| "Ghost Town" | |
|---|---|
| Song byKanye West | |
| from the albumYe | |
| Released | June 1, 2018 |
| Recorded | October 31, 2017 – June 1, 2018 |
| Studio | West Lake Ranch,Jackson Hole, Wyoming |
| Genre | |
| Length | 4:31 |
| Label | |
| Songwriters | |
| Producers | |
"Ghost Town" is a song by American rapperKanye West from his eighth studio album,Ye (2018). The song features vocals fromPartyNextDoor,Kid Cudi, and070 Shake. It was produced by West, co-produced byMike Dean, and features additional production fromFrancis and the Lights,Benny Blanco, andNoah Goldstein. The song is ahip-hop track that featurespsychedelic elements. It is composed around asample of "Take Me for a Little While", performed by the Royal Jesters, and also includes a sample of "Someday", performed by Shirley Ann Lee.
The mind of West is demonstrated as going through the unraveling process within "Ghost Town", which is connected to mental illness, and West's verse features him gargling unfinished thoughts. The song received universal acclaim frommusic critics and was mostly named by them as one of the album's highlights, with general praise from critics going towards 070 Shake's outro. A number of them complimented the lush composition of the song, though some critics expressed somewhat mixed opinions of West's verse. The song was included in end-of-year lists for 2018 by multiple publications, includingConsequence andNME.
"Ghost Town" reached number 16 on the USBillboard Hot 100 in 2018, while peaking at numbers 14 and 17 on theNZ Singles Chart andUK Singles Chart, respectively. The song has since been certified doubleplatinum and gold in the United States and the United Kingdom by theRecording Industry Association of America and theBritish Phonographic Industry, respectively. West and Kid Cudi have delivered multiple joint performances of the song, including performing it onSaturday Night Live and at theCoachella Music Festival in 2018 and 2019, respectively. The song was covered by bothBadBadNotGood andJungle in 2018. A sequel to the song was released by West and Kid Cudi, asKids See Ghosts, under the title "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" on theireponymous debut studio album (2018). The sequel features aninterpolation of lyrics from the song.
A link was shared by West via hisblog on February 7, 2009, to a cover version of his 2007 single "Can't Tell Me Nothing" by Americanpop projectFrancis and the Lights.[1] They first collaborated on the latter'ssingle "Friends" in 2016 alongsideBon Iver, and West has a cameo in the accompanyingmusic video.[1][2] Along with "Ghost Town", Francis and the Lights contributed production to the tracks "I Thought About Killing You" and "All Mine".[3] He handled additional production for the former of the three, alongsideBenny Blanco and Noah Goldstein, whileMike Dean co-produced it and West served as the lead producer.[3]
In a November 2016 interview withNOW Magazine, Canadian musicianPartyNextDoor cited West as someone he wanted to produce and write at the level of, while also stating that he was influenced by West when he was younger.[4] Following the release of his third EPColours 2 in June 2017, PartyNextDoor tweeted on July 20 of that year that he had new music on the way with West, andApple Music simultaneously responded viaTwitter.[5] At the time, it was unknown what project the two were recording for, and PartyNextDoor had only previously contributed to West's work by co-writing "Waves" in 2016.[6][7] PartyNextDoor later tweeted a picture of the two of them talking on July 22, 2017, the first photographic evidence of their collaboration.[5] Alongside "Ghost Town", PartyNextDoor provided vocals and songwriting forYe's track "Wouldn't Leave", though he wasn't properly credited until the album's credits were updated onstreaming services on June 15, 2018.[8]
Initially an unknownSoundCloud user, Americanhip-hop artist070 Shake refused to sign with anyone other than West.[9] 070 Shake ultimately signed to his record labelGOOD Music in 2016 and recalled West advising her "to ultimately be 100 percent open when you're creating and let your mind wander," as well as to not "set any boundaries for yourself."[9] The song and fellow album track "Violent Crimes" both include vocals from 070 Shake.[3] In an interview withRolling Stone, she stated that after the song, a lot of people were contacting her by phone and recalled being "like, 'How did you get my number?' and shit."[10] When listening to the song for the first time, 070 Shake labeled the feeling "surreal" and said she placed focus on taking the whole moment in so she would not have regretted failing to take it in properly after the time, while 070 Shake opined that being on a record with West felt "crazy".[10]
