Watch the Throne
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''Watch the Throne'' is a collaborative studio album by American rappers
Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...
and
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 ...
,
collectively A collective is a group of entities that share or are motivated by at least one common issue or interest, or work together to achieve a common objective. Collectives can differ from cooperatives in that they are not necessarily focused upon an ...
known as The Throne. It was released on August 8, 2011, through
Roc-A-Fella Records Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon "Dame" Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994. History 1994–2000: Formation ...
,
Roc Nation Roc Nation is an entertainment agency founded by Jay-Z in 2008. The company is headquartered in Manhattan and has additional offices in Los Angeles and London. Roc Nation comprises a comprehensive talent agency, sports agency, record label, mana ...
, and
Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The ...
. Prior to the release, Jay-Z and West had collaborated on various
single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...
s, and with the latter as a producer on the former's work. They originally sought to record a five-song EP together, but the project eventually evolved into a full-length album. The album features guest appearances from
Frank Ocean Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...
,
The-Dream Terius Youngdell Nash (born September 20, 1977), better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. His co-writing credits include songs with "Me Against the Music" (2003) for Britney Spears, "Ride ...
,
Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
and
Mr Hudson Benjamin Hudson McIldowie (born 26 June 1979), better known by his stage name Mr Hudson, is an English musician from Birmingham, England. First rising to prominence in 2006 with Mr Hudson and the Library, Hudson later embarked on a solo career ...
. It also features vocal contributions from
Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...
,
Seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...
,
Justin Vernon Justin DeYarmond Edison Vernon (born April 30, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the primary songwriter and frontman of indie folk band Bon Iver. Known for his distinct falsetto voic ...
,
Elly Jackson La Roux ( ) is an English synthpop act formed in 2008 by singer Elly Jackson and record producer Ben Langmaid. The act's debut album ''La Roux'' (2009) was a critical and commercial success, winning a Grammy Award and producing hit singles su ...
,
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 ...
, Charlie Wilson and Pete Rock, among others, and samples of vocals by
soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
musicians
Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
and
Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.
. Recording sessions took place at various locations and began in November 2010, with production led by West and a variety of high-profile producers, including Mike Dean,
Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
,
Pete Rock Peter O. Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapping, rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongs ...
, RZA,
Jeff Bhasker Jeff Bhasker (born March 4, 1974) is an American record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Los Angeles. He was awarded the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year in 2016 and nominated in 2013. An accomplished producer, he ...
,
The Neptunes The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos, ...
, and Q-Tip. Expanding on the dense production style of West's fifth studio album, ''
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released by Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records on November 22, 2010, following a period of public controversy for West. Re ...
'' (2010), ''Watch the Throne'' incorporates orchestral and
progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
influences, unconventional samples, and dramatic melodies in its sound. The braggadocious lyrics exhibit themes of excellence, opulence, decadence, fame, materialism, power, and the burdens of success, as well as political and
socioeconomic Socioeconomics (also known as social economics) is the social science that studies how economic activity affects and is shaped by social processes. In general it analyzes how modern societies progress, stagnate, or regress because of their local ...
critique. The album also expresses other topics, such as Jay-Z's thoughts on fatherhood, West's reflection on being deemed a social villain, and their success as performers. Many writers interpreted the subject matter to concern the plight of
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
s struggling with financial success in America. Seven singles were released for ''Watch the Throne'', including "
H•A•M "H•A•M" is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West. It was released as the first single from their collaborative studio album ''Watch the Throne'' on January 11, 2011. It was produced by Lexus "Lex Luger" Lewis and Kanye West. The son ...
", " Otis", " Lift Off", "
No Church in the Wild "No Church in the Wild" is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West featuring American singers Frank Ocean and The-Dream, from the former two's first collaborative album ''Watch the Throne'' (2011). Opening the album, the song explores t ...
", and the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top five hit "
Niggas in Paris "Niggas in Paris" ( edited for radio as "In Paris" or simply "Paris"; censored on the album as "Ni**as in Paris") is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West from their collaborative album ''Watch the Throne'' (2011). The song is built ar ...
", with all of the singles receiving
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
s. Jay-Z and West embarked on the
Watch the Throne Tour The Watch the Throne Tour was a co-headlining concert tour by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West that began on October 28, 2011 in Atlanta and continued until June 22, 2012 with its final show scheduled in Birmingham. Originally scheduled for ...
for promotion that spanned from October 2011 to June 2012 and became the highest-grossing hip hop concert tour in history. The album received widespread critical acclaim from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
, who mostly praised the rappers' performances and the production. However, some reviewers found the lyrical content uninspiring. Many critics and publications named ''Watch the Throne'' to their year-end best-of lists, including ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' and ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' . The album debuted at number one on the US ''Billboard'' 200, selling 436,000 copies in the first week, and broke the
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
first week sales record at the time. It reached the top ten in 11 other countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom. It was also certified quintuple platinum in the United States by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) in November 2020.


