"Blood on the Leaves" is a song by American hip hop recording artist

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

from his sixth studio album ''

Yeezus ''Yeezus'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper and producer 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, ...

'' (2013). In the song West presents his thoughts on how fame can cause the destruction of relationships, while making comparisons of contemporary times to the

lynching Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged transgressor, punish a convicted transgressor, or intimidate people. It can also be an ex ...

of African Americans in the United States during the pre-

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...

era. West delivers his vocals through an

Auto-Tune 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-T ...

processor, like on his 2008 album '' 808s & Heartbreak''. It contains samples of both singer

Nina Simone Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone (), was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blue ...

's 1965 rendition of

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop s ...

's song " Strange Fruit", and "R U Ready" by the duo TNGHT, who co-produced the track. The song received universal acclaim from music critics, with many commenting on its lyrical message and praising its samples. It was named one of the best tracks of 2013 by multiple publications. ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to t ...

'' later placed the track on their list of the 200 best songs of the 2010s. Despite not being released as a single, the song managed to enter charts in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and No ...

, France, and Australia in 2013. A

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 ...

was set to be directed by American filmmaker

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

, but plans were abandoned. Since its release, West has performed the song live on multiple occasions, including at the

2013 MTV Video Music Awards The 2013 MTV Video Music Awards were held on August 25, 2013, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Marking the 30th installment of the award show, they were the first to be held in New York City not to use a venue within the borough of M ...

and on the 2016 Saint Pablo Tour.

Background and composition

The song features production by the musical duo TNGHT, consisting of Scottish producer

Hudson Mohawke Ross Matthew Birchard (born 11 February 1986), better known by the stage name Hudson Mohawke, is a Scottish-American producer, composer, and DJ from Glasgow. He is known for his influential work in 21st century hip-hop and electronic music. A ...

and Canadian producer

Lunice Lunice Fermin Pierre II (born May 15, 1988), better known by his stage name Lunice, is a Canadian record producer and DJ from Montreal. He is one half of the duo TNGHT along with Hudson Mohawke. Biography Lunice is the son of a Filipino mother a ...

. Mohawke had previously worked with West on the 2012

GOOD Music GOOD Music (also known simply as GOOD, stylized as G.O.O.D. Music; a backronym for Getting Out Our Dreams) is an American record label founded by rapper Kanye West in 2004. The label signed an exclusive long-term worldwide label agreement with ...

collaboration "

Mercy Mercy (Middle English, from Anglo-French ''merci'', from Medieval Latin ''merced-'', ''merces'', from Latin, "price paid, wages", from ''merc-'', ''merxi'' "merchandise") is benevolence, forgiveness, and kindness in a variety of ethical, rel ...

", along with other tracks on the compilation album '' Cruel Summer'' (2012). After working on ''Yeezus'', Mohawke was introduced to an entirely new approach to songwriting. According to Mohawke, the duo's song "R U Ready", which is sampled in "Blood on the Leaves", was one of the first songs the two recorded together and was also one of the first pieces of music the duo sent to West to sample. West had previously sampled the work of

on the '' 808s & Heartbreak'' track "Bad News" and the ''

Watch the Throne ''Watch the Throne'' is a collaborative studio album by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West, collectively known as The Throne. It was released on August 8, 2011, through Roc-A-Fella Records, Roc Nation, and Def Jam Recordings. Prior to the r ...

'' collaborative track "New Day" with

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 o ...

. Rapper Travis Scott viewed West as "a genius" and the only person who would think of combining " Strange Fruit" with a Hudson Mohawke beat in the "crazy-ass song". When he first heard the combination, Travis Scott "was jumping on niggas' backs and shit, like, 'Ahhhh!'". "Blood on the Leaves" is a hip hop song in which West delivers his vocals through an

processor, similar to his 2008 album '' 808s & Heartbreak''. The song begins with a sample of singer and civil rights activist Nina Simone's 1965 rendition of "Strange Fruit" by

over rolling piano chords, after which West's vocals begins. After one minute, the song unleashes horns taken from musical duo TNGHT's song "R U Ready", along with animal growls that play sporadically throughout the rest of the song. He later interpolates the hook of rapper

C-Murder Corey Miller (born March 9, 1971), better known by his stage name C-Murder, is an American rapper and songwriter. He initially gained fame in the mid-1990s as a part of his brother Master P's label No Limit Records, primarily as a member of the ...

's 2000 song " Down for My N's." West's verses center around the perils of fame,

conspicuous consumption In sociology and in economics, the term conspicuous consumption describes and explains the consumer practice of buying and using goods of a higher quality, price, or in greater quantity than practical. In 1899, the sociologist Thorstein Veblen co ...

and drug-addled romance. He raps lyrics which have been speculated as a possible reference to Jay-Z being unfaithful to his wife

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 ...

