| "I Love Kanye" | |
|---|---|
| Song byKanye West | |
| from the albumThe Life of Pablo | |
| Released | February 14, 2016 |
| Genre | Spoken word |
| Length | 0:44 |
| Label | |
| Songwriters | |
| Producer | Kanye West |
"I Love Kanye" (originally "I Miss the Old Kanye") is a song by American rapperKanye West from his seventh studio album,The Life of Pablo (2016). The song was solely produced by West, who wrote it alongsideMalik Yusef. Aspoken word track, it has no instrumental. Lyrically, West shows self-awareness by making fun of his changing public image while referencing theinternet meme that he loves himself. The song received generally positive reviews frommusic critics, who were often complimentary towards West's lyrics. They mostly praised his self-awareness, while a few critics highlighted West's arrogance.
In 2018,Billboard named "I Love Kanye" as the 11th greatest interlude of all time. The song peaked at numbers 14 and 48 on the USBillboardBubbling Under Hot 100 and USHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts, respectively. It was certifiedgold in the United States by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In February 2016, West used the song againstKyle Mooney during their rap battle onSaturday Night Live (SNL).Meek Mill used anInstagram post to reference the song in May 2018. Numerous remixes of the song were released from February to March 2016, including respective ones byKey Wane andDJ Premier.
Prior to "I Love Kanye", there had beeninternet memes about how much West loves himself, which he capitalized on with the song.[1] Many critics and fans have claimed that West's music and political views were better earlier in his career, with him using the song to show awareness of such criticism.[1][2] The song was produced by West, standing alongside "Siiiiiiilver Surfffeeeeer Intermission" as one of the two tracks onThe Life of Pablo that he solely produced. West co-wrote the song withMalik Yusef.[3]
"I Love Kanye" was originally titled "I Miss the Old Kanye".[2][4] A day before the album's release, West debuted the track onSaturday Night Live (SNL) by using it in a freestyle rap battle against American comedianKyle Mooney.[5] On February 14, 2016, "I Love Kanye" was included onThe Life of Pablo.[6] The following month, West took toTwitter and sent out lyrics from the track in separate tweets for each line.[7] When West was atDisneyland in June 2016, a young child asked him how he wrote the track. West replied by grinning and saying, "I just thought about what I loved."[8]
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Musically, "I Love Kanye" is aspoken word track.[9] The song has no instrumental, with West rappinga cappella throughout.[10][11] According to a number ofmusic journalists, he raps in a humorous manner.[12][13][14][15] West ends the song with a laugh.[16]
In the lyrics of the song, West demonstrates self-awareness while mocking his changing public image.[16][17] West acknowledges the viral memes that reference how much he loves himself, rapping "I love you like Kanye loves Kanye" at one point.[1] He also addresses criticism that his music was better in the past, particularly when he released his first two studio albumsThe College Dropout (2004) andLate Registration (2005).[1][2] West refers to different versions of himself, such as the "old Kanye", "new Kanye", and "sweet Kanye".[17] In total, West mentions his forename 25 times in the lyrics.[18]
On February 14, 2016, "I Love Kanye" was released as the ninth track on West's seventh studio albumThe Life of Pablo, which was aTidal exclusive album at the time.[6][19] The song was later made available on thestreaming servicesSpotify andApple Music on March 30, 2016, and West tweeted out a link to the website ilovekanyesong.com that featured direct links to the song on the streaming services alongside their logos.[a][21][22][23] "I Love Kanye" was met with generally positive reviews from music critics, with them mostly praising West's lyrics. Ryan Patrick ofUSA Today highlighted the self-awareness demonstrated by West on the song for showing him "heralding his own singularity as an artist".[16]The New York Times'Jon Caramanica also noticed West's self-awareness, referring to the song as "a rhyme and hubris exercise" that is "also a rant that's also a barometer of public opinion that's also a wink".[24]Rob Sheffield fromRolling Stone admitted West sounding as if he "is actually mourning the long-running love affair between Kanye and Kanye" is why the song "stings, especially the punch line 'I love you like Kanye loves Kanye'" because West has awareness that he consistently "fucks over the one he loves", even himself, who Sheffield asserted West "loves most".[25] Expressing a similar sentiment,Alexis Petridis ofThe Guardian pointed to the line as an example of "self-awareness occasionally suggested byTLOP's lyrics".[26]Pitchfork criticJayson Greene noted mirrors are seen by West "everywhere he looks" after he has "changed the genre's DNA with every album", reaching the point at which every album has provided inspiration for "a generation of direct offspring" and the song's message is clearly that West is done with "creating new Kanyes, at least for now".[13] Greene continued by opining that West is fine "to just stand among them, both those of his own creation and their various devotees" while branding his rapping on the song as "wryly".[13]
