The 50 Best Kanye West Songs Ever

23. Gorgeous

Release Date: November 22, 2010

Album: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Writer(s): Kanye West, Ernest Wilson, Mike Dead, Che Smith, Corey Woods, Scott Mescudi, Gene Clark, Roger McGuinn

Producer(s): West, No I.D., Dean

Notable Lyric:

“Penitentiary chances, the devil dances

And eventually answers to the call of Autumn

All of them fallin’ for the love of ballin’

Got caught with 30 rocks, the cop look like Alec Baldwin

Inter century anthems based off inner city tantrums

Based off the way we was branded

Face it, Jerome get more time than Brandon”

Just like “Amazing” from 808s & Heartbreak, the title of “Gorgeous” contrasts sharply with its lyrical content. Kanye delves deep into how discrimination shapes the lives of the average black person in America, while also reflecting on how his own blackness has affected his career.

This song comes early in My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, before many of the songs that would go on to become the album’s biggest hits. Kanye’s verses here are some of the best he’d written up to that point in his career though. Along with the opening track, “Dark Fantasy,” “Gorgeous” set the stage thematically for arguably the greatest album Kanye has ever made.

Next: 22. Wolves