Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)
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"Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" is a song by American hip hop duo
Kids See Ghosts Kids See Ghosts (stylized in all-caps) was an American hip hop music, hip hop duo (music), duo composed of musicians Kanye West and Kid Cudi. Formed in 2018 during West’s Kanye West#2017–2019: Ye and the Wyoming Sessions, Wyoming sessions, ...
, composed of the rappers
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 ...
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 ...
, from their eponymous debut album (2018). The song features a guest appearance from American musician Ty Dolla Sign. It is the sequel to West's song "
Ghost Town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...
" from his eighth studio album, '' Ye'' (2018). The former was produced by West and Kid Cudi, with co-production from Mike Dean, Jeff Bhasker, and BoogzDaBeast, while additional production was handled by Andrew Dawson, Andy C, and Russell "Love" Crews. Apart from BoogzDaBeast, the lead and co-producers wrote the song alongside Ty Dolla Sign and Corin Littler, who has the stage name of Mr. Chop and received songwriting credit due to his work being sampled. A
rap rock Rap rock is a fusion genre that fuses vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with various forms of rock. Rap rock's most popular subgenres include rap metal and rapcore, which include heavy metal and hardcore punk-oriented influences, resp ...
number with
psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...
elements, "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" samples "Stark" by Mr. Chop and an excerpt of a speech by Marcus Garvey. In the lyrics, Kids See Ghosts demonstrate recovering from mental illness and represent liberation. The song received universal acclaim from music critics, who generally expressed highly positive opinions of the composition. Some praised the vocals, while other critics appreciated the song's creativity. It was submitted for the
61st Annual Grammy Awards The 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 10, 2019, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Singer-songwriter Alicia Keys hosted. During her opening monologue, Keys brought out Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and fo ...
, though ultimately failed to receive any nominations at the ceremony. "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" charted at number 62 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, while it reached number 58 on the
Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record chart in Canada; a n ...
. The duo and Ty Dolla Sign performed the song at the
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. ...
in 2019. Ronald Oslin Bobb-Semple issued a lawsuit over the song in March 2019, pressing the accusation of exploiting "The Spirit of Marcus Garvey (Garvey speaks to an all-Black audience)" without permission or payment. Kids See Ghosts and their co-defendants responded three months later, arguing fair use and that there was nothing wrong with the duo's actions, later reaching a settlement with Bobb-Semple in January 2020.


Background and development

On April 19, 2018,
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 ...
announced a collaborative album with
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 ...
. The album was revealed as being titled ''Kids See Ghosts'' by West, with him setting its release date as June 8, 2018. Kid Cudi had been featured on a number of tracks by West prior to the announcement, including "
Welcome to Heartbreak "Welcome to Heartbreak" is a song by American record producer and vocalist Kanye West from his fourth studio album, ''808s & Heartbreak'' (2008). The song features a guest appearance from Kid Cudi on his debut collaboration with West, as well a ...
" (2008) and "
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" (2010). West released his eighth studio album '' Ye'' on June 1, 2018, with vocals from Kid Cudi included on the tracks "
No Mistakes "No Mistakes" is a song by American rapper Kanye West from his eighth studio album, '' Ye'' (2018). The song features vocals from Kid Cudi, Charlie Wilson and Caroline Shaw. It was produced by West, while co-produced by Che Pope and Shaw, with ...
" and "
Ghost Town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...
". The album also features additional vocals from Ty Dolla Sign on " All Mine", " Wouldn't Leave" and " Violent Crimes". On June 4, 2018, the musician teased a joint album with West. The rapper had expressed a desire to collaborate on an album four days previously, calling himself and Ty Dolla Sign "one of the best combinations ever" while affirming that he is simply "trying to go week after week and improve on the craft". West elaborated, naming the collaborator among "the strongest artists we have living" and admitting that "anything I can do to support, get around, produce, take my hands and chop up I'm with it". Ty Dolla Sign later recalled "going off on the backgrounds, no
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-Tu ...
" when working with West in a phone conversation with ''
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 ...
'' on August 30, 2018. West went on to contribute a feature to his
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 ...
" Ego Death", released in July 2020. "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" serves as the sequel to "Ghost Town", but credits Kids See Ghosts as the lead performers and Ty Dolla Sign as a featured artist. This differs from the prequel crediting West as the lead artist and Kid Cudi, PartyNextDoor, and
070 Shake Danielle Balbuena (born June 13, 1997), better known by her stage name 070 Shake, is an American hip hop recording artist. 070 Shake is a part of the musical collective 070, who have released a mixtape together titled ''The 070 Project: Chapter ...
as additional vocalists. The titles of ''Kids See Ghosts'' and the track, respectively, are part of a "spooky-ghost routine" that is continued from "Ghost Town"; the album also includes a song of the same name. "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" includes an
interpolation In the mathematical field of numerical analysis, interpolation is a type of estimation, a method of constructing (finding) new data points based on the range of a discrete set of known data points. In engineering and science, one often has a n ...
of lyrics from the song. Fellow album track " 4th Dimension" also shows continuity of the prequel, with both of the tracks sampling
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...
singer Shirley Ann Lee's "Someday". Prior to combining rap and
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
, both members of Kids See Ghosts had shown admiration for guitar artists. The genres had previously been compared by West in an interview with
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 current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
host
Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reid Lowe (born 7 August 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence thro ...
, during which he said of rappers: "We the new rock stars and I'm the biggest of all of them!" West rapped nonsense words on his single "
Lift Yourself "Lift Yourself" is a song by American rapper Kanye West. West wrote the song alongside James Massie and Ben Winters, and produced it with additional production from Mike Dean. The song was debuted on April 27, 2018, through West's website and ...
" in April 2018, before he re-used the song's "whoop! Scoop!" phrases on GOOD Music president Pusha T's " What Would Meek Do?" the following month. "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" was produced by West and Kid Cudi, while co-produced by Mike Dean, Jeff Bhasker, and BoogzDaBeast, with additional production being handled by Andrew Dawson alongside Andy C and Russell "Love" Crews. The lead producers and co-producers, with the exception of BoogzDaBeast, co-wrote the track with Ty Dolla Sign and Corin Littler; the latter of the two is known under the stage name of Mr. Chop and was credited as a songwriter due to his recording "Stark" (2008) being sampled. The sampling of Mr. Chop stood among West's numerous samples taken from the
record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
Now-Again Records Now-Again Records is a Los Angeles–based music imprint that specializes in reissues and compilations of funk, soul, and psychedelic rock from the 1960s to the 1980s. Founded in 2002 by Eothen "Egon" Alapatt as a subsidiary of Stones Throw Record ...
in the Summer of 2018.