A promotional video was displayed on West's official website from theYe listening party that was set to "Ghost Town" and "I Thought About Killing You", though the website was ultimately updated on October 22, 2019.[11][12] West assembled the listening party on the night before the album's release inJackson Hole, Wyoming, which is the same place that it was recorded by him.[13][14]Kevin Parker ofTame Impala initially believed that he was credited as a co-writer on the song instead of "Violent Crimes", until he was informed that the latter was played at the listening party.[15] Parker had allegedly sent a number ofsamples to West forYe, but assumed that they hadn't made the cut after not hearing back from him.[16] West began to come to Jackson Hole often from early 2017 onwards, months after his stay in the hospital.[17] After he left the hospital, notes were made by West about his experiences and feelings.[17] As part of the album's songwriting process, West gave his notes to various writers for them to help add structure to his thoughts.[17] When discussing his songwriting process during an interview withThe New York Times on June 25, 2018, West revealed that co-writerMalik Yusef was responsible for the lyrics "Sometimes I take all the shine/Talk like I drank all the wine."[17] Before combining rap withrock, West and Kid Cudi had shown admiration for rock artists.[18]
Musically, "Ghost Town" is a hip-hop track that is often noted for its rock elements.[19][22][23][24] The song includes a sample of "Take Me for a Little While", written byTrade Martin and performed by the Royal Jesters, within its leading bass, drum, and keys combination.[20][25][26] The opening of the track features a sample of "Someday", as performed by Shirley Ann Lee.[27] Guitars are included within the song, which some writers viewed aspsychedelic.[19][24][28][29] In particular, "Ghost Town" has been noted for taking rock influence from Kid Cudi's work, with a "strong presence of guitars" that Will Lavin ofJoe.co.uk called "very reminiscent of a couple of tracks" from his second studio albumMan on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager (2010).[19]The Atlantic's Spencer Kornhaber commented that the song features "psychedelic, space-soul, andprog sounds."[18] West's tone is dazed, with him using the same verse melody as that of hisPusha T-featuring single "Runaway" (2010).[21] In the outro,laser sounds are featured.[26]
The song presents the mind of West going through the process of unraveling, with the ongoing speculation that his mental health is often poor.[30] Mental illness is a common theme onYe; the song is linked to the subject matter of the album that West's mind is unraveling.[30] PartyNextDoor sings about feeling so good that it is dangerous.[18] West's verse in the song sees him gargling multiple half-finished thoughts as he opens up his mind.[21][31] The lyrics of West's verse include a reference to the opioid painkiller fentanyl.[32] While singing thechorus of "Ghost Town", Kid Cudiinterpolates vocals fromrock and roll artistDave Edmunds' 1979 version of "Take Me for a Little While".[20] The outro is performed by 070 Shake, featuring her singing about freedom and numbness in a manner that has been described asbelting.[10][18][21][28] 070 Shake explained that she used a metaphor for numbness with the line, "Put my hand on the stove, to see if I still bleed."[10]
"Ghost Town" was released on June 1, 2018, as the sixth and penultimate track on West's eighth studio album,Ye.[33] However, West tweeted out an early track list of theeponymous debut studio album byKids See Ghosts, a hip-hop duo consisting of him and Kid Cudi, on May 15 of that year, and this showed the song as originally being scheduled for release on the album.[34][27] It was slated to be released as the fourth track, though the shuffling of tracks between albums recorded by West led to the song being released onYe instead.[34][27] The song's follow-up was released by Kids See Ghosts under the title "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" on June 8, 2018, also being led to by the shuffling.[18][27]
