"Send It Up" is a song by American

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

recording artist

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...

, from his sixth studio album ''

Yeezus ''Yeezus'' is the sixth studio album by the American rapper Kanye West. It was released on June 18, 2013, through Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. West gathered a number of artists and close collaborators for the production, includi ...

'' (2013). It was produced by West,

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. They achieved popularity in the late 1990s as part of the French house movement, combining house music, funk, disco, tech ...

Gesaffelstein Mike Lévy (; born 24 June 1985), known professionally as Gesaffelstein (), is a French music programmer, DJ, songwriter and producer from Lyon. He has worked alongside artists such as Lady Gaga, The Weeknd, Daft Punk, Kanye West, ASAP Rocky, A$ ...

, Brodinski, Arca and Mike Dean. Like other songs on the album, it features an

industrial hip hop Industrial hip hop is a fusion genre of industrial music and hip hop. History 1980s The origins of industrial hip hop are in the work of Mark Stewart, Bill Laswell, and Adrian Sherwood. In 1985, former The Pop Group singer Mark Stewart relea ...

sound, with elements of

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

. The song features vocals from American rapper King Louie, who improvised his contributions. It contains a sample of "Memories" (also known as "Stop Live Inna De Pass") by Jamaican

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

and

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

singer

Beenie Man Moses Anthony Davis OD (born 22 August 1973), professionally known as Beenie Man, is a Jamaican dancehall deejay. His awards include DJ of the Year Award eight years in a row. His twelfth studio album '' Art and Life'' received a Grammy Award ...

. Eight days before its release on the album, West performed the song live at the Governors Ball Music Festival, along with four other tracks from ''Yeezus''. "Send It Up" has received positive reviews from music critics, with many complimenting the production and party appeal. Despite not being released as a single, it charted on the US ''

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 advertis ...

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 ...

and

On-Demand Songs On-demand or on demand may refer to: Manufacturing * Build-on-demand * Just-in-time manufacturing, a methodology for production * Print on demand, printing technology and business process in which new copies of a document are not printed until an ...

charts at number 50 and 42 respectively. One line in the song was changed to being rapped

a cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

when West reworked the

Apple Music Apple Music is an audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users can select music to stream to their device on-demand, or listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the sister internet radio stations Apple Musi ...

version of ''Yeezus'' in 2016. It was covered by

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band

Idles Idles are an English post-punk band formed in Bristol in 2009. The band consists of Adam Devonshire (bass), Joe Talbot (singer), Joe Talbot (vocals), Mark Bowen (guitar), Lee Kiernan (guitar), and Jon Beavis (drums). After spending eight yea ...

in 2018.

Background and composition

Before they collaborated for the first time on "Send It Up", American rapper King Louie found out West was a fan of his after West gave him a shoutout in the 2012

GOOD Music GOOD Music (often stylized as G.O.O.D. Music; a backronym for Getting Out Our Dreams) is an American independent record label founded by rapper Kanye West in 2004. The label entered an exclusive long-term worldwide music distribution, distributi ...

collaboration " I Don't Like (Remix)", featuring Chief Keef,

Pusha T Terrence LeVarr Thornton (born May 13, 1977), better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as one half of the Virginia-based hip hop duo Clipse, which he formed with his older brother No Malice, Malice. M ...

Big Sean Sean Michael Leonard Anderson (born March 25, 1988), known professionally as Big Sean, is an American rapper. He met Kanye West as a teenager, and signed with his record label GOOD Music, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings in 2007. He gained popul ...

, and

Jadakiss Jason Terrance Phillips (born May 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Jadakiss (, ), is an American rapper who began his career in the 1990s and formed the hip hop trio the Lox alongside Styles P and Sheek Louch in 1994. The group signed w ...

. King Louie called the shoutout "crazy" and appreciated his ability to influence Chicago-based rappers. Along with his vocal appearance on "Send It Up", King Louie also has a writing credit on another ''Yeezus'' track, " New Slaves". "Send It Up" is an

song, with elements of

. According to MTV's Rob Markman, the song contains a "kinetic" beat, with "blaring sirens" and "a pounding drum." It features vocals from King Louie, who freestyled his entire verse. King Louie later explained on

MTV News MTV News was the news production division of MTV. The service was available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network and an online news team. In 2016, MTV refreshed the MTV News brand to compete with the likes of BuzzFeed and ...

that the song's beat was different than he originally recorded: "the beat was just one instrument, two instruments and then now it's like a whole party thing." However, he called the final version "dope." The song was co-produced by French electronic duo

, who also co-produced the other ''Yeezus'' tracks " On Sight," "

Black Skinhead "Black Skinhead" (also stylized as "BLKKK SKKKN HEAD") is a song by American rapper Kanye West, from his sixth studio album ''Yeezus'' (2013). It was produced by West and Daft Punk. The song's lyrics center on racial tensions and the crumbling ...