Composition and lyrics

Musically, "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" is a
rap rock Rap rock is a fusion genre that fuses vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with various forms of rock. Rap rock's most popular subgenres include rap metal and rapcore, which include heavy metal and hardcore punk-oriented influences, resp ...
number, with
psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...
elements. The song is built around a chopped up sample of "Stark", written and performed by Mr. Chop. An
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...
riff is taken from the recording. For the intro of the song, an excerpt from a speech by black nationalist Marcus Garvey is sampled alongside "Stark". According to ''
Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...
''s Zoe Camp, Garvey's proclamation "lays the track's liberating themes bare". Drums are heavily featured, which are distorted. The song also includes percussion, a
cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...
, and an
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
; the latter of the three was played by Zack Djurich. It contains voice modulation, as well as
off-key Off-key is musical content that is not at the expected frequency or pitch period, either with respect to some absolute reference frequency, or in a ratiometric sense (i.e. through removal of exactly one degree of freedom, such as the frequency of ...
cries. West and Kid Cudi trade turns to perform for the chorus, which includes the former of the two yelling. They are followed by Ty Dolla Sign and a gospel choir, with him harmonizing as the song's beat drops out. In the lyrics of "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)", Kids See Ghosts demonstrate the recovery from mental illness and showcase liberation. On the chorus, a message of it being acceptable to not feel okay is conveyed. "Nothing hurts me anymore / Guess what, baby? I feel freeeee", proclaim both members of Kids See Ghosts separately, interpolating 070 Shake's lyrics "And nothing hurts any more / I feel kind of free" from "Ghost Town", as well as representing freedom in a triumphant moment. The word "free" is stretched out vocally through extra e's being used to echo the song title, with
reverberation Reverberation (also known as reverb), in acoustics, is a persistence of sound, after a sound is produced. Reverberation is created when a sound or signal is reflected causing numerous reflections to build up and then decay as the sound is abso ...
being applied to it. West re-uses the nonsensical "Scoop!" phrase from "Lift Yourself", shouting it on the song.


Release and promotion

"Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" replaced "Ghost Town" as the fourth track on Kids See Ghosts' eponymous debut studio album, released on June 8, 2018. On the day of the album's release, multiple tracks were mislabeled on
streaming services An over-the-top media service is a streaming media service offered directly to viewers via the Internet. OTT bypasses cable, broadcast, and satellite television platforms, the companies that traditionally act as a controller or distributors of s ...
as the result of a technical error, though "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" was the exception to the error. As part of their first show billed as Kids See Ghosts, the duo delivered a performance of the song at the 2018 Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival. The song was the fifth track of their set, though it was the fourth track that they released under the Kids See Ghosts moniker to be performed. The duo were backed by visuals that featured pulsating bright colors for their performance inside a transparent box, and rapper Tyler, the Creator sang along with the line "I feel freeeee" while in the crowd. Kids See Ghosts went on to perform "Ghost Town" as the closer to their set, during which the crowd sang along with the line "I feel kinda free." For Kid Cudi's weekend two set at the 2019
Coachella Music Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert ...
, he brought out West at the Sahara Tent as a surprise. They were joined by Ty Dolla Sign to perform a rendition of "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)", with Kid Cudi taking running jumps across the stage at multiple points. After the performance, Kids See Ghosts delivered a rendition of "Ghost Town".


