (April 8, 2010). "Kanye West's Next Album To Drop In June". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on October 2, 2012. Retrieved April 8, 2010.
  14. ^ a b Harling, Danielle (June 25, 2010). "Madlib Says Kanye West Requested Beats For 'Good Ass Job'". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved July 14, 2010.
  15. ^ Markman, Rob (August 19, 2014). "Kanye West Told Statik Selektah 'Jazz Was Dead,' So He Went And Made A Jazz Album". MTV News. Archived from the original on May 18, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  16. ^ a b Crosley, Hillary (November 30, 2010). "DJ Premier Talks Kanye West's 'Mama's Boyfriend'". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 15, 2022. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  17. ^ a b Callahan-Bever, Noah (November 2010). Kanye West: Project Runaway – Page 3 Archived November 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Complex. Retrieved on October 15, 2022.
  18. ^ a b c Callahan-Bever, Noah (November 2010). Kanye West: Project Runaway – Page 2 Archived November 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Complex. Retrieved on October 15, 2022.
  19. ^ Paine, Jake (November 22, 2010). Kanye West's Studio Arrangement Analyzed In Complex Cover Story Archived October 2, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. HipHopDX. Retrieved on November 28, 2010.
  20. ^ Callahan-Bever, Noah (November 2010). Kanye West: Project Runaway – Page 4 Archived November 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Complex. Retrieved on October 18, 2022.
  21. ^ a b Callahan-Bever, Noah (November 2010). Kanye West: Project Runaway – Page 4 Archived November 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Complex. Retrieved on October 18, 2022.
  22. ^ Barshad, Amos (April 30, 2010). "D.J. Premier on the New Kanye Album: 'No Electro'". Vulture. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  23. ^ a b "Pusha T Reveals What He Can't Reveal About Kanye's G.O.O.D. Music Project". Rolling Stone. August 7, 2012. Archived from the original on August 10, 2012. Retrieved August 11, 2012.
  24. ^ a b c d Phillips, Rashad (October 4, 2010). Kanye West Set To Release New Album On Monday, November 22. HipHopDX. Retrieved on November 27, 2010. Archived December 1, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Dombal, Ryan (November 21, 2010). "Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on November 23, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  26. ^ a b Paine, Jake (November 15, 2010). "Kanye West My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Album Review". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on November 2, 2011. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  27. ^ a b Caramanica, Jon (November 17, 2010). "Kanye West, Still Unfiltered, on Eve of Fifth Album". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 12, 2017. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  28. ^ Washington, Jesse (November 23, 2010). "Kanye's great 'Fantasy' only lacks fun". Florida Today. Cocoa, Florida. p. 22. Retrieved July 16, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ a b c d e Sheffield, Rob (November 9, 2010). "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 18, 2010. Retrieved November 9, 2010.
  30. ^ a b c Jones, Steve (November 23, 2010). "Kanye West's 'Twisted Fantasy' contains a beautiful reality". USA Today. Archived from the original on March 1, 2016. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  31. ^ a b c Concepcion, Mariel (November 30, 2010). "Kanye West, 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 5, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
  32. ^ a b c d e Kellman, Andy. "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Kanye West". AllMusic. Archived from the original on June 21, 2012. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  33. ^ a b c Vozick-Levinson, Simon (November 12, 2010). "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 20, 2010. Retrieved November 12, 2010.
  34. ^ a b c d e f Fennessey, Sean (November 17, 2010). "Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  35. ^ a b c d Amidon, David (November 22, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Archived August 22, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. PopMatters. Retrieved on November 22, 2010.
  36. ^ Williott, Carl (June 13, 2013). "Kanye West's Pop Report Card: We Grade His Six Albums". Idolator. Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  37. ^ Weingarten, Christopher R. (February 2, 2016). "Will 'Waves' Be Kanye West's First Disappointing Album?". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 11, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  38. ^ a b c d e f g h Powers, Ann (November 23, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 23, 2010. Retrieved on July 23, 2019.