Reviewing in hisViceExpert Witness column,Robert Christgau described the song as a "pseudo-freestylemeta-wink" and called it a narcissist's version ofThe College Dropout track "We Don't Care" that is "almost as funny".[12] Christgau elaborated, writing: "The sour-grapes self-examination morphs into a pseudo-outlet track."[12] In a somewhat mixed review forThe Daily Telegraph,Neil McCormick wrote "I love you like Kanye loves Kanye" is West's apparent "idea of an ultimate compliment" and noticed the line is likely his attempt "to make a joke about perceptions of his egomania" while deriding how "underlying it is an actual egomania that blinds West to just how narrow his self-obsession really is".[15] InNME, Gavin Haynes dismissed the song's "postmodernLOLs" as one of the "unwelcome guests" on the album.[27]
In 2018,Billboard ranked "I Love Kanye" as the 11th greatest interlude of all time, and the magazine's Xander Zellner admitted that West "proved to the world that he sees your tweets, he reads the headlines, and he's in on the joke" with the song. Zellner elaborated, observing that the track is "barely a song" and registers "just as much a self-aware personal statement -- closing with the ever-definitive 'I love you like Kanye loves Kanye.'"[28]
Following the release ofThe Life of Pablo, the song debuted at number 14 on the USBillboardBubbling Under Hot 100 chart.[29] That same week, it entered the USHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart at number 48, and received 3.9 million streams.[30] On February 24, 2020, "I Love Kanye" was certifiedgold by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for pushing 500,000 certified units in the United States.[31] Elsewhere, the song reached number 123 on theUK Singles Chart.[32] It peaked at number 35 on theUK R&B Chart.[33]
During a sketch forSNL entitled "Kyle vs. Kanye" on February 13, 2016, West engaged in a freestyle rap battle with Mooney.[5][34][35] The rap battle started with Mooney freestyling against West, which he replied to by using "I Love Kanye" as a freestyle.[5][35] The song was performed live by West as part of theSaint Pablo Tour's kickoff show atBankers Life Fieldhouse inIndianapolis on August 25, 2016.[36] On November 1, 2016, West performed the song for the tour's fourth concert atThe Forum inInglewood.[37]
Following the release ofThe Life of Pablo, the song became a popular topic with West's fans across Twitter.[2][17] The song's line "I miss the old Kanye" was the inspiration for a Stillwater Artisanal beer of the same name, which was in tribute to the line.[38] The label of the beer was inspired by the album's artwork.[38] After West seemingly ranted against him in October 2016, fellow rapperJay-Z referenced "I Love Kanye" as he admitted to "miss the old Kanye".[39] In May 2018, rapperMeek Mill paid reference to the song by posting an image to hisInstagram showing a mock memorial of West that was designed by American art collective SuperPoorKids, with the image being surrounded by the words "RIP Old Kanye".[40][41][42]
On February 15, 2016, a remix of "I Love Kanye" was shared by American producer Stefan Ponce, re-imagining the song with asample ofthe Dramatics' "I Dedicate My Life To You" (1973).[43] A remix by producerKey Wane was released six days later, titled "Kanye".[44] For the remix, a soulful backdrop is added and some of the lyrics are flipped.[44][10] On February 25, 2016, a remix was released byDJ Premier, who had collaborated with West on the remix of thesingle "Classic (Better Than I've Ever Been)" in 2007.[45] Of his latest remix, DJ Premier said: "I'm a street DJ and when a good acappella is naked, you put some clothes on it."[10][45] The remix adds elements of piano, slow-knockingkick andsnare, abassline, and percussion.[45][46] It also featuresscratches from DJ Premier and vocal samples ofLate Registration track "Wake Up Mr. West".[45][47] The same day as the release of the DJ's remix, rapperHezekiah shared his "Pro Remix" of the song. The remix heavily featureschops and combines the original with a sample ofJocelyn Brown's "Somebody Else's Guy" (1984).[48]
A remix of the song under the title of "Old Kanye" by American production teamJ.U.S.T.I.C.E. League and producer 8 Bars was released on February 28, 2016.[49] Discussing the remix, the team explained that they "wanted to take Kanye's verse and make it into a full-blown song".[49] "Old Kanye" has ajazz instrumental and heavily featuressynths, while also adding cascadingchords andsoundbites of newscasts.[49][50][51] The remix includes ahook that is performed by Stige, during whichAuto-Tune is used on his vocals.[50] Stige raps a second verse, which lyrically echoes the sentiment expressed by West on the original.[49] American producerTM88 shared a remix entitled "TrapYeezy88" on March 3, 2016.[52] Prior to the remix, TM88 had worked with West on the rapper's 2011 collaborative studio albumWatch the Throne with Jay-Z.[10] Atrap remix, "TrapYeezy88" runs for two minutes and addshi-hats as well as synths, while West's vocals are chopped up and distorted.[52][53]
Credits adapted from West's official website.[3]
Recording
Personnel
| Chart (2016) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles (OCC)[32] | 123 |
| UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[33] | 35 |
| USBubbling Under Hot 100 (Billboard)[54] | 14 |
| USHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[55] | 48 |
| US On-Demand Songs (Billboard)[56] | 44 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[31] | Gold | 500,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
