The 50 Best Kanye West Songs Ever

8. Stronger

Release Date: July 31, 2007

Album: Graduation

Writer(s): Kanye West, Thomas Bangalter, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, Edwin Birdsong

Producer(s): West, Mike Dean

Notable Lyric:

“I don’t know if you got a man or not

If you made plans or not

If God put me in ya plans or not

I’m tripping, this drink got me saying a lot

But I know that God put you in front of me

So how the hell could you front on me?”

It is absolutely worth your time to go through the Genius annotations for “Stronger.” Part of it’s done by A-Trak, Kanye’s tour DJ around the time that Graduation was being made. And it’s fascinating.

It reveals Kanye’s process when it comes to sampling. For “Stronger,” for instance, Kanye hadn’t even heard of Daft Punk until A-Trak introduced him to them. He listened to the French DJ duos tracks, absorbed them into his musical understanding and found a way to work with it.

The same is true in countless other instances in Kanye’s career, and not just with sampling. He has a unique way of incorporating non-musical inspiration into his music, even from disciplines as far removed as architecture, fashion and pornography. While the sampling on “Stronger” is relatively straightforward, it’s still stands out as one of his most inspired efforts.

Next: 7. Gold Digger