," and " I Am a God." For the chorus, which repeats twice at the end of the song, West added a sample of "Memories" (also known as "Stop Live Inna De Pass") by Jamaican

and

singer

. When West began to make adjustments to the songs on his seventh studio album ''

The Life of Pablo ''The Life of Pablo'' is the seventh studio album by American rapper Kanye West. It was released on February 14, 2016, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions took place from 2013 to 2016, in Italy, Mexico, ...

'' (2016), he did the same to "

" and "Send It Up" for the

version of ''Yeezus'' (the

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

and Tidal versions of the songs remained unchanged). On "Send It Up", West cut the instrumental backing track to his line at the 1:30 mark, making it

Release and promotion

"Send It Up" was released on June 18, 2013, as the ninth and penultimate track on West's sixth studio album ''

''. Eight days before its release, on June 10, 2013, West performed live at the Governors Ball Music Festival; his set included five songs from the then-upcoming album, including " New Slaves", "Black Skinhead", and " I Am a God". While "Send It Up" and " On Sight" were played, their titles were not introduced; West instead introduced them as "new shit." The song was performed at the opening show of

The Yeezus Tour The Yeezus Tour was the fifth concert tour by American rapper Kanye West, in support of his sixth studio album, '' Yeezus'' (2013). Announced with a promotional poster in September 2013, it served as West's first solo concert tour since the Gl ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

's KeyArena. A cover version was performed by

band

IDLES Idles are an English post-punk band formed in Bristol in 2009. The band consists of Adam Devonshire (bass), Joe Talbot (singer), Joe Talbot (vocals), Mark Bowen (guitar), Lee Kiernan (guitar), and Jon Beavis (drums). After spending eight yea ...

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

in August 2018.

Commercial performance

"Send It Up" was one of the album's least-performing songs. Upon the release of ''Yeezus'', the song debuted at number 50 on the US ''

chart the week of July 6, 2013. The same week, it peaked at number 42 on the US ''Billboard''

chart.

Critical reception

Since release, the song has received positive reviews from music critics, with many complimenting its production and party appeal. Rob Markman of

gave the track a positive review, calling it "a clear-cut party starter."

Alexis Petridis Alexis Petridis (born 13 September 1971) is an English journalist. He is the head Rock music, rock and pop music critic for ''The Guardian'', and a regular contributor for ''GQ''. In addition to his music journalism for the paper, he has written ...

of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' wrote, "the mid-tempo four-to-the-floor thud of "Send It Up" is strafed with electronic squeals and bursts of menacing, growling bass," as well as pointing out the track's "dance influences." Michael Madden of ''

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. History ''Consequence of Sound'' was founded in Septem ...

'' described its sound as being reminiscent of the work done by DJ Mustard and the

Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN (stylized as NIИ), is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1988. Its members are the singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Trent Reznor and his frequent col ...

album '' Pretty Hate Machine''. Julianne Escobedo Spephard of ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'' called the song "bananas" and complimented producer Arca's work on the song, writing: " trecalls both the sub-bass on erEP ''Stretch 2'', and the demonic elasticity of erbeat for Mykki Blanco's "Join My Militia". Gavin Haynes of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' wrote that the song "finds a natural pathway between new Robo-Kanye and the stark experiments," such as his 2012

collaboration " Clique". In a more mixed review, Ryan Dombal of ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' described the track as being "riotous" and wrote in response to King Louie's appearance: "His presence, along with that of fellow Chi-town driller Chief Keef, makes the message clear: America may want to ignore these young black men from the gang-strewn South Side, but here, they have a voice."

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the ''Yeezus'' liner notes. * Songwriters – Kanye West, Louis Johnson, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo,

Thomas Bangalter Thomas Bangalter (; born 3 January 1975) is a French musician. He is best known as one half of the former French house music duo Daft Punk, alongside Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. He has recorded and released music as a member of the trio Music S ...

, Alejandro Ghersi, Mike Levy, Sakiya Sandifer, Ab Liva, Elon Rutberg, Mike Dean, Moses Davis, Colin York, Lowell Dunbar * Producer – Kanye West and Daft Punk * Co-producer – Gesaffelstein and Brodinski * Additional producer – Arca and Mike Dean #MWA * Engineer – Noah Goldstein and Andrew Dawson * Assistant engineer – Marc Portheau, Khoï Huynh, Raoul Le Pennec, Nabil Essemlani, and Keith Parry * Mix – Anthony Kilhoffer at Shangri-La Studios, Malibu, California * Mix assisted – Sean Oakley, Eric Lynn, Dave 'Squirrel' Covell, and Josh Smith * Vocals – King Louie

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2013 songs Kanye West songs Electronic songs Industrial songs Song recordings produced by Daft Punk Song recordings produced by Gesaffelstein Song recordings produced by Kanye West Song recordings produced by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs written by Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo Songs written by Kanye West Songs written by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs written by Thomas Bangalter