"Flashing Lights" is a song by American hip-hop artist

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

. It features Detroit R&B singer

Dwele Andwele Gardner (born February 14, 1978), better known by his stage name Dwele, is an American R&B singer, rapper, songwriter and record producer from Detroit, Michigan. Biography Gardner was raised on the west side of Detroit in a musical fam ...

and contains background vocals from Australian singer

Connie Mitchell Connie Thembi Mitchell (born ), also known as Miss Connie, is a South African-born Australian singer-songwriter. In 1995 she was a founding member of Primary. Briefly, in 2004, she was vocalist for Machine Gun Fellatio under the pseudonym Feyo ...

. West co-wrote and co-produced the song with

Eric Hudson Eric Hudson (born October 15, 1986) is an American and Grammy award-winning music producer. His parents are Curtis and Phyllis Bivins-Hudson. Curtis is a songwriter and producer, and most notably the co-writer of Madonna's song "Holiday", co-writ ...

and released it on November 12, 2007, as the fourth single for his third studio album, ''

Graduation Graduation is the awarding of a diploma to a student by an educational institution. It may also refer to the ceremony that is associated with it. The date of the graduation ceremony is often called graduation day. The graduation ceremony is a ...

''. The single's cover art was designed by Japanese pop artist

Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts media (such as painting and sculpture) as well as commercial (such as fashion, merchandise, and animation) and is known for blurring the line between high and low arts as well as co ae ...

. The single received acclaim from music critics upon release.

Background

West first unveiled "Flashing Lights" on August 27, 2007, at an album listening session for ''

'' in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, where he played the song over a clip from the

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...

Hong Kong film The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former British colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of pol ...

2046 In contemporary history, the third millennium of the anno Domini or Common Era in the Gregorian calendar is the current millennium spanning the years 2001 to 3000 (21st to 30th centuries). Ongoing futures studies seek to understand what is l ...

'' which he later released on his official blog. The song features

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

R&B singer Dwele on its chorus and contains additional vocals provided by

of the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

group

Sneaky Sound System Sneaky Sound System is an Australian dance music group formed in late 2001 by Angus McDonald on guitar, MC Double D (Daimon Downey) on vocoder and vocals, Damien Hesse (DJ) and Nick Broadhurst on saxophone. They were joined in 2004 by Connie ...

. The collaboration came about when Kanye met Mitchell's bandmates Angus McDonald and Daimon Downey at a diner in

Sydney, Australia Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...

. Seeking musical inspiration, West asked McDonald for ideas, who in turn suggested that he be introduced to Mitchell. After their meeting, West asked Mitchell to record vocals for the song, as well as certain other tracks on ''Graduation.'' Mitchell later admitted that while she previously didn't know who West was and never really cared for hip-hop, the collaboration had changed her views. As a result of its popularity, "Flashing Lights" was utilized by multiple media outlets. In December 2007, the song was used in an ad campaign for

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

vodka

Cîroc Cîroc is a brand of alcoholic beverages produced in France since 2003 and distributed by the British-based multinational alcoholic beverage maker Diageo. The brand family includes vodka, flavored products containing vodka, and brandy. Since ...

, featuring spokesperson

Sean Combs Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

. It is featured in the popular

action-adventure The action-adventure genre is a video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. Typically, pure adventure games have situational problems for the player to solve to complete a storyli ...

video game ''

Grand Theft Auto IV ''Grand Theft Auto IV'' is a 2008 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2004's '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'', and the e ...

'' on the in-game contemporary hip-hop radio station, ''The Beat 102.7''. The song came to be included on '' Now That's What I Call Music 27''. In January 2009, "Flashing Lights" was used once again for the highly conceptualized promotional TV spots co-directed by Emnet Mulugeta and Marcus Engstrand of the upcoming part two of the fifth season ''

Nip/Tuck ''Nip/Tuck'' is an American medical drama television series created by Ryan Murphy that aired on FX in the United States from July 22, 2003, to March 3, 2010. The series, which also incorporates elements of crime drama, black comedy, family dra ...

''. The promo won gold at the North American

Promax Awards The Promax Awards (also known as the PromaxBDA Awards) honor promotion, design, and marketing by a company or individual that is broadcast, published, or released in their respective markets. Promax International/BPME (branded as "Promax") sponsor ...

