The 12 Best Beats Other Producers Made for Kanye West

Image via Complex Original

Album: Watch The Throne (2011)
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The legendary hip-hop producer, best known for his work with artists like Nas and A Tribe Called Quest, helmed the 12th release in Kanye's G.O.O.D. Fridays series. He later tweeted thanks to fans for the overwhelmingly positive response to the record. The raving responses were well-deserved. Who else could blend both Curtis Mayfield and Syl Johnson samples so masterfully?

Album: Graduation (2007)
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Nottz has been producing for artists like Busta Rhymes and Fat Joe since the late '90s, and his resume remains strong to this day, and some of his work best work came on Ye's Weezy-assisted jam, "Barry Bonds." He flipped Mountain's "Long Red" for one of the smoothest backdrops on Graduation, and it still holds up.

Album: Watch The Throne (2011)
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That James Brown vocal sample ("What you need!") is one of the highlights of Jay-Z and Kanye's collaborative LP. The record actually samples three songs by the soul legend, at once. The beat is somehow chaotic, while also composed, and one of the main reasons why "Gotta Have It" is consistently part of the debate for best song on Watch The Throne.

Album: Graduation (2007)
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At the end of the song, Kanye says, "Toomp killed this shit." He's right. The guitar-heavy instrumental is free of samples, but does make excellent use of layered synths and piano, resulting in the perfect canvas for Kanye's inspiring story about his relationship with Jay-Z.

Album: Watch The Throne (2011)
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The "Primetime" beat feels like a speakeasy during prohibition. It's grand, and welcoming, but that piano loop is completely ominous. Jay and 'Ye knew it, rapping lyrics that toe the line between celebratory and cautious. No I.D. is in top form here, sampling Orange Krush classic, "Action," with a preciseness that couldn't have come from anyone else. The closely placed snares are like an event in themselves, and the "baby" vocal sample rounds the production out nicely.

Album: Watch The Throne (2011)
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Longtime collaborators Kanye West and 88-Keys linked up yet again to build the beat for epic Watch the Throne lead, "No Church In The Wild." As 88 told Billboard, they excitedly ran through 20 beats on his Soundcloud before making a final decision. The anthemic, almost-murky beat would become fully realized when Yeezy asked 88 to add strings, an extra kick drum, and a heavier bass line.

The story goes that Kanye had a hilarious spoken-word intro on the song, too, though it didn't make the final cut. No worries. The track was still a perfectly cinematic way to kick off one of the year's best albums.

Album: Cruel Summer (2012)
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Yes, Kanye's classically shocking lyrics on "Cold" get all of the attention, but the fact that they're set to this monstrous Hit-Boy production are part of the reason why they hit so hard. The title is appropriate: "Cold" sounds like digital winter—a drive through the tundras of Sibera, in audible form.

Every other bar, a subtle but sinister bass line kicks in, oscillating in perfect rhythm with the thud of the track's percussion. No wonder there was zero credited co-production on this record. It doesn't need anything else.

Album: Watch The Throne (2011)
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As Lex Luger told Miss Info, he was approached by Kanye West because "he said with my drums and his sound" a collaboration would "go perfectly." But because he didn't feel he was at Yeezy's level just yet, Luger went back into the studio for six months to hone his sound.

The end result? "H*A*M," the purposefully over-the-top lead single from Watch The Throne that somehow found a middle ground between trap music and classical/opera.

Album: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010)
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While he admits that he likes working in a comfort zone, Texas producer Symbolic One told HipHopDX that he's truly at his best while in an awkward, rushed situation. Anyone who has heard My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy's "Power" will no doubt agree, because to say S1 produced the track in a hurry would almost be an understatement.

After Kanye heard the original version of the beat, he had Rhymefest call S1 immediately to let him know his life was about to change. The next day, as he's dining with his wife, the Texas producer gets an e-mail saying he has a flight in three hours. He promptly packed his bags, headed to the airport, and landed in Hawaii ready to work.

The end result of his time on the islands with Yeezy? "Power," a meticulously crafted production featuring three expertly layered samples with the most prominent being a snarling lift from King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man."

Album: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010)
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A sample of Smokey Robinson's "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" is at the core of Bink!'s epic production. The beat starts off relentless and never lets up. Even with such a repetitive loop, the sound never feels tired.

Then there's the progression of the electric guitar, which climaxes with a solo mid-song, and is accompanied by piano and sweeping strings. The beat comes off like a six-minute movie scene with flawless cinematography. It's one of the most timeless, mature instrumentals in Yeezy's catalog.

Album: Late Registration (2005)
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Soul samples are, of course, nothing new or innovative in the realm of hip-hop. So when Just Blaze chose to lift elements of Curtis Mayfield classic "Move On Up," he had to make sure he did the track justice. It's safe to say he did exactly that on Late Registration's fourth single, "Touch the Sky."

The slowed-down horns and choice vocal samples are a huge complement to Blaze's trademark lush and huge drums, which boom and bap here while joining in on the track's celebratory vibe.

Album: Watch The Throne (2011)
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There was no other choice for the top spot. More than a hot rap song, “N****s In Paris" became a legitimate cultural phenomenon, and Hit-Boy's instantly classic production is the main reason why. Yes, Jay-Z's line about the Nets and Kanye's line about fish filet will stay with us forever, but it's the beat that still sends the listeners into a frenzy.

“N****s In Paris" is was somewhat uncharted territory for Kanye. Even with multiple massive hits in Ye's discography, "Paris" is the club smash of his career. The synths will still sound new in 20 years. The drums are barely containable, even in a stadium setting. The entire instrumental is pure chaos, in the best way possible.