In an interview withPigeons & Planes, 070 Shake revealed that the song was finished hours before the album's listening party on May 31, 2018, and recalled reference tracks being recorded: "I had done a reference for it, and then I guess he forgot about it. We put that reference on another song, then Kanye did his own reference for that 'free' concept." She explained in the interview that it came close to not making the album's final cut during the recording sessions: "At the end, we were talking and asking, 'Is this the one right here?' And I kind of mentioned 'Ghost Town' and said maybe we could use something from that."[35] 070 Shake elaborated, revealing that after listening to the reference again, West "said, 'Oh yeah, this is the one.'" She concluded, stating, "So 'Ghost Town' almost didn't make it."[35] According to 070 Shake, she wrote the reference track after first arriving inWyoming, and West had forgotten about it due to him being "very focused on a lot of other things, other songs and stuff [sic], and it just left his mind a little bit."[10] Recording forYe started after West made controversial comments aboutslavery in aTMZ interview earlier in May 2018 that led to the album being re-done afterward.[36]
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"Ghost Town" was met with acclaim frommusic critics, often being ranked as one of the album's highlights. Meaghan Garvey ofPitchfork pointed to the track as "ye's clear highlight," while she regarded the outro by 070 Shake and Kid Cudi's refrain as being better than West's verse, especially noting that 070 Shake's "performance is unexpectedly magnetic."[21] Carrie Battan fromThe New Yorker named the track as the best song, pointing out its elements ofsoul andpop punk, though she viewed the track as "the finest example of hip-hop's current fascination with rock music" and praised the outro by 070 Shake for showing that her "androgynous, pubescent voice is used to create a bridge between the joyous and the morbid."[22] Outside of "I Thought About Killing You" and "Yikes",The Independent'sChristopher Hooton billed the track as the album's "only other remotely good song."[37] Hooton continued, viewing it as being salvaged by 070 Shake "with a stunning, anthemic and sincere vocal over a crunchy guitar riff."[37]Rob Sheffield ofRolling Stone complemented the song for being the only track onYe that "stands on its own" and also directed praise towards 070 Shake's vocals, though concluded by writing that the song has "genuine heart – enough heart to make you wish Kanye could find a way out of his current creative trap."[23] Douglas Greenwood fromNME described the song as the album's "penultimate and perhaps strongest track" and argued that it "owes a great deal to its euphoric, rocky outro" from 070 Shake, with him viewing the outro as "a moment of real clarity on a record that's immediately impactful."[38] Writing forEntertainment Weekly, Alex Suskind highlighted the song as one ofYe's "few bright spots," commenting that it "resemblesMy Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy opus 'Runaway'" and Suskind directed praise towards the lyrical content.[39] Adam Rothbarth ofTiny Mix Tapes commented with praise for Kid Cudi's "purposely gnarly" refrain, West's "elegant vocal performance" and the production of the song.[40] However, Rothbarth opined that the production "sets the perfect foundation for 070 Shake's cyclical" outro and cited the outro as one of the highlights ofYe.[40]
Clayton Purdom fromThe A.V. Club stated that "Ghost Town" "holds up the entire album" and labeled the song as "a staggeringly dense sound collage that sounds like a wide-open Wyoming night sky coming alive with dreamy laser blasts."[41]The Irish Times' Ed Power referred to the song as "gorgeous and uncomplicated."[42] Trent Clark fromHipHopDX pointed towards the "passionate cameo" from 070 Shake on the song as what "unveils a star-in-the-making."[43]Greg Kot of theChicago Tribune said that it shows "West telegraphing his vulnerability through shaky singing," despite concluding that 070 Shake "walks away with the song."[44]AllMusic writer Neil Z. Yeung asserted that the song shines as one of the album's "moments of clarity" and commended the lyrical content.[33] For theLos Angeles Times, Mikael Wood viewed West and 070 Shake's singing as "just astounding" and cited the latter's outro as "a star-making cameo," while also noting the clarity displayed by 070 Shake.[45] Zachary Hoskins was less enthusiastic inSlant Magazine, dismissing West's verse despite naming the song as the most polished track onYe and positively writing of the guitar, as well as Kid Cudi's vocals.[24] In a negative review forThe Line of Best Fit, Ross Horton panned the singing on the song and called it "the kind of thing that you once could, objectively, understand to be joke," with the loudness of the vocals receiving criticism from him.[46] Similarly, Steve 'Flash' Juon ofRapReviews complained that having to listen to West's singing on the song makes him "just like 'Whyyyyyyy?'"[47] Juon insisted that his opinion of West lacking in singing ability bore no relevance to any dislike towards him, as Juon admitted thatChris Brown can sing despite not liking him either.[47]