. The song has been confirmed to be included within the setlist of the

turntable A phonograph, in its later forms also called a gramophone (as a trademark since 1887, as a generic name in the UK since 1910) or since the 1940s called a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogu ...

music video game '' Scratch: The Ultimate DJ''. The song appeared in one episode of the MTV series ''

My Life as Liz ''My Life as Liz'' is a mockumentary-style American comedy television series that centers on the life of Liz Lee, a misfit high-school senior living in a small town in Texas. The series debuted on MTV on January 18, 2010. The first-season finale ...

''.

Music structure and composition

"Flashing Lights" is an

-tinged hip-hop/ R&B song composed in the key of

F♯ minor F-sharp minor is a minor scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative major is A major and its parallel major is F-sharp major (or enharmonically G-flat major). T ...

. It is written in

common time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note val ...

and moves at 90

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ...

. The main and background

vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of st ...

for the song spans a tenth, from C₄ to E₅. Opening with a gradual, rising crescendo of symphonic strings before transforming into a moderately-paced,

synth A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

-driven beat, "Flashing Lights" tells the operatic narrative of man contemplating the complexities of a tragic relationship. After the

introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and ...

, in which Mitchell's processed vocals repeat the titular

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

four times, West raps the two verses, each one followed by the

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

sung by Dwele coupled with the hook. Following a

break Break or Breaks or The Break may refer to: Time off from duties * Recess (break), time in which a group of people is temporarily dismissed from its duties * Break (work), time off during a shift/recess ** Coffee break, a short mid-morning rest ...

, the song enters a passage where its heavily manipulated hook echoes in and out before the

coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

draws the composition to a close.

Critical reception

"Flashing Lights" received widespread acclaim from music critics and was widely regarded as one of the best songs on ''

''. Alex Fletcher of ''

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...

'' highly approved of the single, awarding it a four-star review and asserting that it "easily demonstrates why West is the hottest property in US music at the moment. Mixing chilled-out electronics, jittering synths and laid-back, old-skool hip-hop, he creates a sumptuous track that grows more intriguing with every listen." ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' gave a favorable review, claiming that it "does a great job of reintroducing ''

Miami Vice ''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann (director), Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo ...

''-esque keys." ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' also gave the song a positive review, stating that within it, "West single-handedly takes hip-hop back to its pre-

Run-DMC Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history ...

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric p ...

days." ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television ...

'' complimented "Flashing Lights" for its glitzy sound as well as its futuristic feel. ''

Stylus Magazine ''Stylus Magazine'' was an American online music and film magazine, launched in 2002 and co-founded by Todd L. Burns. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog. Addi ...

'' music reviewer Jayson Greene heralded the "gorgeously airy" single as "one of the most unabashedly graceful things heard on a commercial hip-hop record in years." "Flashing Lights" was listed as the 31st-best song of 2007 by ''Stylus Magazine''. The song was also listed at number 13 on ''Pitchfork''s "The 100 Best Tracks of 2008". It was later cited as the 52nd best song of the entire decade by ''Pitchfork'', which wrote, "It's classic Kanye-- self-possessed, superfluously art-ridden, probably too clever by half. In Kanye's post-everything museum,

da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested on h ...

sidles up next to a bust of

Julius The gens Julia (''gēns Iūlia'', ) was one of the most prominent patrician families in ancient Rome. Members of the gens attained the highest dignities of the state in the earliest times of the Republic. The first of the family to obtain the ...

; a

Karen O Karen Lee Orzolek (born November 22, 1978) is a South Korean-born American singer, musician, and songwriter. She is the lead vocalist for the indie rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Early life She was born in Seoul, South Korea, the daughter of a Ko ...

-repping blog post follows one dedicated to 10-ft. tall "Chewing Gum Sculptures"; Parisian house mingles with stadium hip-hop. 'But what do I know?' goes the hook, pop-pushing curiosity still intact." MTV named it the second best hip-hop single of 2008.