Background

Jay-Z and Kanye West first worked together on the song "This Can't Be Life", from Jay-Z's 2000 album '' The Dynasty: Roc La Familia'', produced by West,Pendergast (2006), p. 174. then on Jay-Z's 2001 album ''
The Blueprint ''The Blueprint'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released on September 11, 2001, through Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. Its release was set a week earlier than initially planned in order to combat bootlegging. ...
'', which showcased West's distinctive style of
hip hop production Hip hop production is the creation of hip hop music in a recording studio. While the term encompasses all aspects of hip hop music creation, including recording the rapping of an MC, a turntablist or DJ providing a beat, playing samples and " ...
at the time. West's early production work on Jay-Z's music helped raise his profile in the music industry. While originally only viewed as a producer, West eventually was seen as both a viable rapper and producer thanks to the success of his debut album ''
The College Dropout ''The College Dropout'' is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on February 10, 2004, by Def Jam Recordings and Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records. In the years leading up to release, West had received pra ...
'' and its singles.Pareles, Jon
"Review: ''Late Registration"''
. ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''. Retrieved on October 6, 2009.
West continued to be one of Jay-Z's main producers on subsequent albums such as '' The Black Album'' and '' Kingdom Come''. Jay-Z appeared on Kanye's first two albums as well, and the two frequently collaborated. Further collaborative work by the two included singles such as " Swagga Like Us" from rapper T.I.'s ''
Paper Trail An audit is an "independent examination of financial information of any entity, whether profit oriented or not, irrespective of its size or legal form when such an examination is conducted with a view to express an opinion thereon.” Auditing ...
'', "
Run This Town "Run This Town" is a song by American rapper Jay-Z. The song also features Rihanna and Kanye West. It was released on July 24, 2009. It was written by the performing trio, with assistance from Ernest Wilson and Jeff Bhasker. Production of the ...
" from Jay-Z's ''
The Blueprint 3 ''The Blueprint 3'' is the eleventh studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released September 8, 2009, on Roc Nation, through distribution from Asylum Records and Atlantic Records. It is the third album in the ''Blueprint'' series, preceded by '' ...
'', and both "
Monster A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...
" and “
So Appalled "So Appalled" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Kanye West from his fifth studio album, '' My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'' (2010). The song was produced by West, along with No I.D. and Mike Dean, and features verses by Jay-Z, Cy ...
” from West's ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy''. During the promotional stages of West's ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'', a remix of the song "
Power Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may a ...
" surfaced featuring Jay-Z. Following this, Kanye West announced on
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
his intention to drop a five-track EP with Jay-Z, titled ''Watch the Throne''. Also according to the rapper, the track "Monster" was intended for the EP, though that failed to surface. It was later revealed by West that the project had been expanded into a full-length album in an October 2010 interview for
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 ...
. He said in the interview that they planned to record in the
south of France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', A ...
. In an August 2011 radio interview with
WEDR WEDR (99.1 FM, "99 Jamz") is a radio station serving the South Florida region and licensed to Miami, Florida. WEDR has an unusually wide music selection for a mainstream urban-formatted radio station that ranges from typical hip-hop and R&B t ...
Jay-Z shared the meaning behind the album's title;
"It's just protecting the music and the culture. It's people that's in the forefront of the music. ''Watch the Throne,'' like protect it. You just watch how popular music shift, and how hip-hop basically replaced rock & roll as the youth music. The same thing can happen to hip-hop. It can be replaced by other forms of music. So it's making sure that we put the effort into making the best product so we can contend with all this other music, with dance music that's dominating the charts right now and indie music that's dominating the festivals."