  39. ^ a b c Browne, David (November 17, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Archived November 20, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Time. Retrieved on November 18, 2010.
  40. ^ a b McNulty, Bernadette (November 26, 2010). "Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark may be easier to admire than to listen to". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on August 23, 2019. Retrieved July 10, 2024.
  41. ^ Adam, Park (November 22, 2010). "Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Clash. Archived from the original on May 27, 2024. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  42. ^ Horner, Al (January 20, 2014). "Kanye West's Interview With '12 Years A Slave' Director Steve McQueen – 10 Key Quotes". NME. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
  43. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Graves, Kirk Walker (June 19, 2014). My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 9781623565428. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Goodreads.
  44. ^ Pagnani, Renato (November 23, 2010). "When more becomes too much". Edmonton Journal. p. 23. Archived from the original on July 16, 2024. Retrieved July 16, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  45. ^ a b c Grischow, Chad (November 23, 2010). "Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Review – Music Review". IGN. Archived from the original on April 1, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2011.
  46. ^ a b c Rabin, Nathan (November 23, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy . The A.V. Club. Retrieved on November 23, 2010.
  47. ^ Cormier, Ryan (December 5, 2010). "Of note". The News Journal. p. 86. Archived from the original on July 16, 2024. Retrieved July 16, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  48. ^ a b c d e f Christgau, Robert (November 30, 2010). "The Roots/Kanye West". MSN Music. Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
  49. ^ a b c d e f Martins, Chris (November 11, 2010). "Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Roc-A-Fella)". Spin. Archived from the original on November 14, 2010. Retrieved November 11, 2010.
  50. ^ Dunlevy, T'cha (November 23, 2010). "Inside Kanye's fantasyland". Vancouver Sun. p. 27. Retrieved July 16, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  51. ^ a b c d e f g h i Cole, Matthew (November 20, 2010). "Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2010.
  52. ^ McCoy, Heath (November 23, 2010). "Epic Fantasy – Kanye West doesn't back down with intense album". Calgary Herald. p. 50. Retrieved July 16, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  53. ^ a b c d Fennessey, Sean (November 17, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Page 2 Archived October 21, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. The Village Voice. Retrieved on November 17, 2010.
  54. ^ a b Richards, M.T. (November 23, 2010). "Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Paste. Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  55. ^ a b c d e Kot, Greg (November 17, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Archived April 6, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved on November 17, 2010.
  56. ^ Powell, Austin (December 31, 2010). "Review: Kanye West - Music". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on November 7, 2012. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  57. ^ Maloney, Sean L. (November 22, 2010). "Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on May 23, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  58. ^ a b c d e Denney, Alex (November 19, 2010). "Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy review". NME. Archived from the original on November 24, 2010. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
  59. ^ Anderson, Kyle (November 15, 2010). Inside Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy: 'Dark Fantasy' Archived September 12, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. MTV News. Retrieved on December 11, 2017.
  60. ^ Bailey, Julius (2014). Gorgeous – The Cultural Impact of Kanye West. New York City: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-1137395818. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  61. ^ a b Weiner, Jonah (November 22, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Archived April 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Slate. Retrieved on January 29, 2011.
  62. ^ Anderson, Kyle (November 4, 2010). "Kanye West's Massive Posse Track 'All Of The Lights' Leaks". MTV News. Archived from the original on November 29, 2010. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  63. ^ Roberts, Steven (November 22, 2010). Kanye's 'All Of The Lights': A Vocal Breakdown Archived October 25, 2022, at the Wayback Machine. MTV News. Retrieved on October 25, 2022.
  64. ^ a b c Empire, Kitty (November 19, 2010). "Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam) – review". The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  65. ^ a b c d Gill, Andy (November 19, 2010). "Album: Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Def Jam)". The Independent. Archived from the original on November 22, 2010. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  66. ^ a b Burrell, Ian (September 22, 2007). Kanye West: King of rap Archived July 4, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. The Independent. Retrieved on January 29, 2011.
  67. ^ Conner, Thomas (November 21, 2010). Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Archived October 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved on November 21, 2010.
