| "Gold Digger" | ||||
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&sq=&lang=&file=File:Gold_Digger.jpg) Cover art for the CD release of "Gold Digger" | ||||
| Single by Kanye West featuring Jamie Foxx | ||||
| from the album Late Registration | ||||
| Released | July 5, 2005 | |||
| Recorded | 2004–2005 | |||
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| Genre | Pop rap | |||
| Length | 3:28 | |||
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| Kanye West singles chronology | ||||
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| Jamie Foxx singles chronology | ||||
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| "Gold Digger" on YouTube | ||||
"Gold Digger" is a song by American rapper Kanye West, featuring singer Jamie Foxx, from West's second studio album, Late Registration (2005). The song includes additional vocals from Plain Pat and Don C. West created the beat in Atlanta. He and Jon Brion produced the song. It was originally set to be recorded for Shawnna's debut studio album, Worth Tha Weight (2004), but the song was later passed on to West. On July 5, 2005, it was released to American rhythmic contemporary radio stations by Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam as the second single from West's album. The song set a record for the most digital downloads in a week, selling over 80,000.
A pop rap song, "Gold Digger" samples Ray Charles's "I Got a Woman" (1954), mainly the line "she give me money when I'm in need". Lyrically, Foxx sets the stage by detailing how he was taken by a gold digger and West raps in each verse about the behaviors and characteristics of one, alluding to a woman who tricked him. The song received widespread acclaim from music critics, who often praised the composition. Some complimented the lyrical content and Foxx's feature, while a few critics highlighted the sample. The song was named to year-end lists for 2005 by multiple publications, including Eye Weekly, NME, and Pazz & Jop, the latter of which it was voted the single of the year. Numerous outlets have placed it on retrospective lists, such as VH1 and Rolling Stone. At the 48th Annual Grammy Awards, the song won Best Rap Solo Performance and also received a nomination for Record of the Year.
"Gold Digger" topped the US Billboard Hot 100, ARIA Singles Chart, and NZ Singles Chart, becoming West's second number-one single on the Hot 100, and his first on the latter two charts. The song reached the top 50 in nine other countries, such as Ireland and the United Kingdom. On Billboard's 60th anniversary in 2018, it was ranked the 70th biggest Hot 100 hit of all time. Having since been certified octuple platinum in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the song places among the highest certified digital singles in the US. It has also been awarded quadruple platinum certifications in Australia and the UK by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) and British Phonographic Industry (BPI), respectively.
An accompanying music video was released in the summer of 2005, directed by Hype Williams. Throughout the video, pin-up girls and moving magazine covers appear alongside West and Foxx. It was nominated in multiple categories at 2006 MTV award shows, including Best Male Video and Favorite Video at the MTV Video Music Awards and MTV Asia Awards, respectively. West performed the song at the MTV Video Music Awards, Grammy Awards, Brit Awards and Saturday Night Live. In retrospect, West admitted he did not like "Gold Digger" and only made the song to earn money. It was covered live by the Automatic on numerous occasions, which included the 2006 Reading and Leeds Festivals. The song was covered by Will Schuester and New Directions for the second episode of Glee, "Showmance" (2009).