Recording

Recording sessions for the album took place at Avex Recording Studio in Honolulu, Hawaii; Barford Estate in Sydney, Australia;
Electric Lady Studios Electric Lady Studios is a recording studio in Greenwich Village, New York City. It was commissioned by rock musician Jimi Hendrix in 1968 and designed by architect John Storyk and audio engineer Eddie Kramer by 1970. Hendrix spent only ten ...
;
The Mercer Hotel The Mercer Hotel, located at the corner of Mercer and Prince Streets in SoHo, Manhattan, New York City, was the second acquisition in the luxury collection of André Balazs hotels. It offers 75 guest rooms on six floors of a Romanesque revival bui ...
;
MSR Studios Sound on Sound Studios, formerly known as MSR Studios (Manhattan Sound Recordings) is a photography and movie producing company recording facility in Montclair, New Jersey. Its forebear, MSR Studios, was located in Manhattan, just outside Times Sq ...
; and Tribeca Grand Hotel in New York City;
Le Meurice Le Meurice () is a Brunei-owned five-star luxury hotel in the 1st arrondissement of Paris opposite the Tuileries Garden, between Place de la Concorde and the Musée du Louvre on the Rue de Rivoli. From the Rue de Rivoli, it stretches to the Rue ...
in Paris, France; and
Real World Studios Real World Studios is a residential recording studio complex founded by Peter Gabriel and situated in the village of Box, Wiltshire, England, near to the city of Bath. It is closely associated with the Real World Records record label, Real Wor ...
in Wiltshire, England. The songs "That's My Bitch" and "The Joy" were previously recorded for ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'' as early as July 2010. Production began in November 2010 in England and continued during available times in Jay-Z's and West's schedules at locations in Australia, Paris, Abu Dhabi, New York City, and Los Angeles. In an interview for ''
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 advertise ...
'', Jay-Z said that they often recorded in hotel rooms and that the album went through three iterations, as he and West had scaled back from their original musical direction. He noted difficulties in the recording process, including arguments with West regarding their direction. Following the release of
lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...
, "H•A•M" in January 2011, Jay-Z stated that the less-than-stellar reception caused a change in the production of the album. Jay-Z announced that it was unlikely that the track would ultimately make the album. The issues at the beginning of production had caused a delay in the release. In an interview for ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'', Jay-Z discussed their insistence on recording in person and attributed it to the delay in releasing the album, stating "If we were gonna do it, we were gonna do it together. No mailing it in". The album's earlier sessions produced a little material that has made the final cut. West had brought a majority of his usual production crew onto the project, the same crew that had assisted in the creation of ''
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released by Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records on November 22, 2010, following a period of public controversy for West. Re ...
''. One of the main exceptions was producer
No I.D. Ernest Dion Wilson (born June 23, 1971), professionally known as No I.D. (formerly Immenslope), is an American hip hop and R&B producer from Chicago, Illinois. Wilson is also a disc jockey (DJ), music arranger and former rapper, having relea ...
, who felt that the two artists weren't pushing forward enough with the music. In an interview with ''
Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'', No I.D. commented about the project that "you're going to sell, because you're already big. But you guys are important to push this forward. Push intelligence and decadence and all of the above forward in a creative manner." While his advice was acknowledged to a degree, he ultimately had very little part in the finished project. In January 2011, they regrouped and rented a block of rooms at the Mercer Hotel in New York City and invited a select group of producers and recording artists. Chauncey "
Hit-Boy Chauncey Alexander Hollis Jr. (born May 21, 1987), better known by his stage name Hit-Boy, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. In May 2011, he had signed a two-year deal with Kanye West's GOOD Music production branch. ...
" Hollis, who produced the track "Niggas in Paris", said of recording at the hotel, "There was music going on in every room. I had a room where I was cranking out beats, and then I'd go into the main room with Jay and anyeand play beats for them. Kanye is really hands-on. I would come in with a beat and he'd be like, 'Take this out, slow it down.' It would make it sound 100 times better. Jay would then mumble different flows to the beat". Parts of the album were recorded in New York City's Tribeca Grand Hotel. Recording artist and producer
Ryan Leslie Anthony Ryan Leslie (born September 25, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and entrepreneur from Washington, D.C. He has produced singles for a number of prominent artists in a variety of genres, ranging from R&B, hip hop ...
also confirmed his involvement in the recording of ''Watch the Throne''. Producer 88-Keys reportedly played 20 of his beats to West and Jay, who only eventually used one on the finished album. The
Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
's RZA, who had worked on West's previous album, is credited as a producer on the track "New Day". ''Watch the Throne'' was
mastered Mastering, a form of audio post production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device (the master), the source from which all copies will be produced (via meth ...
by producer and engineer Mike Dean at the Mercer Hotel. Jay-Z and West worked with several guest recording artists, including
Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
,
Frank Ocean Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...
, and
Mr Hudson Benjamin Hudson McIldowie (born 26 June 1979), better known by his stage name Mr Hudson, is an English musician from Birmingham, England. First rising to prominence in 2006 with Mr Hudson and the Library, Hudson later embarked on a solo career ...
. "No Church in the Wild", the last song recorded for the album, was conceived by Jay-Z, West, and the song's producer
88-Keys Charles Misodi Njapa (born March 5, 1976), better known by his stage name 88-Keys, is an American record producer and rapper from New York City. Biography Born in New York City to West African parents from Cameroon, he was raised in the Eastches ...
throughout most of June. Producer and recording artist
The-Dream Terius Youngdell Nash (born September 20, 1977), better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. His co-writing credits include songs with "Me Against the Music" (2003) for Britney Spears, "Ride ...
sings a verse on the track using
AutoTune Auto-Tune (or autotune) is an audio processor introduced in 1996 by American company Antares Audio Technologies. Auto-Tune uses a proprietary device to measure and alter pitch in vocal and instrumental music recording and performances. Auto-Tu ...
. The song features R&B singer Frank Ocean, who released his debut
mixtape A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...
'' nostalgia,ULTRA'' in early 2011 to critical acclaim. The release of the mixtape interested Jay-Z and West. Jay-Z's wife Beyoncé recommended the involvement of the singer in particular, who appears on both "No Church in the Wild" and "Made in America." Ocean admitted that Jay-Z has intentionally intimidated him during recording sessions but declared his enjoyment of working with the two. Ocean mused about the project:
"I rarely do collabs, so that's just one of the ones you absolutely do. It's like a no-brainer. I didn't really think about any of it. The last thing on my mind was working with artists who I've held in high esteem for years. .. I worked with Jay on his solo album before I did the ''Watch the Throne'' sessions. The second time I went it was Barry Weiss, Jay, Beyoncé, Kanye, couple other people, it was a pretty heavy room."
"Lift Off" was recorded in Sydney, Australia. In early May 2011, rumors arose that "Lift Off" was to feature
Bruno Mars Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), known professionally as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for his stage performances, retro showmanship, and for performing in a wide range of musical s ...
who had recorded vocals. It was reported that the song would be released as the lead single from the album. However, Mars never appeared on the song and Beyoncé sang several lines during the chorus instead. Additional vocalists
Elly Jackson La Roux ( ) is an English synthpop act formed in 2008 by singer Elly Jackson and record producer Ben Langmaid. The act's debut album ''La Roux'' (2009) was a critical and commercial success, winning a Grammy Award and producing hit singles su ...
,
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 ...
, and
Justin Vernon Justin DeYarmond Edison Vernon (born April 30, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the primary songwriter and frontman of indie folk band Bon Iver. Known for his distinct falsetto voic ...
provide the
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 ...
on "That's My Bitch", Vernon had previously appeared on West's album ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'', when West sampled Vernon's band
Bon Iver Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon. Vernon released Bon Iver's debut album, ''For Emma, Forever Ago,'' independently in July 2007. The majority of the album was recorded while Vernon ...
's song " Woods", Vernon also provided additional vocals on songs such as "Dark Fantasy" and "Monster".
Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
, who produced "Welcome to the Jungle", also provided background vocals to the track, and
Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...
contributed additional vocals to "The Joy" and "Illest Motherfucker Alive," bonus tracks on the album's deluxe edition. One of the tracks that was recorded but didn't make the cut for the album was "Living So Italian." It apparently sampled
Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor and multi-instrumentalist. He was born visually impaired, with congenital glaucoma, and at the age of 12, Bocelli became completely blind, following a brain hemorrhage resulting fro ...
's "
Con te partirò "Con te partirò" (; "With You I Shall Depart") is an Italian song written by Francesco Sartori (music) and Lucio Quarantotto (lyrics). It was first performed by Andrea Bocelli at the 1995 Sanremo Music Festival and recorded on his album of the ...
" and was described as catchy but for unknown reasons, the song never made it onto the album. In 2013, Jay-Z released his twelfth studio album '' Magna Carta... Holy Grail'', in an interview he revealed that two songs on the album were initially recorded for ''Watch the Throne'', the song "
Oceans The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the worl ...
" which features
Frank Ocean Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...
and the song "
Holy Grail The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracul ...
" which went on to feature
Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with sales of over 88 million records. Timberlake is the recipient of numerous awards and ac ...
(Although Timberlake's contribution to the track was not anticipated at the time, until the duo collaborated on Timberlake's 2013 comeback single " Suit & Tie" and "Murder" from ''
The 20/20 Experience ''The 20/20 Experience'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Justin Timberlake. It was released on March 15, 2013, by RCA Records, as the follow-up to his second studio album ''FutureSex/LoveSounds'' (2006). It is considered ...
'' and ''The 20/20 Experience – 2 of 2'' respectively). West and Jay-Z argued for four days about having them included on the ''Watch the Throne'', however West eventually relented and the duo recorded "
No Church in the Wild "No Church in the Wild" is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West featuring American singers Frank Ocean and The-Dream, from the former two's first collaborative album ''Watch the Throne'' (2011). Opening the album, the song explores t ...
" and "Made in America (Jay-Z and Kanye West song), Made in America". In an interview with Zane Lowe, Jay-Z said: "[There were] no lyrics on 'Holy Grail' and I recorded 'Oceans' and I played those records for Kanye," Jay explained. "And he was like, 'No those have to go on ''Watch the Throne'',' so we spent four days arguing about those records and I was explaining to him why it wasn't right for this project and I had a whole idea for making this album called ''Magna Carta... Holy Grail'', the "Holy Grail" part of the name came after."