  68. ^ Frere-Jones, Sasha (December 6, 2010). "Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Page 2". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on December 11, 2011. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  69. ^ Wete, Brad (September 12, 2010). Kanye West admits he's a douchebag, debuts 'Runaway' to close VMAs: Watch here Archived January 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on November 30, 2010.
  70. ^ a b Bain, Becky (November 9, 2010). "Kanye West Gets Caught in The 'Blame Game' With John Legend And Chris Rock". Idolator. Archived from the original on July 11, 2012. Retrieved April 27, 2012.
  71. ^ Sherburne, Philip (August 25, 2014). "Aphex Twin Speaks on His New Album, Being Sampled by Kanye, More". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  72. ^ Bailey, Julius (2014). Blame Game – The Cultural Impact of Kanye West. New York City: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-1137395818. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  73. ^ Caramanica, Jon (March 3, 2011). "Chris Rock in Stephen Adly Guirgis's Play on Broadway". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 24, 2012. Retrieved April 27, 2012.
  74. ^ a b Hermes, Will (October 25, 2010). "Lost in the World by Kanye West feat. Bon Iver and Gil Scott-Heron". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 19, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2011.
  75. ^ Rodriguez, Jayson (September 29, 2010). "New Kanye West Track, 'Lost In The World,' Leaks Online". MTV News. Archived from the original on September 25, 2011. Retrieved May 2, 2011.
  76. ^ Frere-Jones, Sasha (December 6, 2010). "Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on October 16, 2011. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  77. ^ "Kanye adds M.I.A. to the mix on latest album". The Independent. September 23, 2010. Archived from the original on November 10, 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2010.
  78. ^ Concepcion, Mariel (September 21, 2010). "M.I.A. To Collaborate With Kanye?". Billboard. Archived from the original on August 31, 2014. Retrieved October 19, 2010.
  79. ^ "Kanye West scraps 'Good Ass Job' album title for forthcoming LP". NME. July 29, 2010. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  80. ^ a b c d Lipshutz, Jason (October 5, 2010). "Kanye West Announces 'Dark Twisted Fantasy' Title and Details". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 14, 2013. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  81. ^ Aswad, Jem (July 28, 2021). "Kanye West's Best Unreleased Albums". Variety. Archived from the original on July 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  82. ^ a b c Montgomery, James; Warner, Kara (October 19, 2010). "Kanye West Says Twisted Fantasy Will Have Five Different Covers". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 22, 2010. Retrieved October 19, 2010.
  83. ^ a b Gary, Kevin (January 10, 2011). "Kanye wanted his cover art to be banned". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on January 14, 2011. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  84. ^ a b Kois, Dan (November 21, 2010). "Artist George Condo Explains His Five Covers for Kanye West's Twisted Fantasy". Vulture. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
  85. ^ a b Kreps, Daniel (October 22, 2010). "Kanye West's Latest 'Dark Twisted Fantasy' Cover Revealed". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 24, 2010. Retrieved October 24, 2010.
  86. ^ Brown, Lane (November 19, 2010). "See New Artwork for Kanye's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Vulture. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved November 23, 2010.
  87. ^ a b c d Michaels, Sean (January 11, 2011). "Kanye West wanted album cover to be banned, says artist". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 25, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  88. ^ Edwards, Gavin (August 28, 2019). "Banned in the U.S.A.: 20 Wildest Censored Album Covers". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 25, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  89. ^ "5 Shocking Album Covers Banned In The USA". BET. Archived from the original on November 5, 2022. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
  90. ^ "The 50 Greatest Album Covers of All Time". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 13, 2015. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  91. ^ Milton, Jamie (November 20, 2017). "The best album artwork of the 21st Century so far". NME. Archived from the original on March 19, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
  92. ^ a b c Concepcion, Mariel (November 30, 2010). Kanye West's 'G.O.O.D. Music Fridays' Inspires Other Artists Archived December 22, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Billboard. Retrieved on November 30, 2010.