Chart performance

Fueled by the momentum of ''Graduations release, even before actually being released as a single, "Flashing Lights" entered the ''

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

chart at number 23 for the issue date of October 13, 2007. The next week, the song descended two spaces to the 25th position. Two weeks later, "Flashing Lights" rebounded and climbed up to peak at number twelve on the chart for the issue dated November 3. "Flashing Lights" debuted at number 61 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

for the chart week of November 10, 2007. The next week, the song yielded a single space and moved down to number 61. However, it rebounded the following week and moved up to number 47 on the issue dated November 24. Over the course of the following five weeks, "Flashing Lights" climbed upwards on the chart before finally peaking at number twelve on the issue date of December 29. The song later reached this position again on the issue dated February 2, where it remained for two weeks in a row before relapsing. The song entered the

Hot Rap Tracks Hot Rap Songs (formerly known as Hot Rap Tracks and Hot Rap Singles) is a chart released weekly by ''Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stati ...

chart at number 25 on the issue dated November 11, where it stayed for two weeks. By the issue dated December 29, the song had climbed up 20 spaces to reach the fifth position, where it remained for an additional three weeks. "Flashing Lights" peaked at number two on the chart for the issue date of January 26, 2008, where it stayed for two weeks in a row. "Flashing Lights" first appeared on the

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart at number 22 for the issue date of November 24, 2007. The next week, it climbed 19 places to reach its peak on the chart at number three. "Flashing Lights" was the "Hot Shot Debut" of the week on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

, debuting at number 75 on November 29. The next week, the single climbed up to number 57 for the issue date of December 15. In its third week on the chart, "Flashing Lights" moved up another seven spaces to reach number 50. The following week, it ascended eleven places to the 39th position for the issue dated December 29. The song moved up three spaces the week after to reach number 36. On the issue date of January 12, "Flashing Lights" fell 13 places to number 49. However, the single experienced a rebound the next week and ascended fourteen spaces to the 35th position. The song rose again the following week to reach number 30 for the issue dated January 26. "Flashing Lights" peaked at the number 29 spot on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on the issue date of February 2, 2008, making it the lowest peaking song in the 2008 ''Billboard'' Year-End. In

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

, the song debuted at number 88 on the issue date of February 23, 2008. The next week, it climbed up to reach number 67. The following week, "Flashing Lights" moved up another seven spaces to peak at number 54 on the issue dated March 3. Despite only charting at number 29, in the UK, the song has remained successful and is played on the KISS network daily. The song's highest

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an chart performance occurred in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

, where it charted at number five for the issue date of April 12, 2008. On the issue date of May 3, "Flashing Lights" debuted and peaked at number 84 on the

European Hot 100 The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by ''Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately f ...

Music video

In total, three separate videos were made for "Flashing Lights" with the one aired on television being the third and final version. The third music video was first unveiled before an audience of two hundred guests at the ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

after-party on February 10, 2008. It was intended to premiere on

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...

on February 13, 2008, but was subsequently pulled from schedule. West decided to premiere the video on his official blog that same day. The video was co-directed by

Spike Jonze Adam H. Spiegel (born October 22, 1969), known professionally as Spike Jonze, is an American filmmaker, actor, musician, and photographer. His work includes commercials, film, music videos, skateboard videos and television. Jonze began his ca ...

along with West himself and produced by Jonathan Becker and Joshua Greenberg of Bucks Boys Productions. Filmed in January 2008 entirely in

slow-motion Slow motion (commonly abbreviated as slo-mo or slow-mo) is an effect in film-making whereby time appears to be slowed down. It was invented by the Austrian priest August Musger in the early 20th century. This can be accomplished through the use ...

, the video begins with a Ford Mustang Bullit rolling onto the screen and stopping at dusk in the desert outside

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

. As the bright, red taillights turn off, the song breaks into its titular refrain and

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

-based ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's Lifestyle magazine, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from H ...