Release

"Blood on the Leaves" was released on June 18, 2013, as the seventh track on West's sixth studio album ''Yeezus''. According to Mohawke, "Blood on the Leaves" was originally intended to be the album's opener instead of " On Sight", but was changed "at the last minute" due to "the message On Sight"puts across that 'Yeezus''is a very different record." In November 2013, Mohawke announced via

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 ...

that the song was to-be released as the next single for the album, after "

Bound 2 "Bound 2" is a song by American rapper Kanye West, featured as the final track from his sixth studio album, ''Yeezus'' (2013). It was produced by West and Che Pope, with additional production being handled by Eric Danchick, Noah Goldstein, No I ...

" in August 2013. That same month, West subsequently announced the release during an appearance on 92.3 NOW. David Lynch stated his intentions to direct a

for "Blood on the Leaves" due to his fondness for the song, but plans were abandoned after Lynch "never got nyideas."

Critical reception

The song received universal acclaim from music critics, with many commenting on its lyrical message and praising its samples. When reviewing the album for ''

HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's current president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head Of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. ''HipHopDX'' is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group. ...

'', Justin Hunte wrote that "Blood on the Leaves" is " heone song rom ''Yeezus''that must be heard immediately." The staff of ''Popdust'' rated the song three and a half out of five, describing it as "an epic Yeezy tale about a relationship gone sour over issues of money and celebrity and bad timing and possibly even an unwanted child, depending on how you interpret the final verse." The song was branded by Jon Dolan of ''

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

'' as being "a buzzing, bluesy, static-y track." The song impressed director

: "I think it's one of the most modern pieces and so minimal, so powerful but at the same time so beautiful. It's a great, great song." Gil Kaufman of '' MTV'' called "Blood on the Leaves": "a churning anthem about conspicuous consumption" and: " nexample of West's signature dichotomy in which he melds the sacred and profane." The original version of Nina Simone's "Strange Fruit" recorded by Billie Holiday in 1939 has been deemed: "shorthand for music that deals with racial injustice." Ryan Dombal of ''

'' called the song the "album pinnacle" and "a nightmarish story of divorce and betrayal," while Jody Rosen of ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including Condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and ...

'' stated that: " est iswell aware how audacious to interpolate that sacred song into a monstrously self-pitying ... a melodrama about what a drag it is when your side-piece won't abort your love child." Nicholas Troester of

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization ...

magazine ''

First Things ''First Things'' (''FT'') is an ecumenical and conservative religious journal aimed at "advanc nga religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society". The magazine, which focuses on theology, liturgy, church history, religious ...

'' labeled the song as an "anti-abortion anthem" and thought the focus of the song is: "the tremendous selfishness of adults who cannot understand the importance of families or children."

Accolades

The song was named among the best tracks of 2013 by multiple publications. ''

'' ranked the song at number 20 on their list of the 100 Best Songs of 2013. ''

'' ranked the song at number 11 on their list of the 100 Best Songs of 2013, writing: "Blood on the Leaves", more than anything else on ''Yeezus'', melds repulsive content and magnetic music into a strike that leaves the taste of real blood in your mouth" and calling it "a conceptual enigma." '' XXL'' magazine ranked the song at number 24 on their list of the 25 best songs of 2013, writing: "Mixing personal memories of a menacing relationship with the horrors of lynching for a record is often looked at as a blasphemous feat at first—but Kanye West made the combination work. Sampling Nina Simone's 'Strange Fruit', West's 'Blood on the Leaves'...was a gorgeous metaphor of a failed relationship touted with bass, towering horns, and auto-tune effect reminiscent of ''' 808s & Heartbreak'''." ''Spectrum Culture'' named it the 23rd best song of 2013, commenting;"it’s singles like “Blood on the Leaves” that offer fans a glimpse into the fears and insecurities of an artist who seems to always put forth a confident demeanour." '' Time Out'' listed "Blood on the Leaves" as West's 12th greatest song in March 2018. In 2019, ''Pitchfork'' ranked "Blood on the Leaves" at number 155 on their list of the 200 best songs of the 2010s, writing, "

he song He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

is a microcosm of what made Kanye both great and awful this decade", praising its beat, samples, vocals, and lyrics. ''Rolling Stone'' placed it at 75 on its list of the 100 best songs of the 2010s.