  93. ^ a b Kaufman, Gil (August 23, 2010). "Kanye West Promises New Song Every Week Through Christmas". MTV News. Archived from the original on December 21, 2010. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
  94. ^ Young, Alex (November 5, 2010). Kanye extends G.O.O.D. Friday until end of January Archived November 10, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Consequence. Retrieved on November 30, 2010.
  95. ^ Anderson, Kyle (September 13, 2010). "Kanye West's New Song Gives A Toast To The A--holes: Wake-Up Video". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  96. ^ Young, Alex (October 3, 2010). "Watch: Kanye West powers through Saturday Night Live". Consequence. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  97. ^ Rodriguez, Jayson (October 5, 2010). "Kanye West's Album To Be My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 7, 2010. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  98. ^ a b Baron, Zach (November 22, 2010). The Reason Why Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Is $3.99 on Amazon Right Now Archived November 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. The Village Voice. Retrieved on November 24, 2010.
  99. ^ Peoples, Glenn (December 3, 2010). "Analysis: Here's Why Kanye West's New Album Was $3.99 at Amazon". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 18, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  100. ^ Weiss, Jake (July 1, 2010). "Kanye West unveils artwork for 'Power'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  101. ^ Paine, Jake (July 1, 2010). "Kanye West's 'Power' Released As Single, Cover Art Revealed". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on May 24, 2017. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  102. ^ a b Kanye West Album & Song Chart History – Hot 100. Billboard. Retrieved on November 30, 2010.
  103. ^ "Monster – Single by Kanye West, Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj & Bon Iver". iTunes Store. Archived from the original on October 26, 2010. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  104. ^ "Top 40/M Future Releases". All Access Music Group. Archived from the original on January 10, 2011. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  105. ^ a b c Concepcion, Mariel (October 7, 2010). "Kanye West Premieres 35-Minute-Long 'Runaway' Video in London". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 13, 2014. Retrieved October 8, 2010.
  106. ^ DiChiara, Tom (October 23, 2010). "Kane West's Movie 'Runaway' To Debut on MTV, MTV 2 And MTV.com Saturday Night". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 23, 2010.
  107. ^ Kaufman, Gil (October 7, 2010). "Kanye West Screens 'Runaway' In London". MTV News. Archived from the original on November 5, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2010.
  108. ^ Ziegbe, Mawuse; Calloway, Sway (October 23, 2010). "Kanye West Calls 'Runaway' A Reflection of His Entire Life". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 25, 2010. Retrieved October 23, 2010.
  109. ^ a b "Kanye West Puts His Ego in Check at Rodarte". New York. September 14, 2010. Archived from the original on September 18, 2010. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
  110. ^ Scaggs, Austin (November 25, 2010). "Kanye West Gets Ready to Unveil His 'Fantasy'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  111. ^ a b "Kanye West My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy UK 2-disc CD/DVD set (523894)". United Kingdom: Mercury. Archived from the original on March 18, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024 – via eil.com.
  112. ^ Bahron, Zach (December 15, 2010). "After Only Three Weeks, Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Is Out of the Top 10-What Happened?". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  113. ^ "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Stars Kanye West, Kung Fu Panda". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 22, 2014. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
  114. ^ Jesse (March 14, 2011). "Kanye West Set to Rock SXSW, Who Will Join Him?". XXL. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  115. ^ Kaufman, Gil (January 28, 2011). "Kanye West, Killers, Jane's Addiction To Headline Lollapalooza Chile". MTV News. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  116. ^ Perpetua, Matthew (May 17, 2011). "Stevie Wonder, Coldplay, Kanye Headline Austin City Limits". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 17, 2017. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  117. ^ Miller, Jeff (April 18, 2011). "Kanye West Delivers One of Greatest Hip-Hop Sets of All Time at Coachella". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 27, 2013. Retrieved July 1, 2013.
