The Life of Pablo by Kanye West

The Life of Pablo is the seventh studio album by American rapper and producer 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, Canada, and the United States. The production was handled by West and a variety of other producers, including co-executive producers Rick Rubin and Noah Goldstein, Mike Dean, Metro Boomin, Hudson Mohawke, Plain Pat, and Madlib. West also enlisted a wide array of guest vocalists for the album, including Chris Brown, Ty Dolla Sign, The Weeknd, Desiigner, Kid Cudi, The-Dream, Kelly Price, Kirk Franklin, Chance the Rapper, Rihanna, Sia, Frank Ocean, Sampha, Vic Mensa, Post Malone, Kendrick Lamar, Young Thug, and Caroline Shaw. The release of The Life of Pablo was preceded by several promotional singles, including the tracks "Real Friends" and "No More Parties in LA". During the months before release, the title and tracklist of the album went through several publicized changes, and West's erratic activity on social media became the source of several controversies. An early version of it was premiered by West at Madison Square Garden on February 11, 2016, as part of his Yeezy Season 3 fashion show in collaboration with Adidas. After several additional sessions and alterations, the launch occurred exclusively for streaming on Tidal three days later. West explained prior to release that the music is both hip hop and gospel. Following the official streaming debut, West continued to make changes to The Life of Pablo and once all the changes were made, declared it as the dominant release form; Def Jam confirmed his intention to continue making updates over the subsequent months. A largely updated version of the album, including alternate mixes and other changes, was made available on other streaming services and for digital purchase on his website on April 1, 2016; no official CD release was planned at the time. It was supported by the singles "Famous", the two-part "Father Stretch My Hands", and "Fade" in 2016. The Life of Pablo received generally positive reviews from music critics, with particular attention being drawn to the fragmented, unfinished nature of the composition and release. It was listed among the best albums of 2016 by multiple publications, including Complex, NME and Pitchfork, while named as West's best album by Inverse. A nomination was received for Grammy Award for Best Rap Album at the 2017 Grammy Awards, though the lack of a nomination for Album of the Year was deemed as a snub by numerous publications. "Ultralight Beam" and "Famous" both received nominations for Best Rap/Sung Performance and Best Rap Song. Following Tidal's initial disclosure of its streaming data and release to competing streaming services, the album ultimately debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, becoming West's seventh consecutive number-one album on the chart and the first to reach the summit primarily through streaming. It also debuted at number one in Norway, while top ten positions were attained in Canada, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Sweden.