'' model Rita G. exits the vehicle dressed in a wig, fur coat and large black sunglasses. Walking a distance away from the car, she strips down to her

lingerie Lingerie (, , ) is a category of primarily women's clothing including undergarments (mainly brassieres), sleepwear, and lightweight robes. The choice of the word is often motivated by an intention to imply that the garments are alluring, fash ...

and lights her clothes on fire. As she walks back towards the car with flames at her back, West's vocals begin. Kanye himself finally makes his appearance when the woman opens the trunk to reveal him lying in it tied up and gagged. She gently strokes his helpless, terrified face and gives him a light kiss, before retrieving a nearby shovel. As the camera dollies out, the woman raises the shovel over her head and repeatedly stabs it into the trunk. The video then abruptly cuts to the words "Flashing Lights" written red letters against a black screen before concluding over a minute earlier than the album version of the song. The second video for the single leaked onto the internet on May 23, 2008. It casts UK model Charlotte Carter-Allen as a young woman who becomes overwhelmed by the

nightlife. Less than a week apart, the first music video shot for "Flashing Lights" was released on May 29. Directed by

Martin de Thurah Martin de Thurah (born 29 April 1974 in Copenhagen) is a Danish film director, screenwriter, cinematographer and music video director. De Thurah graduated from National Film School of Denmark in 2002. Awards * The music video for Carpark North ...

, filmed in

Berlin, Germany Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

and bearing resemblance to a murder-mystery tale, this version features West pursuing a mysterious woman wearing a couture gown played by American model

Sessilee Lopez Sessilee Lopez (born January 4, 1989) is an American model. She has appeared in Vogue and graced one of the four covers of its "All Black" issue. Career Lopez is of Dominican descent. Her career started in 2004, when she signed with IMG Models. ...

, along with multiple enigmatic characters under the roof of a haunted mansion. This version was listed at number two on the Viral Video Chart on May 30. Following the releases, West clarified on his blog he did not release the two videos. He had produced more than one version of the same video as is common practice and only selected the one he was the happiest with; the rest were leaked. The third video was voted as the eleventh best music video of 2008 by ''Rolling Stone''. ''Pitchfork'' listed the same version as the fifteenth best music video of the decade. ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yo ...

'' named it the 17th best music video of the 2000s decade. In August 2010, during an

Ustream IBM Watson Media (formerly Ustream and IBM Cloud Video) is an American virtual events platform company which is a division of IBM. Prior to IBM acquisition, it had more than 180 employees across San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Budapest offices. ...

session, West admitted that "Flashing Lights" is his favorite music video that he has done so far in his career. In June 2015, French rapper

Nekfeu Ken Samaras (, ; born 3 April 1990), better known by his stage name Nekfeu (), is a French rapper, actor and record producer. He is also a member of the bands L'entourage and 1995. He started his career as a member of $-Crew, with childhood fr ...

takes inspiration in

for the music video of his song "Égérie", where he offers an epilogue of "Flashing Lights".

Live performances

After providing a surprise appearance at a concert held by

Kid Sister Melissa Young (born July 3, 1980), known professionally as Kid Sister, is an American rapper based in Chicago, Illinois. She is known for her single " Pro Nails", which features Kanye West, and for her work as a member of the British music colle ...

American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 int ...

on January 25, 2008, West remained onstage to perform "Can't Tell Me Nothing," "Good Life" and "Flashing Lights". It was there he also announced that he was set to premiere the music video for "Flashing Lights" in the coming weeks. He performed "Flashing Lights" live for the opening of

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

ese artist

's exhibit at the

Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 1.5 million objects. Located near the Prospect Heights, Cro ...

on April 4. During the song's second verse, West playfully courted a woman sitting in the front row, holding her hand as he recited the lyrics. West included "Flashing Lights" within the setlist of his

Glow in the Dark Tour The Glow in the Dark Tour was a world concert tour by Kanye West featuring Rihanna, Lupe Fiasco, N.E.R.D, Santigold and Nas. It began on April 16, 2008 in Seattle, Washington and traveled to Latin America, Asia, Europe, New Zealand, and Australi ...

. In the

space opera Space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes space warfare, with use of melodramatic, risk-taking space adventures, relationships, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, it features technological and soc ...

storyline of the conceptual concert, West attempts to harness the energy emitted by aliens that have taken on the form of the shooting stars mentioned in the song to power his "Spaceship" and make his escape from a planet devoid of creativity. However, the plan fails and the ship plummets from the sky, crashing back to the ground to the tune of "

All Falls Down "All Falls Down" is a song by American hip hop artist Kanye West. It was released as the third single from his debut album, ''The College Dropout''. The song was written and produced by West and features singer Syleena Johnson. The hip hop son ...

". Near the end of the tour's North American leg, West performed the song during the final night of

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual music festival. Musi ...