  118. ^ Caulfield, Keith (December 1, 2010). "Kanye West, Nicki Minaj Score Big Debuts on Billboard 200". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 28, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  119. ^ Grein, Paul (December 1, 2010). "Week Ending Nov. 28, 2010: The King And Queen Of Hip-Hop – Chart Watch". Yahoo! Music. Archived from the original on October 13, 2011. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
  120. ^ Caulfield, Keith (December 8, 2010). "Susan Boyle's Back at No. 1". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 13, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  121. ^ a b Cibola, Marco (June 14, 2013). "Kanye West: How the Rapper Grew From 'Dropout' to 'Yeezus'". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 17, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2013.
  122. ^ Grein, Paul (July 6, 2011). "Chart Watch Extra: Eminem Makes Digital History". Yahoo! Music. Archived from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  123. ^ a b "American album certifications – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  124. ^ Unterberger, Andrew (June 23, 2022). "15 of the Biggest 21st Century Albums That Never Scored a Hot 100 No. 1 Hit". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 27, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  125. ^ a b "Kanye West Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  126. ^ a b "Danishcharts.dk – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  127. ^ a b "Danish album certifications – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  128. ^ "X-Factor winner makes ARIA chart debut". The Daily Telegraph. November 30, 2010. Archived from the original on November 24, 2019. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
  129. ^ a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  130. ^ a b "Norwegiancharts.com – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  131. ^ a b "Gaon Albums Chart: Week 49, 2010" (in Korean). Gaon Album Chart. Archived from the original on July 4, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
  132. ^ a b "Charts.nz – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  133. ^ a b "Swisscharts.com – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  134. ^ a b "British album certifications – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  135. ^ a b "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy by Kanye West reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on November 14, 2016. Retrieved October 31, 2016.
  136. ^ a b "Reviews for My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy by Kanye West". Metacritic. Archived from the original on July 17, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2010.
  137. ^ Mahjouri, Shakiel (November 19, 2019). "Kanye West Tops Billboard's List Of 100 Greatest Albums Of The 2010s". Entertainment Tonight Canada. Archived from the original on November 19, 2019. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  138. ^ Reed, James (November 21, 2010). "Kanye's 'Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy' may be his clearest vision yet". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on November 23, 2010. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  139. ^ Denslow, Michael (November 15, 2010). "Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy | Album Review". Consequence. Archived from the original on April 6, 2022. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  140. ^ Harvilla, Rob (May 11, 2020). "Pitch Perfect: The History and Influence of the Pitchfork 10.0". The Ringer. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  141. ^ Moody, Nekesa Mumbi (December 1, 2011). "Kanye gets seven Grammy nominations". The Southern Illinoisan. p. 2. Archived from the original on July 16, 2024. Retrieved July 16, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  142. ^ a b c "Critics' Picks: Billboard's Top 10 Albums of 2010". Billboard. December 14, 2010. Archived from the original on April 20, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
  143. ^ Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - The Top 10 Everything of 2010 Archived December 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Time. December 9, 2010. Retrieved on December 9, 2010.
  144. ^ Best of 2010: Albums Archived December 18, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Slant Magazine. December 14, 2010. Retrieved on December 16, 2010.
  145. ^ a b Fennessey, Sean (December 16, 2010). Staff Lists: The Top 50 Albums of 2010 Archived June 13, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Pitchfork. Retrieved on December 18, 2010.
  146. ^ a b "Rolling Stone's Best Albums of 2010". Rolling Stone. December 7, 2010. Archived from the original on December 10, 2010. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
  147. ^ Aaron, Charles (December 6, 2010). The 40 Best Albums of 2010 Archived December 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Spin. Retrieved on December 6, 2010.
  148. ^ a b Pazz & Jop 2010: Albums – All Votes. The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 20, 2011. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  149. ^ Baron, Zach (January 19, 2011). Kanye West Wins One for the Douchebags Archived January 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. The Village Voice. Retrieved on February 18, 2011.
