"No Child Left Behind" is a song by American rapperKanye West from his tenth studio album,Donda (2021). The song includes vocals from fellow American rapperVory. It was performed by theSunday Service Choir on Halloween 2021, with additional contributions fromJustin Bieber. In July 2021, the song was used in aBeats by Dre commercial during Game 6 of theNBA Finals, which starsSha'Carri Richardson.
DuringDonda's first public listening event atMercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on July 22, 2021, "No Child Left Behind" was previewed by West, with vocals fromVory,[1] but was previously previewed as a one-minute snippet in aBeats by Dre commercial featuringSha'Carri Richardson, prior to the listening party.[2][3][4] In the commercial, West suggested that the album would be released on July 23,[5] and the ad would also air at theNBA Finals.[6] Shortly after the commercial aired, French producerGesaffelstein stated that he had produced the song.[7] Speaking toXXL about working with West, Vory mentioned the faith the rapper has put in him musically, explaining that they are understanding of one another while saying their "vibe is crazy". Vory detailed that even West's childhood friends recognize the vibe, saying of them collaborating, "You would think y'all have known each other for years." The rapper recalled that West originally set out to create an entirely different song titled "Never Abandon Your Child", until he told him to use a different saying of the same meaning, specifying that a quote would be preferable. Vory also stated that West advised him to gain a proper fanbase by putting careful thought into creating a discography, rather than gathering popularity via gimmicks or internet skills.[8]
On August 29, 2021, "No Child Left Behind" was included as the 23rd track on West's 10th studio albumDonda, while it stands as the last track before the second versions of songs.[9][10] A collaboration with West and athlete Sha'Carri Richardson for Game 6 of the2021 NBA Finals was teased via Beats by Dre'sTwitter account on July 20, 2021, with the account mentioning the game number alongside tagging West and Richardson.[11] That same day, a Beats by Dre commercial that stars Richardson and was edited by West premiered during Game Six of the finals, scored by a one-minute excerpt of "No Child Left Behind", marking one of the first snippets from the album.[12][2][13] For the conclusion of the secondDonda listening event at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on August 5, 2021, the song was played as West rose to the ceiling by harness,[14] in a manner that was described byVariety as resembling an ascent to heaven.[15][16] On October 31, 2021, West's group theSunday Service Choir performed agospel rendition of the song as the opener for their Halloween concert at an undisclosed rooftop location.[17] During the performance, Canadian singerJustin Bieber contributed harmonies.[18]