Music and lyrics

Julian Benbow of ''The Boston Globe'' writes that the album's music is as "massive, dour, and relentlessly unconventional" as that of West's previous 2010 album ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy''. Music writer Robert Christgau describes West's production as "a funkier and less ornate variant of the progressive rap, prog-rap of 2010's acclaimed ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy''". Music journalist Jody Rosen characterizes the music as "vast, dark and booming," commenting that West "continues in the sonic vein he introduced in ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'', lacing the songs with rock music, rock dynamics, layering his beats with eerie vocal chorales, piling on proggy flourishes." Conversely, Matthew Cole of ''Slant Magazine'' finds West's "knack for dramatic, melodically sophisticated tracks ..channeled away from the Olympian scale" of his previous album "and toward the more commercial vein of Jay-Z's recent work," which he attributes to West splitting production work with several other producers. On the songs' structure, Cole states, "every track eschews the standard verse-hook-repeat format in favor of more dynamic material." Music journalist Alexis Petridis comments that the album incorporates "unlikely sampling (music), samples." Jon Caramanica of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' writes that its production "can be roughly segmented into three categories," noting "Southern-inflected tracks" such as "Niggas in Paris" and "H•A•M", "moody and harsh numbers" like "Who Gon Stop Me" and "Why I Love You", and "the nostalgia that creeps over much of this album, giving it a sonic through-line and mission statement." Pitchfork (website), ''Pitchfork'''s Tom Breihan perceives "pure orchestral excess" on some of its songs and describes the album's musical scope as "a tribute to [West's] distinctive taste and sense of style." The album features themes of opulence, fame, materialism, power, and the burdens of success. Jay-Z's and West's lyrics include boasts of obscene wealth, grandiosity, and social commentary. Sputnikmusic's Tyler Fisher describes ''Watch the Throne'' as "an album centered around larger-than-life egos." Robert Christgau notes "regal grandiosity" and "glory" as primary themes on the album. Andy Kellman of Allmusic characterizes much of the album's lyrical content as "ruthless flaunting of material wealth and wikt:carte blanche, carte blanche industry resources." Rob Harvilla of ''Spin (magazine), Spin'' views that their lyrics express elitism, narcissism, "relentless capitalism," and "smug yet undeniable greatness." Music critic Greg Kot views that the album is about "mutual admiration" and writes of the rappers' respective personas, "Jay-Z is about imperious flow, bridging his gritty past life on the streets with his current status as a cultural tastemaker and business mogul. ..West is more desperate, transparent, awkward, vulnerable." Music critic Nathan Rabin states that Jay-Z and West "are a study in contrasts: the businessman and the bohemian, the faithful husband and the drugged-up playboy, the walking press release and the loose cannon. Jay-Z is tidy. Kanye is nothing but rough edges." Jon Caramanica writes similarly, "breaking ..old barriers is a means to acceptance and stability" for Jay-Z, while "West sounds lonely" with his fame, adding that "For Mr. West every flash of Apollonian and Dionysian, Dionysian extreme is tempered by the realization of its hollowness." In his article "Brag Like That" for Barnes & Noble, Robert Christgau comments that "Jay-Z is a grown man and Kanye is not" on the album and elaborates on their lyrics, stating: Their lyrics also exhibit political and socioeconomic context, which Jody Rosen denotes as "serious, sober, weighty." Nitsuh Abebe of ''New York (magazine), New York'' views that the album is "about the relationship of African American, black American men to wealth, power, and success. ..a portrait of two black men thinking through the idea of success in America." He compares it to Yinka Shonibare's 1998 piece ''Diary of a Victorian Dandy'', "in which the artist luxuriates in all the genteel pleasures of the time." Randall Roberts of the ''Los Angeles Times'' notes "musings on the spoils of riches and the chaos that accompanies it," adding that "[the] tension between worshiping the spirit and celebrating the bounty drives ''Watch the Throne'' ..The record questions faith while clinging to heritage and family, places this moment in an historical context, wonders on the mystery, power and confusion of the gilded life — while rolling around in amulets." Writer Kitty Empire interprets it to be about "black power ..conceived as a swaggering taunt of achievement, in line with both men's previous works, which routinely double as shopping guides. ..[T]hey need to humanise all the conspicuous consumption." Claire Suddath of ''Time (magazine), Time'' views the rappers' "bacchanalia, bacchanal celebration of the finer things in life" as secondary to the theme of "two men grappling with what it means to be successful and black in a nation that still thinks of them as second-class citizen, second class."