  150. ^ Pazz & Jop 2010: Singles – All Votes. The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 6, 2011. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  151. ^ a b c Rusty, Clem (January 2, 2012). "Kanye West has the best-reviewed album of 2010". Metacritic. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
  152. ^ Dietz, Jason (November 5, 2019). "The Best Albums of the Decade (2010–19), According to Music Critics". Metacritic. Archived from the original on April 6, 2019. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
  153. ^ Martin, Andrew (December 6, 2012). "Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010) – 25 Rap Albums From the Past Decade That Deserve Classic Status". Complex. Archived from the original on December 9, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  154. ^ "Kanye West,My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010) – The 10 Best Rap Albums of The Last 5 Years". Complex. October 7, 2013. Archived from the original on October 10, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  155. ^ Cohen, Ian (August 19, 2014). The 100 Best Albums of the Decade So Far (2010–14) Archived October 3, 2014, at the Wayback Machine. Pitchfork. Retrieved on August 19, 2014.
  156. ^ a b "The A.V. Club's 50 favorite albums of the 2010s". The A.V. Club. November 20, 2019. Archived from the original on November 20, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  157. ^ a b "100 Best Albums of the 2010s: Staff Picks". Billboard. November 19, 2019. Archived from the original on November 20, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  158. ^ a b "100 Best Albums of the 2010s, Ranked by Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. December 3, 2019. Archived from the original on December 5, 2019. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  159. ^ Christgau, Robert (December 20, 2019). "Dean's List: The 2010s". And It Don't Stop. Archived from the original on December 21, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  160. ^ a b "The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985–2014)". Spin. May 11, 2015. Archived from the original on March 28, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
  161. ^ Hogan, Marc (March 20, 2017). "Exit Music: How Radiohead's OK Computer Destroyed the Art-Pop Album in Order to Save It". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  162. ^ "The 7 Best Songs On Kanye West's #MBDTF". HipHopDX. November 22, 2017. Archived from the original on November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  163. ^ a b "Music: Greatest Albums of All Time". Entertainment Weekly. May 16, 2016. Archived from the original on June 24, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
  164. ^ a b Barker, Emily (October 25, 2013). "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". NME. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
  165. ^ a b "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. May 31, 2012. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
  166. ^ Dimery, Robert; Lydon, Michael (2014). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition. Universe. ISBN 978-0-7893-2074-2.
  167. ^ "The best music of 2010". The A.V. Club. December 8, 2010. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved September 30, 2020.
  168. ^ "10 Best Albums of 2010". Entertainment Weekly. December 20, 2010. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved September 30, 2020.
  169. ^ "The 100 best albums of the 21st century". The Guardian. September 13, 2019. Archived from the original on September 13, 2019. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
  170. ^ Dietz, Jason (November 5, 2019). "The Best Albums of the Decade (2010-19)". Metacritic. Archived from the original on November 15, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
  171. ^ "50 Best Albums Of 2010". NME. December 1, 2010. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved September 30, 2020.
  172. ^ "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s". Pitchfork. October 8, 2019. Archived from the original on November 6, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  173. ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. September 22, 2020. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
  174. ^ Conteh, Mankaprr (June 7, 2022). "The 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 7, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  175. ^ "The 2010 HipHopDX Year End Awards". HipHopDX. December 13, 2010. Archived from the original on August 1, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  176. ^ Semigran, Aly (October 11, 2011). "BET Hip Hop Awards winners". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 25, 2016. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  177. ^ "Nominees are announced for NAACP Image Awards". The Washington Post. January 12, 2011. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  178. ^ "2011 Billboard Music Awards Winners List". Billboard. April 25, 2011. Archived from the original on May 28, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  179. ^ "Nominees and Winners". Grammy. Archived from the original on December 7, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  180. ^ Abebe, Nitsuh (December 1, 2011). "Explaining the Kanye Snub, and Other Thoughts on the Grammy Nominations". Vulture. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved January 31, 2012.
  181. ^ Hyden, Steven (November 30, 2011). "Grammy nominations: Kanye West honored and snubbed; Bon Iver primed to become Arcade Fire 2.0". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on February 3, 2012. Retrieved January 31, 2012.
