"The Corner"
Single byCommon featuringKanye West andThe Last Poets
from the albumBe
Released	March 1, 2005
Recorded	Sony Music Studios,New York,NY
Genre	Hip hop
Length	3:45
Label	GOOD Music,Geffen
Songwriters	Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Abiodun Oyewole Umar Bin Hassan Leon Moore
Producer	Kanye West
Common singles chronology
"The Food" (2004) "The Corner" (2005) "Go!" (2005)
Kanye West singles chronology
"Down and Out" (2005) "The Corner" (2005) "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (2005)
The Last Poets singles chronology
"Panthers" (2002) "The Corner" (2005)

"The Corner" is the second single released byrapperCommon on his sixth album,Be. It features achorus and production byKanye West as well asspoken word lyrics byThe Last Poets. The song's lyrics deal with street corners in poor neighborhoods. The song's beat containssamples from "You Make the Sun Shine" by The Temprees and "What It Is" byThe Temptations. Because of the song's gritty sound, some fans considered it to be a return to Common'sResurrection days.^[1] A music video directed by Kanye West was made for "The Corner."

"The Corner" attained some commercial success reaching #42 on theHot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, but was even more popular among critics. Amongst other accolades, it was nominated as theBest Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the48th Grammy Awards. Spence D. ofIGN.com explains the basis for its success writing:

"The Corner" [...] is the defacto bomb on the album. West's groove is sick and witty, piano and bass meshing together in a smoothly lumbering lope with a nice accentuated vocal sample on the chorus. The addition of the legendary Last Poets only elevates the tune to the next level. One of the best burners of the year, hands down.^[2]

In addition, Nathan Brackett ofRolling Stone states that it is one of the "hardest-rocking tracks of Common's career."^[3]Pitchfork Media's Tom Breihan considers the beat to be "dusty and heavenly."^[4]Steve Juon of RapReviews.com claims Common's lyrics to contain profound observations of urban life that show why hip hop is the "black man'sCNN."^[5] Common understands that critics consider "The Corner" to be a return from hisElectric Circus style. As he says on "They Say" from his 2005 albumBe: "They say the crochet pants and the sweater was wack/Seen 'The Corner', now they say that nigga's back."

• The officialremix featuringKanye West,The Last Poets,Scarface,Mos Def and a new verse by Common can be found on Scarface's 2005 albumMy Homies Part 2. It was also released by Common as a single.
• This song was covered with heavily revised lyrics byClipse on theirWe Got It 4 Cheap: Vol. 2mixtape.

1. "The Corner" (Radio) (3:46)
2. "The Corner" (Instrumental) (3:46)
3. "The Corner" (Radio A Capella) (3:34)

1. "The Corner" (LP) (3:46)
2. "The Corner" (LP A Capella) (3:46)
3. "The Corner" (Last Poet Reprise) (3:46)

• List of Common songs

• 2005 singles
• Common (rapper) songs
• Kanye West songs
• Song recordings produced by Kanye West
• Songs written by Kanye West
• GOOD Music singles
• Songs written by Common (rapper)
• Music videos directed by Kanye West
• 2005 songs

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