Songs

The opening track "No Church in the Wild" features a cinematic production style. Singers Frank Ocean and The-Dream lend their voices to the album's grim opener, which sets the mood with a gnarled guitar sample. Over the rock-centric, rolling production, both rappers muse over familiar themes of loyalty, sexuality and maternal solidarity. On the album, the song closes with a segment of Italian avant-prog band Orchestra Njervudarov's 1979 piece "Tristessa", which reappears at the end of several other songs. The pop music, pop-oriented "Lift Off" features baroque music, baroque strings and a refrain, chorus sung by Beyoncé Knowles, accompanied with synthesizers. The song contains French horn, horns and Martial music#Drum, martial drums as Knowles sings, "We gon' take it to the moon/ Take it to the stars." "Niggas in Paris" incorporates staccato orchestration and fizzing industrial noise, topping it all off with a menacing beat and icy synthesizer notes. The track features an unusual sampling of dialogue from the 2007 film ''Blades of Glory'', notably the "we're gonna skate to one song and one song only" line. West and Jay-Z's lyrics frame their rags to riches story on the song. "Otis" samples Otis Redding's 1966 song "Try a Little Tenderness", manipulating it into a rhythm track with Otis Redding's vocals and grunts. The sample is used in a way that is reminiscent to past Kanye productions, like the tracks found on his album ''The College Dropout''. Redding's vocals are chopped up so thoroughly that his voice serves as a mere melodic riff on the track, with both rappers promptly rapping over it in a braggadocious fashion. "Gotta Have It", produced by
The Neptunes The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos, ...
, incorporates chopped-up James Brown vocal samples and music of Asia, Eastern flute melodies. The song contains haunting backing vocals and an accompanying tambourine with the two rappers trading verses with the vocal riff playing over them. Much like "Otis", the track features sliced-up vocal snippets and an aggressive bass backing, with the two rappings trading lines and making references to the Yung Chris song "Racks (song), Racks" and other contemporary rap trends. On "New Day", they address future sons about fame. It references the line "me and the RZA connect" from Raekwon's 1995 song "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx..., Incarcerated Scarfaces", which was also produced by RZA. The track incorporates a sample of Nina Simone's 1965 song "Feeling Good" through an Auto-Tune voice processor. Both rappers discuss their futures as fathers on the track, flowing smoothly over mellow, lightly psychedelic synthesizer tones. Both Justin Vernon and La Roux appear on "That's My Bitch", spitting off hooks over a quick, melodic beat, with West at his most abrasive lyrically. On "Welcome to the Jungle", Jay-Z laments personal losses and overcoming struggles. Sharing the name with a Guns N' Roses track, Jay describes himself as the "black Axl Rose" over a jittery, treble-heavy Swizz Beatz production. "Who Gon Stop Me" features bombastic production and samples Flux Pavilion's 2011 song "Lines in Wax, I Can't Stop", reinforced with heavy synthesizer and tone shifts. The song utilizes an often experimental, bass-driven and dub-step influenced style of composition, with West forcefully rapping lines like "this is something like the Holocaust". "Murder to Excellence" addresses race and crime in the United States, black-on-black crime and limited social mobility for African Americans. Midway through the song the beat switches up, with Kanye musing over the horrors of black-on-black violence in the first half, and Jay-Z delivering equally meditated comments on black excellence on the more choir heavy second half. A sample from Indiggo's "LA LA LA" can be heard on the song. At 5 minutes in length, the complete "Murder to Excellence" is the longest track on the album. "Made in America (Jay-Z and Kanye West song), Made in America" has themes of family life and the American Dream, with Jay-Z and West discussing their respective rises to fame, while acknowledging those who helped and inspired them. The song has been described as an understated soft-pop track with influence from Michael Jackson and his 1985 charity single "We Are the World". Ocean's hook pays tribute to Martin Luther King Jr., Coretta Scott King, Malcolm X, Betty Shabazz and Jesus on one of the album's more serene tracks. Jay-Z muses on his drug-dealing past with lines like "our apple pie was supplied by Arm & Hammer", with West's verse describing his conflict with fame. "Why I Love You" has Jay-Z lamenting betrayal and how his past protégés failed to maintain without him. The track contains a "sledgehammer beat" which is built around French house duo Cassius' 2010 single "I <3 U So". West's production continues in the sonic vein he introduced in ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'', lacing the song with rock dynamics, layering the beat with eerie vocal chorales in the style of progressive rock songs.


Release and promotion

''Watch the Throne'' was released by
Roc-A-Fella Records Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon "Dame" Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994. History 1994–2000: Formation ...
,
Roc Nation Roc Nation is an entertainment agency founded by Jay-Z in 2008. The company is headquartered in Manhattan and has additional offices in Los Angeles and London. Roc Nation comprises a comprehensive talent agency, sports agency, record label, mana ...
, and
Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The ...
, Jay-Z's and West's respective record labels. On July 4, 2011, it was made available to pre-order on Life + Times, Jay-Z's lifestyle webzine, which redirected to Island Def Jam's website that featured the deluxe version available for $16.99, standard CD for $13.99, a deluxe digital version for $14.99, and standard digital album for $11.99. On July 22, its pre-order was made available on the iTunes Store. Internationally the album was released digitally on August 8 exclusively through iTunes, while its physical release was made available on August 12. Its deluxe CD edition was sold exclusively by Best Buy through August 23, when it became available at other retailers. The sales strategy received criticism from other retailers, who accused the labels of giving preferential treatment to iTunes and Best Buy. One of the most anticipated releases in 2011, ''Watch the Throne'' became one of the few major label albums in the Internet age to avoid a Music leak, leak. On July 7, 2011, Jay-Z hosted a private listening session at the Mercer Hotel in New York City, previewing the album's songs from his MacBook Pro for a select group of reporters and music journalists. It was also exclusive to two teenage fans who had won access to the session for being the first people to pre-order the album through Jay-Z's Life + Times website. The album's cover and artwork, both designed by Italian designer Riccardo Tisci, were also premiered at the session. Benjamin Meadows-Ingrim of ''Billboard'', who attended the session, said of the previewed material, "The songs were dramatic and boastful, with Jay-Z often taking the lead lyrically, and the collection showcased the differences between the two artists – Jay-Z, the technical marksman, and Kanye, the emotive chest beater." On August 1, Jay-Z and West held a listening session for the album at the Rose Center for Earth and Space in New York City's American Museum of Natural History. The session premiered the album in its entirety and featured attendance from journalists, models, industry types, and recording artists such as Busta Rhymes,
88-Keys Charles Misodi Njapa (born March 5, 1976), better known by his stage name 88-Keys, is an American record producer and rapper from New York City. Biography Born in New York City to West African parents from Cameroon, he was raised in the Eastches ...
, and Beyoncé Knowles. On August 28, Jay-Z and West performed "Otis" at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards. Jay-Z and West promoted ''Watch the Throne'' with a 34-date, North American Watch the Throne Tour, concert tour produced by Live Nation, which began on October 29 and concluded on December 18, 2010. By the end of 2011 the tour had grossed $48.3 million making it the then highest grossing hip-hop tour (until being surpassed by Summer Sixteen Tour) and the eighth highest-grossing tour of 2011.