Vulture named "Ghost Town" as one of the best new songs for the week of June 7, 2018.[48] Hunter Harris of the site labeled the track as "a mediocre album's best offering," though directed praise towards 070 Shake's outro.[48] It was listed as one of the best songs from the first half of the year byJunkee, with Lauren Ziegler calling the track "a therapy session."[49]Refinery29 named it to their list of 2018's best summer songs, published in June of that year.[50] OnuDiscoverMusic's November 2019 list of the West's best samples, the Royal Jesters sample on the track was ranked 20th.[51] For the website, Paul Bowler wrote that the sample is where West "returns to the soulful grooves with which he made his name" and viewed it as "powering" West's performance on "Ghost Town".[51]
The track appeared on year-end lists by multiple publications, including being listed as the fifth-best song of 2018 byConsequence.[52] Matt Melis of the publication complimented it as the "very best" of West's 2018, and Melis described the track as being "backed by a killer, old-school sample; surrounded by friends; and delivering a liberating, back-to-basics message."[52]Joe ranked "Ghost Town" at the same position on their list, with Dave Hanratty calling it "an exceptional song that hit the heavens with power and grace."[53] The track was named byThe Daily Beast as the seventh-best song of 2018, and Marlow Stern called it West's most impressive work from that year, while he praised 070 Shake's outro, which accordingly "soars to the stratosphere."[54]
| Publication | Accolade | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard | The 100 Best Songs of 2018 | 62 | |
| The Best Songs of Kanye West'sWyoming Sessions[a] | 14 | ||
| Consequence | Top 50 Songs of 2018 | 5 | |
| The Daily Beast | The 20 Best Songs of 2018 | 7 | |
| Highsnobiety | The 50 Best Songs of 2018 | 37 | |
| Joe | The 20 Best Songs of 2018 | 5 | |
| NME | The Songs of the Year 2018 | 36 | |
| NPR | The 100 Best Songs of 2018 | 56 | |
| Triple J | Hottest 100 of 2018 | 98 | |
| The Village Voice | ThePazz & Jop Music Critics Poll 2018 | 42 |
Following the release ofYe, "Ghost Town" debuted on the USBillboard Hot 100 at number 16, standing as the highest charting non-single from the album.[61] The song entered the USStreaming Songs chart at number eight, with 29.7 million streams.[62] On the USHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, it opened at number 11.[63] By debuting at number two on the USHot R&B Songs chart, the song stood as the only track from the album to enter the charts.[64] The next week, following the release ofKids See Ghosts, the song descended 44 places to number 60 on the Hot 100, though it was two places higher on the chart than "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)".[65][66] For 2018, "Ghost Town" ranked at number 42 on the year-end US Hot R&B Songs chart.[67] The song was certifieddouble platinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for amassing 2,000,000 certified units in the United States on July 6, 2022.[68]
The track performed best in New Zealand, peaking at number 14 on theNZ Singles Chart.[69] Similarly, the track debuted on theUK Singles Chart at number 17, giving West his third top 40 entry on the chart issue that fell on the date of his 41st birthday.[70] On January 26, 2024, "Ghost Town" received agold certification from theBritish Phonographic Industry (BPI) for pushing 200,000 units in the United Kingdom.[71] The track reached number 21 on theCanadian Hot 100.[72] On theARIA Singles Chart, it debuted at number 22 and came close to giving West his third top 20 entry for that week.[73] The track also reached the top 30 inSlovakia,Greece,Ireland, andPortugal.[74][75][76][77] In Estonia, the song entered at number 37 on theSinglid tipp-40.[78] The following week, it rose five places to number 32 on the chart.[79] The track experienced lesser performance in the Czech Republic, reaching number 42 on the country's Singles Digitál Top 100 chart.[80]