Commercial performance

Upon the album's release, the track charted at number 91 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and disappeared from the chart afterwards until making a re-entry at its peak position of number 89 on September 14, 2013. The track charted at number 28 on the US ''Billboard''

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 ...

chart initially, then went on to peak at number 27 in the same week as reaching its peak position on the Hot 100 and spent a total of five weeks on the chart. "Blood on the Leaves" was certified Gold in the

in 2015, despite West releasing no album that year. It was later certified Platinum in the

in 2018. In France, the track debuted at number 131 on the SNEP chart upon the release of ''Yeezus''. It entered at number 174 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top ...

Live performances

West performed the song live at the

. He was originally supposed to perform "

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 ...

", though changed to performing "Blood on the Leaves" instead shortly before the show. The performance was notable for its minimal lighting and forest-themed backdrop. Moments before taking the stage, West posted a photo of the backcloth on Twitter with the caption; "it's a tree that was used for lynching." Later he posted a message on his website, "This tree was used for lynching. Those who were murdered are buried in the ground around the tree. Blood on the leaves." The song was performed live by West on '' Later... with Jools Holland'' in September 2013; this performance was singled out for praise by Bruce Springsteen during an interview with NPR, who called it "fantastic". West omitted Jay-Z's name from the song's lyrics when performing it live at the

X Games Austin 2014 X Games Austin 2014 was an action sporting event that took place over June 5–8, 2014, at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. Another Venue used for the event was the Austin 360 Amphitheater. While the Summer X Games in past years wa ...

Music Festival, where his name was also omitted from the lyrics of "

Cold Cold is the presence of low temperature, especially in the atmosphere. In common usage, cold is often a subjective perception. A lower bound to temperature is absolute zero, defined as 0.00K on the Kelvin scale, an absolute thermodynamic ...

". Other live performances include

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...

in June 2015 and on the Saint Pablo Tour in August 2016.

Cover version and remixes

American musician Raury covered the song during his appearance on

Hot 97 WQHT (97.1 FM, ''Hot 97'') is a commercial radio station, licensed to New York, New York, which broadcasts an urban contemporary music format. The station is owned by Mediaco Holding and operated by Emmis Communications under a shared service ...

in September 2014. A version titled "Blood on the Leaves (DOGMA remix)" was released in June 2013, which includes Nina Simone's vocals being mashed. American rapper

Waka Flocka Flame Juaquin James Malphurs (born May 31, 1986), known professionally as Waka Flocka Flame, is an American rapper. Signing to 1017 Brick Squad and Warner Bros. Records in 2009, he became a mainstream artist with the release of his singles " O Let' ...

freestyled over the song's instrumental in May 2014 as part of his weekly series of freestyles every Monday, leading up to the release of his third studio album ''Flockaveli 2''. A remix of the song was shared by

Nicolas Jaar Nicolas Jaar (; ; es, Nicolás; born January 10, 1990) is a Chilean-American composer and recording artist based in New York. Among his notable works are the albums ''Space Is Only Noise'' (2011), ''Sirens'' (2016), and '' Cenizas'' (2020). He ...

in February 2016. American rapper YvngxChris used a similar chop of this sample for his song of the same name as Ye's song, which blew up on

TikTok TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes. TikTok is an international version ...

and would eventually get a remix with SSGKobe, Kashdami, UnoTheActivist, and Ken Carson.

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the ''Yeezus'' liner notes. * Kanye West – songwriter, producer * Ross Bichard – songwriter, producer * Elon Rutberg – songwriter * Malik Jones – songwriter * Tony Williams – songwriter * Cydel Young – songwriter * Mike Dean – songwriter, additional producer * Lewis Allen – songwriter *

– producer * Carlos Broady – co-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 Eastche ...

– additional producer * Arca – additional producer * Noah Goldstein – engineer, mixer at Shangri-La Studios, Malibu, CA * Anthony Kilhoffer – engineer * Marc Portheau – assistant engineer * Khoi Huynh – assistant engineer * Raoul Le Pennec – assistant engineer * Nabil Essemlani – assistant engineer * Damien Prost – assistant engineer * Keith Parry – assistant engineer * Kenta Yonesaka – assistant engineer * David Rowland – assistant engineer * Sean Oakley – assistant engineer, assistant mixer * Eric Lynn – assistant engineer, assistant mixer * Dave "Squirrel" Covell – assistant engineer, assistant mixer * Josh Smith – assistant engineer, assistant mixer

Charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2013 songs Anti-abortion movement in the United States Industrial songs Kanye West songs Nina Simone Song recordings produced by Hudson Mohawke Song recordings produced by Kanye West Song recordings produced by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs about abortion Songs written by Cyhi the Prynce Songs written by Hudson Mohawke Songs written by Kanye West Songs written by Mike Dean (record producer)