Singles

''Watch the Throne'' spawned seven official singles, with varying degrees of success. Following West's announcement via his Twitter account, "H•A•M" was officially released as a music download, digital download in January 2011 as the lead single. It charted at number 23 on the US Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In July 2011, "Otis" became the second single when it was premiered on Funkmaster Flex's WQHT, Hot 97 radio show and subsequently leaked to the Internet. It was sent to rhythmic contemporary and urban contemporary radio on August 9. Its cover art was created by Riccardo Tisci. "Otis" reached number 12 on the Hot 100. A music video for the song was filmed by director Spike Jonze in Los Angeles. Third single "Lift Off" was sent to US urban radio on August 23 of the same year. The track peaked on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles at position 6. The album's fourth and fifth singles were released simultaneously; in September 2011, "Why I Love You" was sent to US rhythmic radio, and "Niggas in Paris" was sent to both rhythmic and urban radio. "Why I Love You" served as a European-centric single while "Niggas in Paris" was promoted as a domestic single. "Niggas in Paris" peaked at number five on the Hot 100. "Niggas in Paris" was sent to Top 40/Mainstream radio on November 8. By February 2012, it had reached digital sales of two million in the United States. The song was promoted with a music video directed by West himself, featuring concert footage. The sixth single was "Gotta Have It", which impacted Urban radio on December 6, 2011, and Rhythmic radio on January 31, 2012. Seventh and final single "No Church in the Wild" impacted Urban radio on March 20, 2012. Romain Gavras directed a music video for "No Church" though it featured none of the featured performers. "Gotta Have It" peaked at position 69 on the Hot 100, with "No Church in the Wild" peaking at 72. Though not released as a single, "Who Gon Stop Me" peaked at 44 on the chart.[ "Kanye West Album & Song Chart History: Hot 100"]. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media, Retrieved August 15, 2010.


Critical reception

''Watch the Throne'' received positive reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
. At Metacritic, which assigns a standard score, normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an weighted arithmetic mean, average score of 76, based on 42 reviews. Nathan Rabin of ''The A.V. Club'' wrote that "exhilarating messiness and go-for-broke spontaneity infect Jay-Z and push him outside his comfort zone and into a realm of intense emotional reflection." ''Pitchfork''s Tom Breihan felt that it "works best when Jay and Kanye are just talking about how great they are," adding that "Kanye is this album's obvious guiding force ... He displays levels of unequaled audacity." Claire Suddath of ''Time (magazine), Time'' called it "a beautifully decadent album by two of hip-hop's finest artists—men with a lot of things to say and a lot of money to spend." Neil McCormick of ''The Daily Telegraph'' praised West's "attention to detail" and found their "wit and absurdity ..entirely suited to the epic scale of productions." Kitty Empire of ''The Observer'' stated, "Some find this sort of branded gloating distasteful, but at their best both rappers can still make you laugh." Randall Roberts of the ''Los Angeles Times'' deemed it "a cocksure, fiery, smart, if problematic, collaboration that showcases the pair's distinct lyrical skills." Julian Benbow of ''The Boston Globe'' observed "an undeniable synergy that they embraced for this project." AllMusic editor Andy Kellman called it "an audacious spectacle of vacuous pomposity as well as one of tremendous lyrical depth." ''Slant Magazine''s Matthew Cole was less impressed, believing West had contributed a "powerhouse production" but that the album "requires you to tolerate the artists' self-mythologizing and put up with their sometimes awkward attempts at experimentation." Andy Gill of ''The Independent'' was more critical and found their rapping "pretty mediocre", partly because "too often here their complacent, back-slapping laxity leaves tracks floundering." In the ''Chicago Tribune'', Greg Kot found the record plagued by Jay-Z and West's "self-regard", writing that "they urge listeners to 'watch the throne,' and gaze in awe on their good fortune." Jody Rosen of ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' felt that "on a record this ambitious, this sonically bold, it's a shame two of music's greatest storytellers don't extend their gaze beyond their own luxe lives." Sasha Frere-Jones of ''The New Yorker'' stated, "Weed the album down to a healthy ten, and [it] doesn't become either classic or coherent, but it does work as an entertaining document of two wildly creative, not particularly wound-up friends."