Critical reception

The song was met with universal acclaim from music critics, with strong praise for the composition. Jack Hamilton of ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
'' categorized the song as the "most fun and exuberant track" on ''Kids See Ghosts'', labeling it heavily comparable to English musician
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
's work because of the "booming walls of vocals, gnashing distortion, and thundering drums". Christopher R. Weingarten of ''Rolling Stone'' expressed certainty in "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" being "fantastic", hailing it as " gorgeously arranged" like tracks on 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) "with a more spontaneous feel". Writing for ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'', Chuck Arnold voiced a similar viewpoint; he remarked that the song "is the
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type of wide-screen soundscape" as the album's tracks, while also stating there is "a liberating rush" from being able to feel "demons being kicked to the curb". Spencer Kornhaber from ''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'' commented how the song and "Ghost Town" are "a duo" that he considered to be the standout tracks of their respective albums, noticing the songs "roil with peeling guitar, off-key yowls, and drunken drumming". Kornhaber further praised the song for building on "a crunchy
funk-rock Funk rock is a fusion genre that mixes elements of funk and Rock music, rock. James Brown and others declared that Little Richard and his mid-1950s road band, The Upsetters (American band), The Upsetters, were the first to put the funk in the r ...
tune from ..Mr. Chop", alongside highlighting Ty Dolla Sign's performance and West's vocals that differ from his. NPR's Sidney Madden wrote Mr. Chop's sampled "soaring electric guitar riff" backs the "declarations of freedom" from West and Kid Cudi on "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" that "erupt into an all-out rebel yell", as well as commenting how the sample resembles "fuzzed-out
psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...
of the
'70s File:1970s decade montage.jpg, Clockwise from top left: U.S. President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office following the Watergate scandal in 1974; The United States was still involved in the Vietnam War i ...
". At '' Pitchfork'',
Jayson Greene Jayson Greene (born ) is an American author, music critic and editor. He has served as a senior editor of online music magazine ''Pitchfork'' and is the author of ''Once More We Saw Stars'' a memoir about the death of his two-year-old daughter in ...
said that while "a buzzing cello pecks at its tendons and the distorted drums smash into bone" on the song, the listener is left with contemplation of "the scary sort of freedom West prizes". He elaborated, noting it is "the freedom of mania" where you allow your mind to "gallop off its leash in as many directions at once" and that the song can give anyone with experience of this type of freedom "a pang of recognition in this exhilaration". For ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', Dean Van Nguyen assured the song is the "undoubted centrepiece" of ''Kids See Ghosts'', analyzing that it is "an acid-laced trip into bohemian spiritualism". Van Nguyen admitted that with rap rock crossovers being generally "execrable", he cannot envision West making the song "without Cudi in the booth to summon the spirit of flower power". ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' critic Jordan Bassett picked the "defiant" interpolation of "Ghost Town" on the chorus as a stand out on the album. For ''
Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...
'', Riley Wallace stated the song fully shows West and Kid Cudi on "their journeys to bettering themselves" via "the power of positivity" as "the two notoriously creative, controversial and often elusive artists" seem to shed "the demons, shackles and negativity" that troubles them. He continued, analyzing that the duo move forward "with a clear state of mind", and noticing their "childlike innocence and fearlessness". In ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'', Marty Sartini Garner called the song a " barbaric yawp" that continues "Ghost Town" and "aims to blast through any ambiguities", noting both members of Kids See Ghosts "sound as big and bold and alive as they ever have". He went on to highlight the beat's "brash power" for coming across "like an exclamation point at the end of a very long and digressive sentence", though was unhappy with the intention of it being "seen as a statement" due to it feeling "hard to shake the idea that you're joining in a dubious celebration" because West is unclear about what he's free from.