2008 in August in his hometown of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, where he co-headlined the festival with

Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...

. In August, West also played "Flashing Lights" at the Exdo Event Center in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

for a private show held for

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Born and raised in Dublin, he attended ...

humanitarian Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...

organization

ONE 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

. During his performance, he produced a

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * ICD Freestyle, a paintball marker * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott Lab ...

that included improvised lines touching on Democratic presidential candidate

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

as well as his late mother. Kanye performed the song during his appearance at the

Knitting Factory The Knitting Factory is a nightclub in New York City that features eclectic music and entertainment. After opening in 1987, various other locations were opened in the United States. The Knitting Factory gave its audience poetry readings, perform ...

on September 9. West provided a live rendition of "Flashing Lights" during his appearance on VH1 Storytellers on February 28, 2009. "Flashing Lights" was performed at while West headlined the

Met Gala The Met Gala, or Met Ball, formally called the Costume Institute Gala or the Costume Institute Benefit, is an annual fundraising gala held for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute in New York City. It is popularly ...

on May 5, 2009.

Cover versions and remixes

The song was remixed by

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indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

musician Colin Munroe, who retitled it "I Want Those Flashing Lights" and made his own music video. It eventually caught the attention of Kanye West, who expressed his affinity by posting its accompanying video directed by Philip Sportel up on his official blog. The official remix of "Flashing Lights" featured R&B singer-songwriter R. Kelly. A HBCU Marching Band performed "Flashing Lights" at the

Georgia Dome The Georgia Dome was a domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of the Georgia World Congress Center ...

Battle of the Bands on January 26, 2008. Styles P released a freestyle over the instrumental. The song has been covered during live performances by ''

Lorde Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor (born 7 November 1996), known professionally as Lorde ( ), is a New Zealand singer-songwriter. Taking inspiration from aristocracy for her stage name, she is known for her unconventional musical styles and i ...

''. Canadian nu-jazz band

Badbadnotgood BadBadNotGood (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian instrumental band and production team from Toronto, Canada. The group was founded in 2010 by bassist Chester Hansen, keyboardist Matthew Tavares, and drummer Alexander Sowinski. In 2016, they w ...

made an instrumental cover of the song. Italian jazz-rap Studio Murena produced a new version of the song adding lyrics to Badbadnotgood's cover.

Media usage

* It was featured in ''

'', appearing on the in-game radio station The Beat 102.7. * The song was used during a scene in the 2016 animated film ''

Sing Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

''. * "Flashing Lights" was featured in a 2010

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commercial. * In 2015, ABC used the song in a commercial for NBA Saturday Primetime. * It was used in a 2018 J'Adore television commercial starring

Charlize Theron Charlize Theron ( ; ; born 7 August 1975) is a South African and American actress and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actresses, she is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. In 20 ...

, titled: The New Absolu: The Film. *It was used in a 2019 J'Adore television commercial, titled: Bath Ritual.

Track listing

Digital single # "Flashing Lights" – 3:57 UK CD single # "Flashing Lights" – 3:57 # "Stronger" ( Andrew Dawson Remix) – 4:45 UK 12" single # "Flashing Lights" – 3:57 # "Flashing Lights" (Instrumental) – 3:57 # "Stronger" (Andrew Dawson Remix) – 4:45

Personnel

Information taken from ''Graduation'' liner notes. *Songwriters: Kanye West and Eric Hudson *Producers: Kanye West and Eric Hudson *Mix engineer: Andrew Dawson *Assistant engineers: Matty Green, Anthony Palazzole, Andy Marcinkowski *Violins: Emma Kummrow, Igor Szwec, Gloria Justen, Olga Konopelsky, Luigi Mazzocchi, Charles Parker *Violas: Peter Nocella and Alexandra Leem *Cello: Jennie Lorenzo *Bass: Tim Ressler *String arrangements: Larry Gold *Additional vocals: Connie Mitchell

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

*
"Flashing Lights" lyrics
at

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

* {{authority control 2007 songs 2008 singles Kanye West songs Music videos directed by Kanye West Music videos directed by Spike Jonze Song recordings produced by Kanye West Songs written by Kanye West Roc-A-Fella Records singles Songs written by Eric Hudson Song recordings produced by Eric Hudson