Accolades


Critics' rankings

''Watch the Throne'' was one of the top-ranked albums in year-end lists by music critics and publications. ''Q (magazine), Q'' ranked the album number six in its list of the Top 50 Albums of 2011. ''Rolling Stone'' named it the second-best album in its year-end list, commenting that "What could have been a crash-and-burn anticlimax turned out to be as fun as any record in a dog's age. From the cinematic 'No Church in the Wild' to the Stax Records, Stax-soul music, soul update 'Otis,' ''Throne'' testifies to Kanye West's talent for beats both iconoclastic and pop-savvy." Claire Suddath of ''Time (magazine), Time'' ranked it number three on her top-10 albums list and called it "a beautifully decadent album". Chris Richards of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' ranked it number two on his list and stated, "Instead of blushing over their embarrassment of riches, pop's most intriguing partnership delivered a self-congratulatory opus that was adventurous enough to remind us that they're rap visionaries first, We are the 99%, 1 percent bazillionaires second. ''The A.V. Club'' ranked it number nine on its year-end list, commenting that "''Watch The Throne'' thrives on the bristling tension between Kanye's live-wire energy and rule-breaking abandon, and Jay-Z's innate cautiousness. It's an album of the moment—a point underlined by the presence of Frank Ocean on two tracks—yet it has the substance to endure." ''Stereogum'' placed ''Watch the Throne'' at number 10 on its list of the "Top 50 albums of 2011" while ''Pitchfork'' placed the album at number 21 on its list. In 2012,
Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
named the album one of the classic albums of the last decade. In January 2015, the album was placed at number 8 on ''Billboard''s list of "The 20 Best Albums of the 2010s (So Far)". In 2018, Revolt (TV network), Revolt listed the album at number one on their list of the 10 rap collaboration albums. In 2019, ''
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 advertise ...
'' named ''Watch the Throne'' the biggest collaborative album of all time, asserting, "From the iconic album artwork to the brash, decadent lyrical themes, esteemed guest list, and recording around the globe, the Throne would set the standard for what a pristine rap album should embody at the highest of levels."


Industry awards

''Watch the Throne'' received nominations for Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, Best Rap Album and Grammy Award for Best Recording Package, Best Recording Package at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards in 2012. It lost the former to West's ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy''. "Otis" was nominated for Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Performance and Grammy Award for Best Rap Song, Best Rap Song, winning the former. At the 55th Annual Grammy Awards in 2013, "Niggas in Paris" won Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song, and "No Church in the Wild" won Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.


Commercial performance

''Watch the Throne'' debuted at No. 1 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 436,000 copies in its first week. This became Jay-Z's 12th number-one album and West's fifth number-one album in the US. This also became the second highest debut week of 2011, while its first week digital sales of 321,000 downloads served as the second highest one-week sales tally at the time. ''Watch the Throne'' broke the US iTunes Store's one-week sales record at the time when it sold nearly 290,000 downloads. The album also reached number one on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and the US Top Rap Albums charts. In its second week, the album remained at number one on the chart, selling an additional 177,000 copies. In its third week, the album dropped to number two on the chart, selling 94,000 more copies. In its fourth week, the album dropped to number four on the chart, selling 80,000 copies. In 2011, ''Watch the Throne'' was the ninth best-selling album in the US, and the first collaborative album to make the year-end top ten in Nielsen SoundScan history. It was also the fourth top selling album on iTunes in 2011. As of July 2013, the album has sold 1,573,000 copies in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan. On November 23, 2020, the album was certified quintuple platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) for combined sales and album-equivalent units of over five million units in the United States. ''Watch the Throne'' was also a success outside the US. In Canada, the album debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 25,000 copies in its first week. In its second week, the album remained at number one on the chart, selling 15,900 more copies. In Australia, the album peaked at number two on the ARIA Charts, Australian Albums Chart and number one on the ARIA Charts, Australian Urban Albums Chart. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number three on the UK Albums Chart and number one on the UK R&B Chart, UK R&B Albums Chart. The album topped the UK R&B Singles and Albums Charts, UK R&B Albums Chart for six non-consecutive weeks between List of UK R&B Albums Chart number ones of 2011, 2011-List of UK R&B Albums Chart number ones of 2012, 12. In addition, ''Watch the Throne'' peaked at number one on the VG-lista, Norwegian Albums Chart and the Swiss Music Charts, Swiss Albums Chart. The album peaked at number two on the Media Control Charts, German Albums Chart the Tracklisten, Danish Albums Chart, and at number three on the Scottish Albums Chart. It also debuted within the top ten on the Ultratop, Belgian Albums Chart, the MegaCharts, Dutch Albums Chart, the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique, French Albums Chart, the Irish Albums Chart, the Russian Albums Chart and the New Zealand Albums Chart.


Track listing

Notes * signifies a co-producer * signifies an additional producer * signifies an additional vocal producer *"Lift Off" features additional vocals by
Seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...
,
Mr Hudson Benjamin Hudson McIldowie (born 26 June 1979), better known by his stage name Mr Hudson, is an English musician from Birmingham, England. First rising to prominence in 2006 with Mr Hudson and the Library, Hudson later embarked on a solo career ...
, Don Jazzy, Bankulli and Ricardo Lewis. *"Gotta Have It" features additional vocals by
Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...
. *"That's My Bitch" features additional vocals by La Roux,
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 ...
and
Bon Iver Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon. Vernon released Bon Iver's debut album, ''For Emma, Forever Ago,'' independently in July 2007. The majority of the album was recorded while Vernon ...
. *"Welcome to the Jungle" features additional vocals by
Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
and Acapella Soul. *"Who Gon Stop Me" features additional vocals by Mr Hudson, Swizz Beatz, and Verse Simmonds. *"Murder to Excellence" features additional vocals by Kid Cudi. *"Illest Motherfucker Alive" features additional vocals by Kid Cudi, Bankulli, and Aude Cardona. *"H•A•M" features additional vocals by Aude Cardona and Jacob Lewis Smith. *"The Joy" features additional vocals by
Pete Rock Peter O. Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapping, rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongs ...
, Kid Cudi, and Charlie Wilson. Sample credits * "No Church in the Wild" contains samples from "K-Scope", written and performed by Phil Manzanera; samples of "It's All About, Sunshine Help Me", written and performed by Spooky Tooth; and samples of "Don't Tell a Lie About Me (and I Won't Tell the Truth About You)", written and performed by James Brown. * "Lift Off" contains samples of dialogue from the Apollo 11 launch as spoken by Jack King (NASA), Jack King * "Niggas in Paris" contains samples of the Reverend W. A. Donaldson recording "Baptizing Scene"; and dialogue between Will Ferrell and Jon Heder from the 2007 comedy film ''Blades of Glory''. * "Otis" contains samples of "Try a Little Tenderness", written by [Jimmy Campbell and Reg Connelly, Harry M. Woods] and performed by
Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
; samples of "Don't Tell a Lie About Me (and I Won't Tell the Truth About You)", written and performed by James Brown; and elements of "Top Billin'", written and performed by Audio Two. * "Gotta Have It" contains elements of "Don't Tell a Lie About Me (and I Won't Tell the Truth About You)"; samples of "People Get Up and Drive Your Funky Soul"; and elements of "My Thang", written and performed by James Brown. * "New Day" contains samples of "Feeling Good", written and performed by Nina Simone. * "That's My Bitch" contains samples of "Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved", written and performed by James Brown; and samples of "Apache (instrumental), Apache", written and performed by Incredible Bongo Band. * "Who Gon Stop Me" contains samples of "I Can't Stop", written and performed by Flux Pavilion. * "Murder to Excellence" contains samples of "LA LA LA", written and performed by Indiggo, The Indiggo Twins; and samples of "The Color Purple (1985 film), Celie Shaves Mr./Scarification" from the 1985 drama film The Color Purple (film), The Color Purple, written and performed by Quincy Jones. * "Why I Love You" contains samples of "I Love You So", written and performed by Cassius (band), Cassius. * "Primetime" contains samples of "Action", written and performed by Orange Krush. * "The Joy" contains samples of "The Makings of You (Live)", written and performed by
Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.
; and elements of "Different Strokes", written and performed by Syl Johnson.