Accolades

''NME'' ranked "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" as the 20th best song of 2018, with the publication's Dan Stubbs hailing it as a "standout track" from West's Wyoming Sessions. He further called the track "an empowering blast of booming vocals, thunderous drums" and West's "liberal shouts" of "''Scoop!''", arguing that the use of the catchphrase may be West's "most admirable contribution to 2018's cultural melee". It was listed as the 98th best song of 2018 by ''Spin'', while also being named by ''The Guardian'' music journalist Harriet Gibsone as one of the best tracks of the year. In July 2020, ''Cool Accidents'' placed Ty Dolla Sign's appearance among his 11 best guest features. On October 25, 2018, it was reported that West's team had submitted the song for consideration in the categories of Best Rock Song and
Best Rock Performance The Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide it is designed for s ...
at the
61st Annual Grammy Awards The 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 10, 2019, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Singer-songwriter Alicia Keys hosted. During her opening monologue, Keys brought out Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and fo ...
. According to
TMZ TMZ is a tabloid news website owned by Fox Corporation. It made its debut on November 8, 2005, originally as a collaboration between AOL and Telepictures, a division of Warner Bros., until Time Warner divested AOL in 2009. On September 13, 202 ...
, the song had already gone through the screening process for the categories at the time and "since been sent out on the first round ballot to voters", with the submissions awaiting enough support to be nominated. However, the song was ultimately nominated in neither of the categories at the ceremony.


Commercial performance

Upon the release of ''Kids See Ghosts'', "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" entered the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 62. Simultaneously, the song debuted at number 30 on the US
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. In Canada, it peaked at number 58 on the
Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record chart in Canada; a n ...
. Elsewhere, the song reached number 72 in Australia on the
ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
. It further charted at numbers 66 and 72 on the
Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...
and Singles Digitál Top 100 in Ireland and Slovakia, respectively.


Lawsuit

On March 7, 2019, Ronald Oslin Bobb-Semple sued the duo, Ty Dolla Sign, and record labels
Def Jam 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 ...
and
Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, Dutch law. UMG's cor ...
for the song's alleged sampling of his recording "The Spirit of Marcus Garvey (Garvey speaks to an all-Black audience)" (2002). Court documents obtained by ''The Blast'' and TMZ saw him accuse them of exploitation of "the actual voice, words and performance" with lack of authorization or monetary compensation and state that he hadn't been given any of the profit made from "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)". Bobb-Semple further noted Kids See Ghosts and Ty Dolla Sign had received "substantial profits", and that he wanted a "fair cut". The damages sought by Bobb-Semple were reportedly unspecified and a warning was sent out to Kids See Ghosts, Ty Dolla Sign, and the record labels to prevent them from still profiting off his work. At the time, neither of the two artists had issued any comments about his lawsuit. Kids See Ghosts went on to file a legal response to the lawsuit on June 4, 2019, with various co-defendants for their response, including Ty Dolla Sign, Def Jam, Universal Music, and West's record label GOOD Music. Bobb-Semple's infringement claim was denied by the defendants, with them asserting that the usage of the sample does actually classify as fair use despite not having obtained authorization to use it. They continued, arguing that even if copyright infringement was present, Kids See Ghosts' actions were "innocent and non-willful", and pointed out Bobb-Semple not having provided any facts to support the duo's "alleged willfulness". Kids See Ghosts made the accusation of Bobb-Semple's original complaint being "barred by the
First Amendment to the United States Constitution The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws that regulate an establishment of religion, or that prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the ...
" and characterized him as misusing copyright. West demanded for the case to be thrown out of court. It has been shown by West that he is not opposed to giving credit where it is due, with him having reached out to the estate of Louis Prima to clear a sample for "4th Dimension". In January 2020, the parties reached a settlement regarding the lawsuit.


Credits and personnel

Recording * Recorded at West Lake Ranch, Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Personnel *
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 ...
songwriter, production *
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 ...
songwriter, production * Mike Dean songwriter, co-production, mixer * Jeff Bhasker songwriter, co-production * Ty Dolla Sign songwriter, featured artist * Corbin Littler songwriter * BoogzDaBeast co-production * Andrew Dawson additional production, engineer * Andy C additional production * Russel "Love" Crews additional production * Zack Djurich engineer, acoustic guitar * Mike Malchicoff engineer * William J. Sullivan engineer * Nico Agliettico engineer * Jenna Felsenthal assistant engineer * Jess Jackson mixer * Sean Solymar assistant mixer Information taken from the ''Kids See Ghosts'' liner notes and
Tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * Tidal (album), ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * ...
.


Charts


See also

*
Lift Yourself "Lift Yourself" is a song by American rapper Kanye West. West wrote the song alongside James Massie and Ben Winters, and produced it with additional production from Mike Dean. The song was debuted on April 27, 2018, through West's website and ...


Notes


References

{{authority control 2018 songs Kanye West songs Kid Cudi songs Rap rock songs Song recordings produced by Jeff Bhasker Song recordings produced by Kanye West Song recordings produced by Kid Cudi Song recordings produced by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs written by Jeff Bhasker Songs written by Kanye West Songs written by Kid Cudi Songs written by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs written by Ty Dolla Sign Ty Dolla Sign songs Sequel songs