  182. ^ a b Morris, Christopher (November 30, 2011). "Rappers, rockers drive Grammy nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on February 5, 2013. Retrieved January 31, 2012.
  183. ^ a b Markman, Rob (December 2, 2011). "Kanye West Blames Himself For Album of the Year Snub". MTV News. Archived from the original on February 1, 2012. Retrieved January 31, 2012.
  184. ^ Powers, Ann (December 1, 2011). "Kanye And The Grammys: Why No Album Of The Year Nomination? : The Record". NPR. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  185. ^ Roberts, Randall (November 30, 2011). "Critic's Notebook: Grammy Awards? Your granny's awards". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 1, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  186. ^ a b Touré (December 2, 2011). "Why The Grammys Snubbed Kanye West's Twisted Fantasy". Time. Archived from the original on February 7, 2012. Retrieved January 31, 2012.
  187. ^ Brown, Preezy (April 3, 2022). "10 Rap Albums Snubbed Of The Grammys' Album Of The Year Award". Vibe. Archived from the original on November 3, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  188. ^ "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy by Kanye West". iTunes Store. November 22, 2010. Archived from the original on November 17, 2016. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  189. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  190. ^ "Top 40 Urban Albums & Singles Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. May 8, 2011. Archived from the original on May 18, 2011. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  191. ^ "Ultratop.be – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  192. ^ "Ultratop.be – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  193. ^ "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 06.Týden 2011 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  194. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  195. ^ "European Albums – Week of December 11, 2010". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 20, 2011. Retrieved March 26, 2011.
  196. ^ "Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  197. ^ "Download Album Top 50 (Week 49, 2010)". Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  198. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  199. ^ "Greekcharts.com – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Archived from the original on March 31, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2011.
  200. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Kanye West". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  201. ^ マイ・ビューティフル・ダーク・ツイステッド・ファンタジー | カニエ・ウェスト [My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy | Kanye West] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on May 28, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
  202. ^ "Mexicancharts.com – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2011.
  203. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  204. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
  205. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  206. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  207. ^ "Kanye West Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  208. ^ "Kanye West Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  209. ^ "2010 ARIA Albums Chart". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on October 24, 2019. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
  210. ^ "Adele's "21" crowned ARIA's highest selling album of 2011 LMFAO takes single honours with 'Party Rock Anthem'" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. January 1, 2012. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 8, 2012. Retrieved January 1, 2012.
  211. ^ "Top Canadian Albums Year-End 2011". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 18, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  212. ^ "Billboard 200 Year-End 2011". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  213. ^ "Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums Year-End 2011". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  214. ^ "Top 50 Urban Albums 2012". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on April 9, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  215. ^ "Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums Year-End 2012". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 18, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  216. ^ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2015". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  217. ^ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2016". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on April 9, 2019. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  218. ^ "Billboard 200 Year-End 2016". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  219. ^ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2017". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  220. ^ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2018". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on March 28, 2019. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  221. ^ "Tónlistinn – Plötur – 2018" (in Icelandic). Plötutíðindi. Archived from the original on January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  222. ^ "Top 100 Urban Albums 2019". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  223. ^ "Tónlistinn – Plötur – 2019" (in Icelandic). Plötutíóindi. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
  224. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2021". Ultratop. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  225. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 3, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  226. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Albums Chart for 2022". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on January 4, 2023. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  227. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2022" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Archived from the original on January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  228. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2022". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 2, 2022. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  229. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2022". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 21, 2022. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  230. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Albums Chart for 2023". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on January 12, 2024. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  231. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2023" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Archived from the original on January 7, 2024. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  232. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2023". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 21, 2023. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  233. ^ "Brazilian album certifications – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  234. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Kanye West; 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  235. ^ "Italian album certifications – Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  236. ^ "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy CD | Kanye West Album Box Set". HMV. Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  237. ^ "Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy [3 LP]". Amazon. Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
[edit]
Retrieved from "http://en.wiki.x.io/w/index.php?title=My_Beautiful_Dark_Twisted_Fantasy&oldid=1257221782"