"Ghost Town" | |
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Song by Kanye West | |
from the album Ye | |
Released | June 1, 2018 |
Recorded | October 31, 2017 – June 1, 2018 |
Studio | West Lake Ranch, Jackson Hole, Wyoming |
Genre | Experimental hip hop |
Length | 4:31 |
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Producer(s) |
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"Ghost Town" is a song by American rapper Kanye West from his eighth studio album, Ye (2018). The song features vocals from PartyNextDoor, Kid Cudi, and 070 Shake. It was produced by West, co-produced by Mike Dean, and features additional production from Francis and the Lights, Benny Blanco, and Noah Goldstein. The song is a hip-hop track that features psychedelic elements. It is composed around a sample of "Take Me for a Little While", performed by the Royal Jesters, and also includes a sample of "Someday", performed by Shirley Ann Lee.
The mind of West is demonstrated as going through the unraveling process within "Ghost Town", which is connected to mental illness, and West's verse features him gargling unfinished thoughts. The song received universal acclaim from music critics and was mostly named by them as one of the album's highlights, with general praise from critics going towards 070 Shake's outro. A number of them complimented the lush composition of the song, though some critics expressed somewhat mixed opinions of West's verse. The song was included in end-of-year lists for 2018 by multiple publications, including Consequence and NME.
"Ghost Town" reached number 16 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 2018, while peaking at numbers 14 and 17 on the NZ Singles Chart and UK Singles Chart, respectively. The song has since been certified double platinum and gold in the United States and the United Kingdom by the Recording Industry Association of America and the British Phonographic Industry, respectively. West and Kid Cudi have delivered multiple joint performances of the song, including performing it on Saturday Night Live and at the Coachella Music Festival in 2018 and 2019, respectively. The song was covered by both BadBadNotGood and Jungle in 2018. A sequel to the song was released by West and Kid Cudi, as Kids See Ghosts, under the title "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" on their eponymous debut studio album (2018). The sequel features an interpolation of lyrics from the song.