070 Shake performed solely her part on the song live on June 22, 2018 for her set at Ladyland Fest in Brooklyn.[81] The performance generated a positive reaction from the crowd, and they were able to recall the words to 070 Shake's part, though it marked the first time that any portion of the song had been performed live.[81] On August 16, 2018, West and Kid Cudi delivered a performance of a rendition of it live at a surprise show in the Los Angeles nightclub Los Candiles as part of a private party in celebration of West'sYeezy Season 4 collaborator Willo Perron.[82][83] A small room was covered in red lights for the performance, and the crowd joined in when the rappers shouted lyrics from the song, while this marked the first time that West had performed it live.[82][83] The track was performed live by West, Kid Cudi, and 070 Shake on the outro of the44th season premiere ofSaturday Night Live (SNL) in September 2018, with them being accompanied by a backing band.[84][85] However, the performance was cut off around the time that 070 Shake began to deliver her part of it, and the song was followed by a speech from the West about his support of US PresidentDonald Trump.[84][85] Prior to West's appearance,SNL creatorLorne Michaels revealed in an interview on theOrigins With James Andrew Miller podcast that West was booked for the show when he stepped up after singerAriana Grande dropped out.[86] For West and Kid Cudi's first performance, billed as Kids See Ghosts, the duo performed the song live as the closer to their set at the 2018Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival.[87]
West was joined by Kid Cudi and 070 Shake when leading hisgospel group theSunday Service Choir through a rendition of "Ghost Town" at their first concert on January 7, 2019.[88] Later that month, the group collaborated with West for a rendition of the song as part of their concert.[89] The performance began once West got up off a stool 36 minutes into the concert, with the rendition including an extended outro that saw him deliver a sermon.[89] During the sermon, West said, "Don't it feel to know you can never be canceled. They say, 'You can't do this. You can't do that, you'll lose your career,' but I'm still here."[89] On March 24, 2019, the Sunday Service Choir performed the song in Los Angeles for their 12th weekly concert.[90][91] Kid Cudi brought out West as a surprise during the start of his weekend two set at the 2019Coachella Music Festival, where the two performed a rendition of "Ghost Town".[92]
Following the release ofYe, the song became a popular topic with fans of West across Twitter.[31]Avenged Sevenfold memberM. Shadows' published a list of his favorite tracks from 2018, which included "Ghost Town" on it.[93] At a fashion show by Virgil Abloh during 2018Paris Fashion Week, Canadian instrumental music groupBadBadNotGood performed a cover version of the song.[94] During the show, West and Kid Cudi were both in attendance.[94] The laser sounds from the song resurfaced on singerTeyana Taylor's track "Issues/Hold On", which was produced by West and released onK.T.S.E. in June 2018.[26][95] The song was covered by English soul musical collectiveJungle on September 12, 2018, during a BBC Radio 1 session.[96]
On June 8, 2018, the sequel to "Ghost Town", "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)", was released as the fourth track onKids See Ghosts.[18][97] Originally, the prequel was slated for release in this position, while the sequel had not been slated for inclusion initially.[34] Prior to the album's release,Revolt TV writer Ralph Bristout stated that the song managed to "set up the excitement for" it.[98] The titles of the album and the sequel, respectively, are part of a "spooky-ghost routine."[18] The routine is continued by "Ghost Town" being titled as such, whileKids See Ghosts track "4th Dimension" is also linked to the song since they both sample Ann Lee's "Someday".[18][27] Kids See Ghosts are the lead performers of the sequel, differing from the prequel, in which Kid Cudi is an additional vocalist and West is the lead performer.[3][18] The sequel includes vocals from American musicianTy Dolla Sign.[99] The song also interpolates lyrics from the prequel.[27]
The song was less successful than the prequel on the Hot 100, debuting at number 62 on the chart.[66] During Kid Cudi's appearance at Coachella 2019, he brought out West as a surprise.[92] The two of them performed "Ghost Town" and the song alongside other collaborations.[92] The staff ofNME reassembledYe andKids See Ghosts for an edited album entitledYe Sees Ghosts, featuring the prequel leading into the sequel.[100]
Recording
Personnel
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[116] | Gold | 20,000‡ |
| Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[117] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[118] | Platinum | 30,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[71] | Gold | 400,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[68] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
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