Personnel

Credits for ''Watch the Throne'' adapted from liner notes. * 88-Keys – producer * Virgil Abloh – art direction * Acapella Soul – vocals * Mat Arnold – assistant * Bankulli – vocals *
Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
– featured artist *
Jeff Bhasker Jeff Bhasker (born March 4, 1974) is an American record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Los Angeles. He was awarded the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year in 2016 and nominated in 2013. An accomplished producer, he ...
– producer * Vincent Biessy – creative input * Chris "Hitchcock" Chorney – cello * Carol Corless – package production * Don Crawley – A&R * Andrew Dawson – engineer * Mike Dean (record producer), Mike Dean – additional production, cello arrangement, engineer, keyboards, mastering, mixing, musician, producer * Don Jazzy – vocals *
The-Dream Terius Youngdell Nash (born September 20, 1977), better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. His co-writing credits include songs with "Me Against the Music" (2003) for Britney Spears, "Ride ...
– vocals * Laura Escudé – violin * Noah Goldstein – engineer, mixing, producer * Alex Haldi – art producer *
Hit-Boy Chauncey Alexander Hollis Jr. (born May 21, 1987), better known by his stage name Hit-Boy, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. In May 2011, he had signed a two-year deal with Kanye West's GOOD Music production branch. ...
– producer, programming * Gaylord Holomalia – assistant *
Elly Jackson La Roux ( ) is an English synthpop act formed in 2008 by singer Elly Jackson and record producer Ben Langmaid. The act's debut album ''La Roux'' (2009) was a critical and commercial success, winning a Grammy Award and producing hit singles su ...
– vocals *
Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...
– executive producer, primary artist, writer * Sham "Sak Pase" Joseph – producer * Kyambo "Hip Hop" Joshua – executive producer *
Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...
– vocals * Anthony Kilhoffer – additional production, engineer, mixing, producer, programming * Brent Kolatalo – engineer * Ken Lewis (musician), Ken Lewis – additional production, engineer, musician * Ricardo Lewis – vocals * LMFAO (group), LMFAO – mixing, programming *
Mr Hudson Benjamin Hudson McIldowie (born 26 June 1979), better known by his stage name Mr Hudson, is an English musician from Birmingham, England. First rising to prominence in 2006 with Mr Hudson and the Library, Hudson later embarked on a solo career ...
– featured artist, vocals *
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 ...
– vocals * Christian Mochizuki – assistant *
The Neptunes The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos, ...
– producer *
Frank Ocean Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...
– writer, featured artist * Q-Tip – additional production, mixing *
Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
– featured artist * Gee Roberson – executive producer * Todd Russell – art producer * S1 – producer * Lenny S. – A&R * Seal – vocals * Pawel Sek – engineer * Chris Soper – assistant engineer *
Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
– producer, vocals * Bu Thiam – A&R * Pat Thrall – engineer * Riccardo Tisci – artwork, creative director * Scott Townsend – art producer *
Justin Vernon Justin DeYarmond Edison Vernon (born April 30, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the primary songwriter and frontman of indie folk band Bon Iver. Known for his distinct falsetto voic ...
– vocals * Blair Wells – mixing *
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 ...
– executive producer, primary artist, producer, writer * Kristen Yiengst – art producer


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Decade-end charts


Certifications


Release history


See also

*List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 2011, List of ''Billboard'' 200 number-one albums of 2011 *Kanye West albums discography *Jay-Z albums discography *
Watch the Throne Tour The Watch the Throne Tour was a co-headlining concert tour by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West that began on October 28, 2011 in Atlanta and continued until June 22, 2012 with its final show scheduled in Birmingham. Originally scheduled for ...
*''Watch the Stove''


Notes


References


Bibliography

*


External links

* *
Watch the Throne
' at Metacritic {{Authority control 2011 albums Jay-Z albums Kanye West albums Def Jam Recordings albums Roc-A-Fella Records albums Roc Nation albums Collaborative albums Albums produced by 88-Keys Albums produced by Hit-Boy Albums produced by Jeff Bhasker Albums produced by Kanye West Albums produced by Lex Luger Albums produced by Mike Dean (record producer) Albums produced by the Neptunes Albums produced by Q-Tip (musician) Albums produced by RZA Albums produced by Southside (record producer) Albums produced by Swizz Beatz Albums produced by Symbolyc One Albums recorded at Electric Lady Studios