"Kick, Push" is the first single released from

Lupe Fiasco Wasalu Muhammad Jaco (born February 16, 1982), better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco ( ), is an American rapper, record producer and Music education, music educator. Born and raised in Chicago, he gained mainstream recognition for his gue ...

's debut album, '' Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor''. It was written by Lupe Fiasco and Soundtrakk, who also produced the song. It describes a love story between a male and a female misfit

skateboarder Skateboarding is an action sport that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry job, and a method of transportation. Originating in the United Stat ...

s. It has been referred to as "a needle in hip hop's haystack of complacent songs." Lupe Fiasco has clarified, "...I'm not a skater and I don't want to keep putting on the faces of people who've been skating for 20 years and actually lived out "Kick, Push". The song's backing track is built around a sample of the instrumental intro of the 1982 song "Bolero Medley" by

Filipina Filipinos () are citizens or people identified with the country of the Philippines. Filipinos come from various Austronesian peoples, all typically speaking Filipino, English, or other Philippine languages. Despite formerly being subject to ...

singer

Celeste Legaspi Celeste Kalugdan Legaspi-Gallardo (born March 18, 1950) is a Filipino singer, actress, film and theatre producer. She is an advocate for the rights of the artists. Her singles and albums reached gold or platinum status during the 1960s, 1970s ...

. The song appears in video games '' NBA Live 07'', ''

Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam ''Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam'' is a skateboarding video game in the ''Tony Hawk's'' series. The game, named after the level "Downhill Jam" from ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater'', was published by Activision in 2006 as a timed Nintendo exclusive for the N ...

'', '' MLB The Show 25'' and ''

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4'' is a 2025 skateboarding video game developed by Iron Galaxy and published by Activision. Similar to Vicarious Visions' predecessor ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2'', it is a remake of '' Pro Skater 3'' (2001) and ' ...

''. Lupe performed this song (among others) live in 2025 as part of the latter game's first-ever THPS Fest in Los Angeles.

Awards and accolades

"Kick, Push" was nominated for

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

in 2007 for

Best Rap Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance was awarded from 1991 to 2011, alongside the Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Previously, a single award was presented for Best Rap Performance. In 2003, this award was split into separate a ...

and

Best Rap Song The Grammy Award for Best Rap Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rap music genre. Honors in several c ...

. It lost the first to

T.I. Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. (born September 25, 1980), known professionally as T.I. or Tip, is an American rapper and singer raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Harris is credited as a pioneer of the hip hop subgenre trap music, along with fellow Georgi ...

's " What You Know", and the second to

Ludacris Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, spoken as "ludicrous" in American English), is an American rapper and songwriter. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludacris moved to Atlanta, Georgia, at age ...

' "

Money Maker "Money Maker" is a song written and performed by American rapper Ludacris featuring Pharrell Williams. It was released to the radio on July 17, 2006 as the first single from Ludacris's fifth album ''Release Therapy''. Produced by Williams and Chad ...

". It was listed at #15 on

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered Alternative rock, alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres includin ...

's "The Top 100 Tracks of 2006" list and was also voted #72 on

About.com Dotdash Meredith (formerly The Mining Company, About.com and Dotdash) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, hom ...

's ''Top 100 Rap Songs''.

Remixes and freestyles

The official remix of the song features

Pharrell Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973), also known mononymously as Pharrell, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and fashion designer. He first became known as one half of the music production duo ...

, it was included the CD single of his 3rd single, " Daydreamin'".

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals and creatures * A male duck * Drake (mythology), a term related to and often synonymous with dragon People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family ...

made his own remix of the song and featured it on his 2006 mixtape '' Room for Improvement''.

Chamillionaire Hakeem Temidayo Seriki (born November 28, 1979), better known by his stage name Chamillionaire (), is an American rapper. He began his career in Houston's hip hop scene in the late 1990s. He was briefly signed with the local record label Swishah ...

also released a freestyle titled ''The Greatest'' on his ''

Mixtape Messiah 4 ''Mixtape Messiah 4'' is the fourth mixtape by American rapper Chamillionaire in his '' Mixtape Messiah'' series. It is a two-disc set that was released on August 27, 2008.Reid, Shaheem (2008)Fabolous Wants Swizz Beatz, Ryan Leslie To Go Loso's ...

''.

Young Buck David Darnell Brown (born March 15, 1981), better known by his stage name Young Buck, is an American rapper. He signed with Birdman's Cash Money Records in 1997, formed the hip hop collective UTP with Juvenile and Soulja Slim in 2000, and j ...

did a short Remix of the Song on the mixtape ''RBK Artist Spotlight Vol. 1''.

Bassnectar Lorin Gabriel Ashton (born February 16, 1978), better known under his stage name Bassnectar, is an American Disc jockey, DJ and electronic music producer. With a career spanning several decades, Bassnectar has gained recognition for his innova ...

has also released a remix of this song.

Track listing

*CD: 1 #"Kick, Push" #"Tilted" (non-album track) *CD: 2 #"Kick, Push" #"Spazz Out" (non-album track) #"Kick, Push" (MyTone ringtone) #"Kick, Push" (Video) *12" Vinyl #"Kick, Push" (album version) #"Kick, Push" (instrumental) #"Kick, Push" (a cappella) #"Titled" (non-album track)

Charts

Certifications

References

External links

* {{authority control 2006 songs 2006 debut singles Lupe Fiasco songs Songs written by Lupe Fiasco Atlantic Records singles